Frequently Asked Questions - Alternative Māori Names for the North Island and South Island

Click a question to reveal its answer.

If your question is not answered below, please email it to customersupport@linz.govt.nz.

How has this come about?

The Board’s consideration of alternative Māori names arises from a member of the public’s proposal to rename the South Island ‘Te Wai Pounamu’.

Who made the original proposal, when and why?

Mr Keith Darroch is a New Zealander with an interest in New Zealand history. He had sought to restore the original Māori name for the South Island and submitted a proposal to the Board in 2004.

What has the Board decided so far?

The Board’s view was that replacing the name ‘South Island’ was not appropriate, but that alternative Māori names should be collected and considered for both the North Island and South Island. The Board has agreed in principle to collect and assign official alternative Māori names for the North Island and South Island, as well as formalise the currently used and recorded English names (North Island and South Island).

What is the Board’s approach to this matter?

The Board recognises that the North Island and South Island are no ordinary place names. It has taken time considering the idea of Māori names for both islands, and has undertaken its own research and investigation into their validity.

For the North Island and South Island, the Board will be seeking views from iwi on their known traditional Māori names for both islands, before undertaking public consultation with all New Zealanders.

This is an important matter, and so the Board has been careful to take time researching and considering it.

Why is the Board acting on one person’s proposal?

Anyone can make a place name proposal. The Board is required by the New Zealand Geographic Board (Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa) Act 2008 to consider proposals to assign, alter, approve or discontinue names for geographic features and places.

The Board does not proceed with all proposals, but the Māori place name aspect of this proposal was deemed to have sufficient merit (especially given the historical use of Māori names for the North and South Islands on official maps) to collect and consider known traditional Māori names.

What has happened so far?

• 2004 – the Board received a proposal to rename the South Island.
• 2004–2007 – the Board deferred making a decision in order to carry out its own research and to approach South Island iwi. During this time the Board also focused on progressing and determining other more pressing name proposals.
• November 2007 – the Board decided it would not consider a Māori name for the South Island in isolation from considering a Māori name for the North Island, and that it wished to formally recognise Māori names as alternatives (not replacements or dual names) for both islands. The Board also agreed to formalise the English names, North Island and South Island.
• 2008–2009 – the Board considered the process for collecting names/approaching iwi and public consultation.

Why is the Board not looking to change the name or assign a dual name – why is alternative naming deemed most appropriate?

The Board considers well-established public usage and the costs of any changes. In this case, the Board decided that changed names or dual names would cause too much cost and disruption throughout the whole country and for visitors to New Zealand. Therefore a decision in principle has been made to assign the Māori names as alternatives to the English names, North Island and South Island, thereby preserving New Zealand’s heritage in both languages.

Could the public seek dual names or changed names?

Yes they could – during the public consultation phase, which is not likely to start until 2010 at the earliest. However to do this, the Board would need good reasons and evidence of significant public support for other proposals. The Board currently believes that alternative naming would be the best and least disruptive option.

What if I want to express my views to the Board before public consultation begins?

Anyone can write to the Board at any time. Note, however, that the formal consultation with all New Zealanders has not begun, and known traditional Māori names for the North Island and South Island are first being sought from iwi.

Why are iwi being approached first?

Tangata whenua Māori, as the indigenous people of New Zealand, are responsible for many of the place names in New Zealand, and the Board believes they have the best repository of knowledge about traditional Māori names.

The Board has a function to collect Māori place names and encourage their use on maps and charts. There are several different known Māori names for each island. The Board is approaching iwi to seek known traditional Māori names for both islands, and their associated stories, so that the Board can then determine which is the most appropriate name for each island, before seeking views from the New Zealand public.

As the original proposal related specifically to the South Island, the Board has already asked South Island iwi about any known Māori names for that island. The views of South Island iwi are being sought further.

What is public consultation likely to entail?

The Board recognises the interest New Zealanders are likely to have in the Māori names for the North and South Island. It will therefore ensure a sufficient period of time to enable robust public debate and allow individuals an opportunity to express their views. Public consultation is not likely to start until 2010 at the earliest.

What about the name ‘Aotearoa’ for New Zealand?

The naming of New Zealand is not within the Board’s jurisdiction. The Board is aware, however, that ‘Aotearoa’ is a name that has also been applied in the past to just the North Island, and has decided this will not be a name it puts forward for public consultation because of its now popularised and common usage as the Māori name for New Zealand.

Only Parliament has the power to formally change the name of our country.

What Māori names is the Board aware of?

Some of the South Island names that have come to the Board’s attention include:

• Te Tumuki – the oldest recorded name
• Te Arapaoa
• Tovypoenammu – Captain Cook’s spelling of Te Wai Pounamu
• Te Wai Pounamu
• Te Wāhi Pounamu
• Te Waka a Maui
• Te Waka o Aoraki
• Tau Ihu o te Waka.

Some North Island Māori names include:

• Te Ika a Maui
• Aotearoa (see previous question on the name of New Zealand)
• Aeheinomouwe – Captain Cook’s spelling of what might be He Ahi No Maui (a fire of Maui) or He Hi No Maui (a thing of Maui).

Charts and maps of early explorers showed the following Māori names recorded for both islands:

• Eahei No Mauwe for the North Island and T’avai Poenammoo for the South Island (Cook 1769–1770)
• Eaheinomauwe for the North Island and Tavai Poenammoo for the South Island (Arrowsmith 1841)
• Te-ahi a Maui for the North Island and Te Wai Pounamu for the South Island (Stokes 1848–1855).

Are there any other known English names for the North Island and South Island?

There have been several other known recorded English names for both islands:

• Middle Island – for the South Island, in the group North Island, Middle Island and South Island, where South Island applied to Stewart Island/Rakiura
• New Ulster – for the North Island
• New Munster – for the South Island
• Island of Victoria – for the South Island.

Why did Maori names for the North Island and South Island stop appearing on official maps from the 1950s?

The Board does not know why Māori names stopped appearing on official maps from the 1950s. The Board is not aware of any documented decision for this.

What about Stewart Island?

Stewart Island/Rakiura already has a dual English and Māori name. This was formalised through the Ngāi Tahu Claims Settlement Act 1998. It has been previously known as ‘South Island’, ‘New Leinster’, ‘Stewart Island’, ‘Rakiura’, and ‘Te Puka o te waka a Maui’ (the anchor stone of the canoe of Maui).

For more information see:

• Media Release: The New Zealand Geographic Board Considers North and South Island Names
• Examples of historic maps and charts with various English and Māori names for the North Island and South Island
• and About the New Zealand Geographic Board.