What does tapu mean?
Tapu is a chiefly New Zealand English word for something protected by a cultural, religious, or social rule against violation. In Māori and other Polynesian traditions, its sense is not simply “forbidden”: it can convey sacredness, inviolability, and a powerful obligation to behave appropriately toward people, places, objects, or periods. In English, tapu may be used as an adjective, as in “the site is tapu,” or as a noun for the restriction itself, as in “the carving was placed under tapu.” The term is most natural in discussion of Māori culture and te ao Māori, though speakers of other Pacific languages also use related forms and concepts. In ordinary English it can also mean taboo more generally, but that use may carry a broader, secular sense than the Polynesian original. Tapu is worth knowing because it names a boundary understood not merely as a rule but as a relationship involving respect, status, and responsibility.
A prohibition, restriction, or state of sacred inviolability imposed by cultural or religious custom; also a person, place, object, or period having such a status.
"Knowledge of the site's tapu was essential before the visit."
Often used with prepositions such as “under” when referring to the restriction or protected status of something.
Forbidden, protected, or inviolable under a cultural or religious restriction.
"Visitors were told that the pool was tapu and that they should not enter the water."
Especially associated with Māori usage in New Zealand; in other contexts it may be understood more broadly as “taboo.”
When treated as an English countable noun, tapu can be pluralized as tapus; it is also frequently used without a plural or in the phrase “under tapu.”
"The guide explained the different tapus associated with the coast."
Tapu turns “don’t touch” into a sacred obligation: a boundary backed by culture, respect, and consequence.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of tapu
English tapu was borrowed during the 19th century from Polynesian languages, especially Māori tapu. The Māori word continues Proto-Polynesian *tapu, denoting something sacred, inviolable, or prohibited. Related Austronesian forms include Hawaiian kapu and the tabu of Malay and Indonesian, reflecting a wider linguistic history of terms for culturally binding restrictions.
Related word forms
How tapu is actually used
The term is specialized and most natural in discussion of Māori culture, te ao Māori, anthropology, and Pacific studies. In Polynesian cultural contexts it should not be reduced to a merely secular prohibition or treated as interchangeable with any general word meaning “forbidden.”
Easily confused with tapu
Both can denote a prohibition, but tapu is chiefly a New Zealand form associated with Polynesian ideas of sacredness and inviolability, while taboo is the more general English term.