Nau Mai Town

No one knows who said it first, but the story goes is that the name Ohakune is about entering a whole new world and a tell-tale sign that the weather might just turn. Korty and Che Wilson share the history of this town flanked by Mount Ruapehu. Thanks to Archives NZ and Ngā Tāonga Sound and Vision. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Nau Mai Town is back with season 4, sharing more stories about Aotearoa's Māori place names. Host Justine Murray hits the road again and visits Ohakune, Taihape, Rakaia, Tirau and Taihape. The entranceways to each town are flanked with iconic sculptures, giving a hint of the history and a unique way to promote their community to the world. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

A feeling of rejection and loneliness, that's the story behind the name Mauao, to be caught by the light, but many know this place as Mount Maunganui. Reon Tuanau - Storyteller nō Ngai te Rangi, Te Whānau a TauwhaoTommy Wilson - Author nō PirirākauGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

There's the main trunk line, a thriving timber industry and friendly folk. But is the story behind the name Taumarunui about a shelter or a fallen warrior?One story about the name Taumarunui is that it was the last words of Te Peehi Turoa, a dying chief who wished to be shelterd by the sun. But according to local hapū Ngāti Rangatahi, Taumarunui was also the name of a warrior killed by a chief, Tama-aio. Justine Murray is in the King Country to hear both sides of this story. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Have you assumed Paihia was a te reo word? It's actually a mash-up of Māori & English. But who said it and why?Every year hundreds of people make the annual hikoi to Waitangi to commemorate the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, and the man who translated the Treaty has a bit to do with the naming of the town of Paihia.This story begins seventeen years before the treaty was signed, when Henry Williams was scouting for a place to set up a mission house.According to Ngati Kawa Taituha, Chair of Te Tii Marae in Waitangi, the name likely stems from a conversation between Williams and the scouting party from the tribes from Ngāti Kawa or Ngāti Rahiri, who were helping him find a good site.We talk to Taituha and some Williams’ descendants about the history of the sunny Northland settlement. And we also learn from Taituha about another, original name that pre-dates Paihia.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Nau Mai Town is back with another haerenga around Aotearoa to find out more about Māori place names.Nau Mai Town is back with a bunch of stories about Māori place names. Justine Murray hits the road and heads to Wānaka, a place inspired by schools of higher learning. Paihia has pretty good pies, but the name came about after a scouting trip by christian missionaries, and the name Taumarunui harks back to hundreds of years ago during tribal warfare.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Rāhui Pōkeka is the original name of Huntly and it's based on the story of a rangatira who placed a rāhui on the rivers in order to replenish the tuna.Rāhui Pōkeka is the original name of Huntly and it's based on the story of a rangatira who placed a rāhui on the rivers in order to replenish the tuna.Postmaster James Henry missed his hometown of Huntly in Scotland so much that he named a small Northern Waikato town 'Huntly' and it's been that since 1877. The Māori name of the town is Rāhui Pōkeka and its origin lies in the foresight of Waikato chief Te Putu who saw a need to replenish a dwindling food source. Sheryl Matenga is the Chair of the Huntly Community Board and shares the story behind the name. Te Putu was the great-great-grandfather of the first Māori King Pōtatau Te Wherowhero. Te Putu noticed the fish and eels in their rivers were depleted so he placed a rāhui (a restriction) on the area which forbid gathering kai. To represent the rāhui in the physical sense Te Putu plucked a feather from his pokeka (cape or cloak) and tied it around the pou and hammered it into the ground. If this pou was above the ground the rāhui stayed in place. On occasion Te Putu would hammer this pou further into the ground, after a time once the pou was covered the rāhui was lifted. As a celebration Te Putu allowed the fishermen to gather kai again and their catch was divided equally amongst the villagers. According to Matenga, this act was called wawahitanga and it's where the name 'Waahi' pa originates. The release of the rāhui was called 'Whakanoa' and is attributed to the name of Lake Hakanoa. Justine Murray visits Rāhui Pōkeka and finds out more from the locals about their town, the negative media spotlight and yep, the DEKA sign is still there. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Lady on the Rock is a bronze statue depicting one of the first women to arrive in the Bay of Plenty. Justine Murray visits Whakatāne to learn about the town's history - and scores some delicious drive-thru hāngī on the way.A drive-thru hāngī with creamed paua and raw fish was probably the best lunch I've ever had on the job... I even took some home for my husband.The delicious meal was courtesy of a family fundraiser in Whakatāne, and the great kai was just a bonus.My real reason for visiting the Bay of Plenty town was an appointment with a naked young woman standing on a rock.The Lady on the Rock - a bronze statue atop Turuturu Rock - is the main clue to the true story behind the name Whakatāne.It was here that 600 to 800 years ago, the famous Mātaatua waka first arrived from Hawaiki, led by its captain-navigator Toroa.After the waka landed, some men got out to survey the land and the canoe began drifting out to sea, says DOC cultural advisor Joe Harawira.Fearing the worst, and defying the tapu of women handling waka, Toroa's young daughter Wairaka cried 'Kia Whakatāne au I ahau' (Let me act like a man) and hauled the canoe back to shore.This is the story according to the local Ngāti Awa iwi, but the neighbouring iwi Te Whakatohea believe it was most likely Toroa's sister Muriwai who hauled the waka back to shore, most she was older.Both versions of the story are now acknowledged, Harawira says.So is it Wairaka or Muriwai depicted in the Lady on the Rock? And why is the statue dedicated to the wife of former Whakatāne mayor William Sullivan (1891-1967)?Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Paeroa is world-famous in Aotearoa for its mineral water, but do you know the Coromandel town's longer name?Walking around the Coromandel town of Paeroa, history lies at your feet.Downtown, you'll see cast-iron pumps that once sucked Paeroa's prized spring water from the ground.Not far away is the vacant Innes tartan factory where the classic Kiwiana drink Lemon & Paeroa was produced after 1963.Rino Wilkinson (Ngāti Tamatera) grew up in Paeroa. He worked as a broadcaster at Nga Iwi FM for 33 years and in 2019 was the first Māori elected to the Hauraki District Council.Rino used to take his glass bottles and fill them up at the water pumps, back before the well was closed off.He remembers being a teenager in the floods of 1981 when the Ohinemuri River burst its banks and his family had to be evacuated from their home.What Rino didn't hear much about growing up were stories about the longer name of Paeroa - Te Paeroa a Toitehuatahi - and how that relates to a waka race and a Māori ancestor.In this episode, Te Kehukehu Patara shares the story behind the name ' Te Paeroa a Toitehuatahi'.You'll also meet Laurie Smith, who's worked for the Paeroa District Museum for eight years and spent his whole life in the town. From gold mining to mineral water, local prohibition and the impact of the railway, Laurie knows all the local stories.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

