is the new norming
Opinion: In Aotearoa the long shadow of colonial overlay is reflected in the endurance of names with little bearing to the land, its stories or people, writes Robin Kearns
Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa New Zealand Geographic Board (Pou Taunaha) has made decisions that were confirmed by the Minister for Land Information on seven names for new central and south Auckland railway stations. Notably Pou Taunaha officially altered Britomart Station to Waitematā Railway Station. Unsurprisingly, there have been mixed reactions.
People don’t typically like change, but good things, including change, take time. This was the case in 1986 when Mount Egmont was also given its original name Mount Taranaki. The alternative naming was to acknowledge the wishes of local iwi and the questionable relevance of the name Egmont, which was given by James Cook to honour one of his benefactors, an English earl who never visited New Zealand.
Although an alternative name was granted, use of the colonial name is fast fading. It’s Taranaki to most people now. This will be endorsed shortly to simply Taranaki Maunga in a Treaty of Waitangi settlement
Link to article: Why Māori renaming is the new norming - The University of Auckland
