List of New Zealand place name etymologies facts for kids

New Zealand's place names tell amazing stories about its history and culture! Many names come from two main sources: the British settlers and the Māori people. Knowing where these names come from helps us understand more about the land and its past.

Where Do New Zealand's Place Names Come From?

New Zealand's towns, rivers, and mountains have names that often tell us something special. These names come from different places, like the Māori language, famous people, or even other countries. Let's explore some of them!

Names from the Māori Language

Many places in New Zealand have beautiful Māori names. These names often describe the land, what happened there, or important people.

• Ahuroa means "Long Mound".
• Akaroa means "Long Harbour" in the Kāi Tahu Māori language.
• Aoraki / Mount Cook is often called "Cloud Piercer". The Māori name literally means "cloud" (ao) and "sky" (raki). The English part honors Captain James Cook.
• Aotearoa is the common Māori name for New Zealand. It means "Land of the Long White Cloud".
• Aramoana means "pathway to the sea".
• Arapōhue means "path of the climbing plant".
• Hauraki Gulf / Tīkapa Moana means "north wind".
• Kaikohe combines "food" (kai) and "Kohekohe" trees.
• Kaikōura means "Eating freshwater crayfish".
• Kohimarama means "to gather up the scraps or chips".
• Lake Waihola means "spread-out waters".
• Manukau might mean "wading birds".
• Maungati means "cabbage-tree mountain".
• Milford Sound / Piopiotahi has a Māori name meaning "first native thrush".
• Otematata means "place of good flint".
• Paerau means "hundred ridges".
• Papatoetoe means a "flat" (papa) area with "toetoe" (a native grass).
• Porirua might mean "two tides", referring to its two harbor arms.
• Pukerua Bay means "two hills" (puke: hill, rua: two).
• Rakiura (Stewart Island) means "red sky", possibly for the amazing sunsets or Aurora Australis.
• Raumati means "summer".
• Selwyn River / Waikirikiri has a Māori name meaning "gravelly water".
• Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu is a very long name! It means "the summit where Tamatea, who travelled about the land, played the flute to his beloved." It's one of the longest place names in the world!
• Tauranga means "a sheltered anchorage for canoes".
• Tauweru River means "hanging in clusters".
• Te Awamutu means "the river's end".
• Te Raekaihau Point means "the headland that eats the wind".
• Te Waipounamu (the South Island) means "the greenstone water" or "the water of greenstone".
• Te Whiti o Tū means "Tū's crossing".
• Timaru might mean "the peak of Maru" or "place of shelter".
• Tiniroto means "many lakes".
• Waiheke Island means "cascading or ebbing water".
• Waikanae means "the waters of the grey mullet".
• Waikato and Waikato River mean "flowing water".
• Wainuiomata means "Mata's big stream".
• Waipori River likely means "dark water".
• Whangarei means "harbour" (whanga) and "cherished possession" (rei).
• Whitianga means "crossing" or "ford", from "Kupe's crossing place".

Names from People and Places

Many places are named after important people, like explorers, kings, queens, or politicians. Others are named after places in the United Kingdom or other countries.

