Where does “vakalele” come from?

vakalele (Niuean) comes from Niuean lele, from Proto-Polynesian lele, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *laʀiv.

vakalele (Niuean): airplane

Definitions

  1. airplane

Ancestry of “vakalele”, step by step

vakalele traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Niuean lele

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Niueanlelefly
2Proto-Polynesianleleto fly
3Proto-Malayo-Polynesian*laʀiv—

via Niuean vaka

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Niueanvakacanoe
2Proto-Polynesianwakacanoe
Every word from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *laʀiv →Every word from Proto-Polynesian lele →Every word from Niuean lele →