kowhai

Meaning

Any of several small woody legume trees in the genus Sophora native to New Zealand that have yellow flowers. The national flower of New Zealand.

Synonyms

Sophora tetraptera

tea tree

Chinese scholar tree

Chinese scholartree

totara

kanuka

Japanese pagoda tree

mountain totara

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈkoʊfaɪ/

Etymology

From Maori kōwhai (“yellow”).