Akava'ine

An akava'ine or 'akava'ine is a Cook Islands Māori word used to describe transgender or transsexual women in the Cook Islands.

It can also refer to women who have an inflated opinion of themselves, draw attention to themselves in ways that disrupt groupness, don't heed others advice, or who act in a self-serving or self-promoting way.

Etymology

The term 'akava'ine is a prefix of "aka" (to be or to behave like) and "va'ine" (woman).

Antonym: 'akatāne - Act like a man, have manly qualities; be a tomboy.] Other terms

Sometimes the word laelae is also used, typically when implying criticism or ridicule of feminine behaviour displayed by a man, for example being described as effeminate or homosexual. Laelae is the colloquial Cook Islands term; the word tutuva'ine (meaning "like a woman") is used less frequently.[6] Homosexuality is illegal for males in the Cook Islands.[7] History

Culturally, akava'ines have been around for centuries. And they've always been part of the family, part of the village, and part of the tribe. But when the missionaries came, things changed quite dramatically for everyone in the Pacific Islands, and the Cook Islands were no exception. In the 1800s they started bringing in homophobic and transphobic attitudes.[8]