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Origin: Pacific Islander

Meaning: eyes of the god

Connected to the world's oldest storytelling traditions, Mataalii is a gender-neutral name of Pacific Islander origin whose lineage is written in the stars. A variation of the Māori Matariki, Mataalii represents the Pleiades star cluster that forms part of the Taurus constellation. In Māori tradition, Matariki is the celebration of the cluster's first rising, marking the beginning of their new Lunar year. It's a time of honoring the past, replenishing for the future, and interpreting predictions from each individual star. Much like the Pleiades have inspired many myths in Western culture, Matariki holds sway in Māori as the eyes of the weather god Tāwhirimātea. In this regard, perhaps Mataalii is best understood as "eyes of the god" or simply as the stars themselves.