"I've mostly been called Hine or Hine (Hin-eh) but what's even worse is they can't even pronounce that properly. Hine is quite a common name and people should be familiar with it," Miss Kingi said.
"I don't let people shorten it because I was named Hinerongonui. Mainly because my kuia, my namesake, rang my mother and said, 'Don't let anyone call her Hine, so it's upholding that tikanga.
"It does knock my confidence back as well, I definitely get frustrated. People hear my name and say, 'No, I can't pronounce that, what else can I call you? Or they'll say Hine and make the rest up."
It is something former school teacher, now Rotorua police Senior Sergeant Anaru Pewhairangi, can also relate to.
"Even just my first name, people say 'Anna-roo' or I've heard 'Peh-why-rangy'.
"When I was at school the quickest way to engage me was to say my name properly.
"I remember the teachers who tried to say it properly and they were the ones I enjoyed the most," Mr Pewhairangi said.
"I and even my friends used to cringe when my name was mispronounced because it intrinsically embarrassed me. These are my ancestors, I was named after my uncle and Pewhairangi is a tupuna name from Ngati Porou.
"Within the police, we've always advocated correct pronunciation.
"We say, 'If you want to engage people, the first step is trying the best you can to pronounce things properly'."
Rotorua district councillor Trevor Maxwell, a fluent te reo speaker, said correct pronunciation promoted good relations.
"What it does indicate to those who are listening is that you've made a genuine effort.
"I liken it to myself, when we have our citizenship ceremonies or have people from visiting countries, I will greet them in their language and try to get the pronunciation right."
