Where does “tā” come from?

tā (Samoan) comes from Proto-Polynesian *ta, from Proto-Oceanic taʀaq, from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian taʀaq, from Proto-Austronesian taʀaq — hewing with an adze.

tā (Samoan): to strike, hit; fell, cut down; to adze, chip...

Definitions

  1. to strike, hit; fell, cut down; to adze, chip...

Ancestry of “tā”, step by step

tā traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Proto-Polynesian *ta

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-Polynesian*ta—
2Proto-Oceanictaʀaq—
3Proto-Malayo-Polynesiantaʀaqto hew wood with an adze
4Proto-Austronesiantaʀaqhewing with an adze

via Proto-Malayo-Polynesian (i-)kita

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-Malayo-Polynesian(i-)kitawe, us, our
2Proto-Austronesian(i-)kitawe, us, our
Every word from Proto-Austronesian taʀaq →Every word from Proto-Malayo-Polynesian taʀaq →Every word from Proto-Oceanic taʀaq →