Bay of Plenty Beacon Published Tuesdays and Fridays. TUESDAY, JANUARY 22, 1946 NEW ZEALAND PLACE-NAMES.

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 9, Issue 37, 22 January 1946, Page 4

Bay of Plenty Beacon Published Tuesdays and Fridays. TUESDAY, JANUARY 22, 1946 NEW ZEALAND PLACE-NAMES.

BEHIND the Maori place-names with which our country abounds there are usually charmingly quaint stories and legends. Whakatane in this respect is inordinately rich, the whole countryside teeming with tradition and Maori folk lore. The original meaning of the word “Whakatane’’ is wellknown locally, but perhaps not so many persons living beyond the borders of the district are conversant with its interesting origin. Altogether there are three stories or legends in this connection, but all are substantially the same. They point to a singular meaning which may be generalised under the heading of “a woman acting the man, or performing masculine work.” When one of the migration canoes,, the Matatua, touched near the headland, and men either through neglect or fear, abandoned the control of the vessel. Whereat, Wairaka, one of the principal women aboard, seized a paddle and with the spirited words “Kia Whakatane ahau i au” (I will act the man and be strong !) turned the canoe and headed back to shore. Thus has been perpetuated the bold deed of a wahine, in the dim ages of Maori Mythology. It is interesting to note also that the occupants of this same canoe have left their mark in a score of different placenames in and about the Whakatane district. For 1 instance the name “Toroa” which is given the street running m front of the local police station was derived from the Captain, who piloted the crew through the perilous voyage from Hawaiki. The high priest who gave the crew their spiritual guidance and the blessing of the primal gods, was Taneatua,” hence the name of that thriving town on the plains. His sacred duty was the “keeping”' of the “puhi ’ or feather ornaments which be-decked the prow. The correct name ot Opotiki is Pa-Kowhai, Opotiki was the name of an adjacent pool, which was transferred to the township by the misundestanding of the over-riding Pakeha. The .original name of Matata was “Te-awa-o-te-atua, meaning The River of the Gods.” The Waimana River is actually the “Tauranga,” again the pakeha changed the name, in mis take for a title given to a mere part or feature of the stream. The original name was derived from a food store situated near Tanatana. Ruatoki (Rua-a-toki) means actually nothing more or less than the pit or pond of axes, lhe ancient pa, of the Ngati-Pukeko, Poroporo, means wgra. gated or cut off,” the upshot being the manner in which the river separated it from Whakatane. Thus we stand today after Pakeha occupation for slightly over one hundred years, reviewing the history and legends behind the native names which we have learnt to respect and love as though they were our own. The: deepest interest attaches to their meaning and as each becomes plainer and more potent, the European mind is seized with the poetry and imagery of the Maori race of old.,