A once-thriving sawmilling industry on the outskirts of Tauranga would inspire the naming of the Tauranga suburb 'Tauriko'. Listen now.A once-thriving local sawmilling industry inspired the naming of the Tauranga suburb 'Tauriko'.The business name 'Tauranga Rimu Timber Company' seemed a bit long-winded so sawmill operators, the Gamman brothers shortened the name to Tau-Ri-Co.The letter 'C' is not a consonant in the Māori language so it was replaced with the letter 'K' which formed the contracted name 'Tauriko' a suburb on the outskirts of Tauranga.Tauriko is now home to the new housing development area 'The Lakes' and the retail and industrial hub 'Tauranga Crossing'.The history of sawmilling begins with Samuel John Gamman who arrived in the country on board the Cameo in 1859.Samuel and his wife Eliza lived at Akaroa in Canterbury before moving north to the Manawatu and the Tararua districts. Together they had 10 children, two of which died young, but his surviving sons would follow their father into the dangerous industry of sawmilling.In 1908 Henry, Ernest, Arthur and George opened new mills in the Bay of Plenty.Debbie McCauley is an author of narrative non-fiction children's books and has written extensively on the sawmilling industry in the region."They're big names in sawmilling in New Zealand, they start a sawmill at Oropi and George Gamman buys some bush at Omanawa falls and from there they put a tramline through from the Wairoa river and transport massive timber logs."During this time, New Zealand timber was in high demand, and the Gammans exported it to Australia. As business thrived Debbie says the brothers went to register their business name but decided on a simpler version."The story is because 'Co' wasn't in the Māori language it was changed to 'Ko' and the name was Tauriko...that's why a lot of people think it's a Māori word," she says.Charlie Rāhiri lives in Tauranga and has whakapapa to Ngāti Paoa, Ngāti Kahu and Ngai Tamarāwaho, he says while the history of the name 'Tauriko' is based on a major industry set up by a migrant family, the history of the land is one of historical significance to tangata whenua."Ngai Tamarāwaho they have a large presence in The Lakes area, Ngāti Hangarau do aswell...their significant pa was called Tupenga and then Wairoa while we had no pa we had a number of kainga" …Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

