Te Whanganui-a-Tara is the Māori name for Wellington Harbour. The term is also used to refer to the city ofWellington, the capital city of New Zealand, which lies on the shores of the harbour. Te Whanganui-a-Tara translates as "the great harbour of Tara", named for Tara, a son of Polynesian explorer Whatonga, whose descendants lived in the area. In Māori tradition, Te Whanganui-a-Tara is said to have been first discovered by Kupe, who visited in the 10th century. A number of place names in the area commemorate Kupe, such as Te Tangihanga o Kupe or Te Raranga o Kupe, and Te Aroaro o Kupe or Te Ure o Kupe. Kupe also named two islands in the harbour, Mākaro and Matiu. However, it is the rangatira Tara who is remembered in the names of both the city and the first iwi to settle there permanently, Ngāi Tara. Another name for the region is "Te Upoko o te Ika a Māui", which means "the head of Māui’s fish". According to Māori legend, a giant fish was hooked and pulled to the surface by Polynesian navigatorMāui and the fish turned into land which became the North Island. The older name is still used in some circumstances for the city or the region, such as in the official Māori name of Victoria University of Wellington, which is Te Whare Wānanga o te Ūpoko o te Ika a Māui. Another Māori name for Wellington is Pōneke, a phonetic Māori transliteration of "Port Nick", short for "Port Nicholson".
Legend of Whanganui-a-Tara
According to legend, the harbour of Te Whanganui-a-Tara was created by two taniwha, Whātaitai and Ngake. Whataitai lived in the north of the lake where the harbour now is, and was gentle. Ngake, who lived further south, was more violent. Ngake could hear the waters of Raukawa Moana pounding to the south, and decided to escape the lake to get to it. He went to the north of the lake to build up his speed for the attempt, then headed off rapidly towards the south. Ngake crashed into and through the rocks at Seatoun and headed out into the Strait. This was seen by Whataitai, who tried to follow Ngake out of the new entrance. The water was now running out of the lake, however, and Whataitai became stranded in the shallows. He stayed there for many generations before being lifted high onto the land by a great earthquake. The soul of Whataitai left him in the form of a bird, Te Keo. It flew high above the harbour and wept for the taniwha, whose body was lifted high onto the hills close to the harbour entrance. To this day, Mount Victoria is known to Māori as Tangi Te Keo, "The weeping of Te Keo", and the suburb on the hills immediately below it is named Hataitai.
