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mahi-mahi or mahimahi (MA-hee-ma-hee) - n., a large game fish (Coryphaena hippurus) found worldwide in tropical and temperate oceans, also called the common dolphinfish.
Thanks, WikiMedia!
Good eating, and eaten worldwide pretty much. We got the name from Hawaiian mahimahi, but it's also called that in related languages such as Tahitian, emphatic reduplication of mahi, strong.
And even though I've run this before, because I can't resist such a fun word, a bonus fish name: humuhumunukunukuapuaa (hoo-moo-hoo-moo-noo-koo-noo-koo-ah-poo-AH-ah) - n., the reef triggerfish (Rhinecantus rectangulus). This comes up surprisingly often (hat-tip to Octonauts) because it's Hawaii's state fish. In Hawaiian, humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa is a compound of humuhumu, triggerfish + nuku, snout + nuku, blunt + ā, conjunction between two adjectives + puaʻa, pig-like, so "triggerfish with a short, piglike snout." And no, I haven't found what triggerfish has a piglike snout that isn't short, making that an oddly specific name.
And with that, I'm finally done with words English acquired from Native languages of the New World. I'm taking next week off due to holiday chaos, and possibly the week after (we'll see how chaotic things are).
---L.
Thanks, WikiMedia!
Good eating, and eaten worldwide pretty much. We got the name from Hawaiian mahimahi, but it's also called that in related languages such as Tahitian, emphatic reduplication of mahi, strong.
And even though I've run this before, because I can't resist such a fun word, a bonus fish name: humuhumunukunukuapuaa (hoo-moo-hoo-moo-noo-koo-noo-koo-ah-poo-AH-ah) - n., the reef triggerfish (Rhinecantus rectangulus). This comes up surprisingly often (hat-tip to Octonauts) because it's Hawaii's state fish. In Hawaiian, humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa is a compound of humuhumu, triggerfish + nuku, snout + nuku, blunt + ā, conjunction between two adjectives + puaʻa, pig-like, so "triggerfish with a short, piglike snout." And no, I haven't found what triggerfish has a piglike snout that isn't short, making that an oddly specific name.
And with that, I'm finally done with words English acquired from Native languages of the New World. I'm taking next week off due to holiday chaos, and possibly the week after (we'll see how chaotic things are).
---L.
