Te Whanganui-a-Tara
Te Whanganui a Tara is the Maori name for Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand. More specifically it describes the actual harbour which is today known as Port Nicholson, but has come to be accepted as the name of the city as well. It translates as The great harbour of Tara which refers to chief Tara who Maori tradition says visited the area in the 12th century and decided to stay.
Although people are said to have lived there since Kupe visited in the 10th century, it is Tara who is remembered, both in the name of the city and the name of the first iwi tribe to settle there permanently, Ngai Tara.
Te Whanganui a Tara has superseded an earlier name for the region, Te Upoko o te Ika a Maui which means The head of Maui?s fish. According to Maori legend, a giant fish was hooked and pulled to the surface by Polynesian navigator Maui and the fish turned into land which became the North Island. It is not known when Te Whanganui a Tara replaced Te Upoko o te Ika a Maui as the local name.
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