Deciding on names

The naming of a new lake between Gisborne and Wairoa was one of the most high-profile of 265 place- naming decisions made by the New Zealand Geographic Board last year, Andrew Ashton reports.

The naming of Lake Te Horonui, a lake formed in the wake of a large landslide between Gisborne and Wairoa, was one of just 10 cases in which the Minister for Land Information had to make a final decision, the New Zealand Geographic Board annual report shows.

That was out of a total of 265 place-naming decisions placed in the New Zealand Gazette.

“Place names are integral to communicating location and address, giving context to space and helping us to navigate to where we want to go,” NZGB chairman Anselm Haanen said.

“Beyond these practical needs, place names contribute to our sense of identity – both individual and national. These practical and cultural aspects can sometimes raise tensions when changes are being considered. We therefore make sure we follow good naming practice to help establish consistent decisions that will stand the test of time and become accepted by communities and the people of Aotearoa New Zealand.

“I am privileged to continue the 100-year tradition of surveyors-general leading the board as its chairperson, bringing practical experience and knowledge from my own surveying background. We are looking forward to commemorating our centenary in 2024 and reflecting on the things that have changed for the better, but also the things that have remained consistent throughout. We recognise that times have changed and people are becoming increasingly aware of indigenous rights and values in the cultural heritage space.

“This is inherently reflected in the visible reminder of place names. Restoration of original Māori place names through Treaty of Waitangi settlements is now a common part of cultural redress. People are increasingly interested in te reo Māori, place names of Māori significance, and restoring original Māori place names (including with their correct spelling, macrons and pronunciation).

“The board is aware of these changes and fully supports related government strategies as it undertakes its work.

“In more recent times there has also been global attention, expectations and focus resulting from the United Nations decade of Indigenous Languages 2022–2032 and relevant United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Many countries are seeking a balanced, equitable and inclusive society.

“Place names provide both tangible and intangible means of addressing such concerns by restoring mana and a sense of identity. At the same time we are aware of the need to preserve our important Pākehā names too – our heritage is shared and the colonial overlay also needs to be preserved and discoverable.

“Division within communities sometimes arises with controversial place name proposals and so our approach and decision-making acknowledges and takes account of all community views. We aim to ensure that the reasons for change are clearly communicated.

“The Treaty of Waitangi guarantees both Māori as tangata whenua and Pākehā as tangata tiriti, the right to call this place our home, sharing all place names as our national taonga.

“We honour our unique culture and heritage through our place names. It is the story/kōrero of a place name, whether Māori or European, that makes it meaningful and etches it into our psyche.

“The year has been busy and we are pleased to share more details of our mahi in this annual report.

“Of notable interest, we:

• rolled out new branding, new website content, and stepped up our social presence

• published new Tangata Whenua Place Names maps

• added more stories to place names in the New Zealand Gazetteer

• added pronunciation audio to thousands of Māori place names in the New Zealand Gazetteer

• contributed to a virtual field trip for classrooms on Maniapoto place names.”

In 2022/23 NZGB notified 265 final place-name decisions in the New Zealand Gazette, the report said.

In 2022/23 the Minister for Land Information, Damien O’Connor, made final decisions on 10 place names, including Lake Te Horonui — a lake formed by a landslide in February 2018, inland between Gisborne district and Wairoa district.

“We could not decide between Lake Te Horonui and Lake Mangapōike due to the opposing responses from mana whenua. The Minister decided on Lake Te Horonui,” the report said.

That decision was made after three years of consultation following the lake’s formation in 2018.

The 13-hectare lake was formed in February 2018 after a landslide dammed the Mangapōike River, halfway between Wairoa and Gisborne.

At the start of last year, the NZGB started taking submissions on the name Lake Mangapōike, after an objection was made to the name that mana whenua had given it, which was Te Horonui.

The lake is within the boundaries of Paparatu Station, one of the farms that is owned by Te Whakaari Incorporation.

In their proposal, Te Whakaari Inc advised that “Mangapōike” was associated with the river, road, station, and land blocks, and shareholders did not consider it appropriate to apply an existing historical name to a new lake.

Following the Minister’s decision, Te Whakaari Inc trustee Phillip Hapi Smith told The Herald that the trust was looking at something in the future “where we can possibly open it up to the public”.

“We could have stalls and education camps. We could work with other entities, develop walking and horse tracks — all that sort of thing.”

The public would have full use of it in time to come, he said.

The lake is formed around significant historical and wāhi tapu sites in relation to Te Kooti and his followers.

Te Horonui means “the great landslide”.

Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa New Zealand Geographic Board secretary Wendy Shaw said during the 2022/23 financial year, 152 place names from the Gisborne District were notified in the New Zealand Gazette.

“Most of the place names (149) were existing unofficial recorded names that were approved as official. Some of these names have had macrons added in line with the orthographic conventions of Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori (The Māori Language Commission). The board recognises the importance of meaning and pronunciation in te reo, and macrons support both.

“Two of the names were amendments to ensure the correct spelling and feature type. These were Makahikatoa renamed Mākahikātoa Stream and Makokomuka renamed Mākōkōmuka Stream.”

The remaining name was Minister O’Connor’s decision to name the newly formed lake on the Mangapōike River, Lake Te Horonui.

■  Legal provisions for place naming in Aotearoa New Zealand began under the Royal Geographic Society of London until the promulgation of the Designation of Districts Acts 1894 and 1908. These laws gave the Governor-General the authority to make place names official.

The establishment of a place-naming authority was required to avoid public confusion and to support the provision of key services such as post offices and railway stations. In 1924 the Minister of Lands established the Honorary Geographic Board of New Zealand to consider and make recommendations on place and feature names.

Then in 1946 the New Zealand Geographic Board was established under the New Zealand Geographic Board Act 1946, with powers to make place-naming decisions itself. Along with various enhancements and amendments, the provisions in the 1946 Act, including collecting original Māori place names, have been carried into the current New Zealand Geographic Board (Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa) Act 2008.