• Albany was named after Albany in Australia, because both areas grew fruit.
• Albert Town was named after Prince Albert, the husband of Queen Victoria.
• Alexandra was named after Alexandra of Denmark, the wife of King Edward VII.
• Auckland was named to honor George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland, who supported William Hobson.
• Balclutha comes from a Scottish Gaelic name meaning "town on the Clyde River".
• Balfour was named after a company employee or a local surveyor.
• Barrett Reef was named after Richard Barrett, a trader from the 1800s.
• Birdling's Flat was named for the Birdling family, the first European family to farm there.
• Blackball was named after the Black Ball Shipping Line, which mined coal there.
• Brighton was named after Brighton, England.
• Burkes Pass was discovered by Michael John Burke in 1855.
• Burnham was named after Burnham Beeches in England.
• Canterbury was named after the city and archdiocese of Canterbury in England.
• Cape Farewell was named by Captain James Cook because it was the last part of New Zealand his crew saw before sailing home in 1770.
• Cape Kidnappers / Te Kauwae-a-Māui got its name after local Māori tried to take one of Captain Cook's crew members in 1769.
• Carterton was named after Charles Carter, a politician.
• Christchurch was named after Christ Church, a college at the University of Oxford in England.
• Clive was named after Robert Clive.
• Clutha River / Mata-Au comes from the Scottish Gaelic name for the River Clyde.
• Coalgate was named as the "gateway" to coalfields.
• Collingwood was named after Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood.
• Cook Strait was named to honor Captain James Cook.
• Coonoor was named after Coonoor, India.
• Cromwell might be named after Oliver Cromwell.
• Dannevirke was named after the Danevirke, an old defensive wall in Denmark. Its name means "Danes' works".
• Dargaville was named after Joseph McMullen Dargaville, a timber merchant and politician.
• Douglas was named after a member of a surveying team.
• Dunedin comes from the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, "Dùn Èideann".
• Eyreton and West Eyreton were named for Edward John Eyre, a lieutenant governor.
• Fairlie was named after Fairlie, North Ayrshire, Scotland.
• Featherston was named after Isaac Featherston, a leader in Wellington.
• Foveaux Strait was named after Joseph Foveaux, a lieutenant-governor, when the strait was found in 1804.
• Gisborne was named after William Gisborne.
• Gladstone was named after William Ewart Gladstone, a British Prime Minister.
• Glenorchy is likely named after Glen Orchy in Scotland.
• Gore was named for Sir Thomas Gore Browne, an early Governor of New Zealand.
• Grey River / Māwheranui and Greytown were named after politician George Edward Grey.
• Greymouth is named for its spot at the mouth of the Grey River.
• Haast was named after Julius von Haast, a German geologist.
• Hamilton was renamed after Captain John Fane Charles Hamilton, who died in a battle.
• Hampden was named after English politician John Hampden.
• Hastings was named after Warren Hastings, the first Governor-General of Bengal.
• Hawke's Bay was named to honor Edward Hawke, a baron.
• Inchbonnie combines Scottish words meaning "pretty island".
• Invercargill combines a Scottish word meaning "confluence" (where rivers meet) with the name of William Cargill, who founded Otago.
• King Country is where the Māori King Movement was strong in the 1860s.
• Kirwee was named after Karwi, India.
• Lake Hayes was named for D. Hay, who looked for sheep country there in 1859.
• Levin was named after a director of the railway company that built the town.
• Macetown was named after its founders, the Mace brothers.
• Mackenzie Basin was named by and after James Mackenzie, a Scottish shepherd.
• Martinborough was named after its founder, John Martin.
• Masterton was named after local pioneer Joseph Masters.
• Millers Flat was named after an early European settler, Walter Miller.
• Napier was named after Sir Charles James Napier.
• Naseby was named after Naseby, England.
• Nelson was named to honor Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson.
• New Brighton was named after New Brighton in northern England.
• New Plymouth was named after Plymouth in England.
• Ophir was named after a place where King Solomon got gold, because gold was found there.
• Otago comes from the Māori name Ōtākou, meaning "place of red ochre".
• Palmerston and Palmerston North were named after Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, a British Prime Minister. 'North' was added to the younger town.
• Mount Earnslaw / Pikirakatahi was named after Earnslaw village in Scotland.
• Plimmerton was named after John Plimmer, a Wellington pioneer.
• Queenstown was probably named after a town in Ireland called The Cove, which was renamed Queenstown to honor Queen Victoria.
• Ranfurly was named after Uchter Knox, 5th Earl of Ranfurly, a former Governor-General of New Zealand.
• Sinclair Wetlands were named after local farmer Horace Sinclair.
• Tasman (region, bay, mountain, glacier, national park) was named to honor Dutchman Abel Tasman, the first European to see New Zealand.
• Wellington was named to honor Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington.
• Whitby was named after the town of Whitby in England, home of James Cook.
• Whitecliffs was named after the white cliffs above the Selwyn River / Waikirikiri.

Thomson's Barnyard

Many places in the southern South Island, especially around Central Otago and the Maniototo, were named by John Turnbull Thomson. He surveyed the area in the late 1850s. Thomson was from Northumberland in England, and many of his names come from that area.

There's a fun story, which might not be completely true, that Thomson wanted to give places classical or Māori names. But when these names were turned down, he decided to use simple Northumbrian names instead. Often, these names were just dialect words for animals!

That's why you find names like Kyeburn, Gimmerburn, Hoggetburn, and Wedderburn in the Maniototo region. Even Ranfurly was originally called "Eweburn". Because of all these animal-related names, the area is sometimes called "Thomson's Barnyard" or the "Farmyard Patch".