There was a mix-up of words when James Cook came up with the name 'Tolaga' for the small east coast town of Tolaga Bay, but the locals choose to call it Uawa.'Tolaga Bay' - the name given to a small town on the east coast of the North Island - came about due to a misinterpretation.In mid-October 1769, Captain James Cook sailed into the harbour and ask questions of local Māori.Wayne Ngata (Nō Te Aitanga a Hauiti) lives in Tolaga Bay and is a leading figure in the local history of his hometown."When Jim Cook rocked up to Uawa... in that process he had been asking directions. Their response was to the effect of saying 'Te Raki' or to the north. He took that as being a placename."The words 'Te Raki' were apparently heard as 'Te Raka' and wound up as 'Tolaga', Ngata says."The difficulty in communicating in languages that are different... We can surmise on these things, having said that, there were still references in Cooks' head about the name of the place and that was a mistake."It wasn't the first time James Cook had gotten a name wrong. It also occurred in other parts of Aotearoa, says the secretariat of the New Zealand Geographic Board Wendy Shaw."Captain Cook's North Umbrian ear wrote...Tovy - Poe - Nammu. So that's what he heard and so in his English, that's how he wrote Te Wai Pounamu."But according to Wayne Ngata, the locals call their home 'Uawa' after the local river and an ancestor from Hawaiiki. The full name is 'Uawa Nui a Ruamatua' or 'The Great River of Ruamatua'. While Tolaga Bay is still commonplace, local kaiako Hinauri Donald says the name 'Uawa' is still new to others outside of the town. "When I would meet new people and you'd say Uawa...they wouldn't really know where Uawa was and so I would say Tolaga Bay... I mean, I've just always tried to use the Māori name because that's what we use here."Te Rangirangi, who has lived in Tolaga Bay her whole life, remembers another iteration of the name."It was Tabago, not Tolaga... When Captain Cook first came here he landed at Cooks Cove. That was the original name for this place."In 1894, the town was given the name 'Buckley' after colonial secretary Patrick Buckley but it never stuck and reverted back to being Tolaga Bay.That name is similar to those of other towns named after men who lived overseas and never set foot in this country, Wayne Ngata says…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

If you say it out loud, the word Kurow sounds a lot like Te Kohurau. That's because the latter is the original name of a small South Canterbury town named after a tupuna (ancestor).Kurow is a small rural town in the Waitaki District of South Canterbury.It's popular for its cycle trails, good fishing spots and is the hometown of former All Black captain and 110-test veteran Richie McCaw.What is perhaps less known about the town is that the name 'Kurow' is the anglicised version of 'Te Kohurau' - an ancestor who arrived in the South Island on the Āraiteuru waka.So how did Te Kohurau become Kurow?This kind of transition was mostly to do with how place names were interpreted, says Nga Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa (NZ Geographic Board) Secretariat Wendy Shaw."The way it was transcribed from the original Māori names were usually done by a surveyor, a settler, a crown official or a missionary and sometimes they were not that well educated, and then the other way to look at it is that they would write down what they heard according to their ear of origin."So in all likelihood, Te Kohurau was written down as 'Kurow'.Māori language teacher Justin Tipa (Kai Tahu and Kāti Momoe) was raised in the Waitaki Valley and recalls his family being particular about the history and the name 'Te Kohurau' - even though Kurow was what everyone called the town."I had a couple of uncles and aunties that were very deliberate in using the name Te Kohurau... I think most of the family just conformed to the rest of the society and I certainly grew up calling the place Kurow"Today Justin is a cultural advisor at Fonterra and by night teaches Te Reo Māori classes in Moeraki.It's his mission to teach local Māori about ancestral names and local stories. "We've started having community discussions and community talks where we talk about our local place names...we're getting good engagement and largely from non-Māori, people want to know this history."Kate White runs Waitaki Braids - a café, restaurant and lodge in Kurow - and is originally from Banks Peninsula.Previously, she worked for Environment Canterbury aiding the organisation's shift towards working with local iwi to cement a treaty partnership and better support the Māori language. Over time, Kate formed good work relationships with three rūnaka (iwi authorities) and became aware of Māori names and the stories in the Waitaki district. Her interest in the history of the area's name was first sparked when she started hearing the word 'Hacker'…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details