The marae is a place of deep significance for Māori, as it is a symbol of tribal identity and solidarity. The marae consists of a meeting house, called the whare nui, a whare kai or dinning hall as well as the marae atea, the sacred space in front of the whare nui.

outdoor temple

Community meeting space

Local community and its meeting-places and buildings

Maori meeting ground

sacred enclosure, a place of worship (Polynesian, general); in the Marquesas, mae'a; in Hawai'i, heiau

ancient temple

a communally owned facility where visitors meet Maori strictly on Maori terms

a place marked off with stones to be used for all meetings and for praying to their gods

a place of culture and spiritual roots for Maori people

a Polynesian open-air temple

a religious, cultural and community center for the Maori natives of New Zealand

a stoned altar and temple complex which pre-Christian Tahitians used to worship their gods and ancestors

Meeting-ground, enclosed space in front of a house, courtyard, village common.

Land of the meeting, common field of the village

open space or courtyard where people gather, generally in front of a main building or meeting house; forum of social life; modern meaning: the complex of buildings surrounding the courtyard and the courtyard itself

sacred grounds around a meeting house

Enclosed ground as meeting place

Village, meeting place

Māori communal facility (generally consisting of a meeting house, dining hall, kitchen, and ablution area)

A marae (in New Zealand Māori, Cook Islands Maori, Tahitian) malae (in Tongan), malae (in Samoan and Hawaiian) is a sacred place which served both religious and social purposes in ancient Polynesian societies. In all these languages, the word also means "cleared, free of weeds, trees, etc." It generally consists of an area of cleared land roughly rectangular (the marae itself), bordered with stones or wooden posts (called au in Tahitian and Cook Islands Māori) and containing a central stone (ahu, a'u)In some sources the word "ahu" is used as a synonym for all the stone structure of a marae complex and sometimes terraces (paepae) used in olden times for ceremonial purposes.