Proto Nuclear Polynesian: *Tī
REFLEXES IN SOME POLYNESIAN LANGUAGES:
Tongan: Sī (Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)
Niuean: Tī (Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)
Samoan: Tī, Lau tī (Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)
Marquesan: Tī (Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)
Hawaiian: Kī (Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)
Tahitian: 'autī (Plant), Tī (root, of Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)
Tuamotuan: Tī (Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)
Rarotongan: Rau tī, Tī (Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)
Maori: Tī (Cordyline spp. "Tī, Cabbage trees", Asparagaceae)

COGNATE REFLEXES IN SOME OTHER AUSTRONESIAN LANGUAGES
Palauan (Micronesia): Sis (Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)
Ava (Admiralty Islands): Ti (Dracaena sp., Asparagaceae)
Adzera (New Guinea): Jiji (Cordyline sp., Asparagaceae)
Wedau (Papua): Diri (Dracaena sp., Asparagaceae)
Molina (Papua): Dili (red Cordyline sp., Asparagaceae)
Gela (Solomon Islands): Dili (Dracaena sp., Asparagaceae)
Kwaio (Solomons): Dili (Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)
Chūk (Micronesia): Tīn (Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)
Rotuman (Fiji): Jī (Cordyline fruticosa, Asparagaceae)

Tī -- the Word and the Plants
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References and Acknowledgements

This is a word whose core meaning has remained fairly constant for over 5,000 years, despite comparatively minor changes in its form but major changes in the location of the people using it. Originally the Proto Malayo-Polynesian word *siRi was probably a generic term covering members of the genera Cordyline and Dracaena. This is not surprising, and the two genera are closely related and the habit of growth and appearance members of both genera is quite similar -- Cordyline species tend to have firmer, more arching or less floppy leaves than Dracaena, but otherwise their appearance is very similar, especially when not in flower. This generic meaning persisted through the Proto Oceanic period, but came to refer primarily to the two most significant species, Dracaena angustifolia (inset photo in the next paragraph) and Cordyline fruticosa (illustrated left). Both plants had (and continue to have) important ceremonial and practical uses in Oceanic cultures. For the Polynesians the word came to denote especially Cordyline fruticosa, which they carried with them to the furthest reaches of their settlement, in Hawaii and Aotearoa. It provided leaves which could be used for a wide variety of purposes, from wrapping food for transport or cooking, making rainware, temporary thatching, among many other purposes, and the rhizomacious roots could be baked to provide highly palatable emergency food or dessert.

Perhaps because of the importance of Cordline fruticosa, especially, in Polynesia, the Dracaena species have been rather overlooked. Dracaena angustifolia is very like Cordyline rubra or C. fruticosa in appearance, although with narrower, more tapering leaves, sometimes brightly coloured or striped. It was not a "canoe plant" and doesn't seem to have had much significance in Polynesia, but was important for medicinal and ceremonial purposes in parts of Melanesia. In some communities it was regarded as a sacred plant, with protective powers against pests, or enemies. In Indonesia, where it is known as suji, Dracaena angustifolia is used traditionally as a green colouring agent in local cuisine.It can grow to about 6 metres, twice the height of Cordyline fruticosa.

The botanical classification of the Tï (i.e. members of the genus Cordyline as a group) has become very controversial over the last few decades; firstly it was shifted, with the agreement of most taxonomists, from the Liliaceae (lily family) to the Agavaceae (agave family) -- so the New Zealand flora no longer had the world's largest lily (Cordyline australis). Others then proposed taking Cordyline and Dracaena from the Agavaceae and group them together in a new family, Dracaenaceae. Another possibility was to group the Cordylines with the aspagagi, but move Dracaena to yet another new family, the Ruscaceae, or, alternatively, place the Cordylines together with the arthropodiums (renga lily and its relatives) in yet another new family, the Laxmanniaceae. They might also have found a home with the astelias in the Asteliaceae. The consensus among New Zealand botanists now is that the genus should be included in the Asparagaceae (asparagus family), along with the agaves, renga lilies and dracaenas, which may give us the world's largest asparagus. (The astelias have for the moment retained their autonomy in the Asteliaceae.)

Interestingly, Cordyline fruticosa is now known around the world as the tï (tii), even where the local name is still used -- the modern Hawaiian reflex of Proto Polynesian tï is actually kï, but when speaking English even many Hawaiian residents refer to the plant as the "tï". I enquired about its name in a remote part of the Mindanao in the Philippines (where there are local names for Cordyline fruticosa in many languages), only to be told by everyone that it was a "tï", which was actually the only name that this plant was known by in the area -- so the Polynesian lexical variant has colonized at least parts of the Malayo-Polynesian homeland!

C. fruticosa is native from the Himalayas to northern Australia, and perhaps as far as western Polynesia. Many cultivars have been developed wherever it is grown; it has showy pink to white flowers and red berries, with leaves in various shades of green (the natural colour) and red, sometimes variegated. It is a common understory shrub from wet coastal forests to cloud forests, up to 1,000 m. or more above sea level on high islands, and even more common in gardens. In the Kermadec Islands, naturalized plants are found wild in more open situations (see photograph in the gallery, below). These plants were so well integrated into the Kermadec ecosystem that they were treated by the T.F. Cheeseman, the pioneer New Zealand botanist, as part of the indigenous flora. They are however relics of the early Polynesian expeditions to Aotearoa, who used the Kermadecs as a way-station on their journeys south. Birds are the main propagators, although some cultivars do not develop many fruit. The variety traditionally cultivated in Eastern Polynesia is green-leaved and generally sterile; it also flowers infrequently, so is propagated mainly by side-shoots and cuttings. This is the variety brought to Aotearoa. The ornamental varieties cultivated horticulturally in Hawaii and other parts of Eastern Polynesia are probably mostly based on later introductions from the West.

Although Cordyline fruticosa was valued for its decorative and culinary qualities, it also had many other practical uses. The leaves provided fibre for cordage, thatch, and mulch for supressing weeds. They continue to be used in Hawai'i and elsewhere as disposable plates and a sustainable alternative to plastic wrap. Prior to the arrival of Euro-American missionaries, the leaves were a major element in clothing in many parts of Polynesia. They are disposable and easily replaced after a few day's wear. In Tahiti they were used as work clothes, and in Samoa for every day wear. In Hawai'i and Rarotonga hula skirts were made from tī leaves. In Hawai'i the plant was considered to be favoured by the goddess Laka, patron of the hula; priests wore tī-leaf leis, and the leaves were also held to protect against evil spirits. Stones wrapped in tī leaf are still left at the beginning of a journey or at auspicious places along the way. They also provided the material for temporary sandals for crossing lava fields. The plant also has medicinal properties: in the Cook Islands the tips of shoots were mixed with castor oil to make an effective purgative, and an infusion of crushed leaves is useful for treating burns. The sap is also reputed to have medicinal properties.

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