madrai

Fijian

Etymology

From Proto-Oceanic *madraʀ-i affixing *madraʀ (“to grow ripe”) related to *mara (“to spoil, to go foul (of food)”) — see also similar evolution in Tagalog tapay and tinapay. Doublet of madra and mara.

Noun

madrai

1. (archaic) fermented meal made from any starch such as plantains, tubers or fruit kernels stored in leaf-lined pits
   1. grain-based bread introduced by Westerners

References

• Gatty, Ronald (2009) “madrai”, in Fijian-English Dictionary, Suva, Fiji: Ronald Gatty, →ISBN, page 150
• Ross, Malcolm D., Pawley, Andrew, Osmond, Meredith (1998) The lexicon of Proto-Oceanic, volume 1: Material Culture, Canberra: Australian National University, →ISBN, pages 158-9