Many Names Recorded

Te Ao Hou, September 1965, Page 50

Many Names Recorded The Hopkins River was formerly Otao or ‘driftwood’, and the Huxley River was Tairau, which means ‘a stake or peg’. Broderick Pass, which was very much in use in the old days,

The district beneath this huge new lake, together with the surrounding countryside, is rich in history and legend. was formerly known as Te Tarahaka, an expression meaning ‘a thief who steals without qualms or care for the thoughts of others’. Te Waimaturaka or Waimatau, ‘the waters of knowledge’, are on the northern side near Lake Ohou. At the junction of the Takapo and Pukaki Rivers was Te Rauru, an ancient Maori kaika or kainga the site of which has long since disappeared. Te Rauru is the name of a certain method which the Maori used for plaiting flax with seven strands. Among the many other names in this district are Mt Tauhinu, called after an alpine shrub, and Mt Totara, called after the alpine totara tree. Mt Manahunei's name means ‘the supernatural flowering of grayness on the bullrushes’. Fox Peaks, east of Lake Takapo, were formerly Otupaka, where a very heated quarrel took place. South-east of Lake Takapo is Te Wharerangi or Te Whareraki, ‘the heavenly home’.