Kaivalagi


Kaivalagi is a Fijian word meaning someone "from the land of the foreigners". Its antonym, kaiviti, means "someone from Fiji". It is often used instead of the word vulagi, meaning foreigner or stranger. In practice, kaivalagi usually means "white person" or "European", whilst vulagi can include all non-Fijians.
Similar words for "white man" exist in most Melanesian, Polynesian and Micronesian languages: For example, in the Cook Islands - "Papa'a"; New Zealand - Pākehā; New Caledonian slang - "poken" ; Hawaii - "Haole"; Samoa - "Palagi"; Tonga - "Papalagi"; Marshall Islands - "ri-Likin" etc.