The word te stands as a separate part of many
place names – think Te Aroha, Te Kauwhata or Te Waipounamu. That’s no surprise
when you understand that it means ‘the’ in Māori. So:
Te Aroha –
‘The love’, referring to the emotion felt here by the early traveller
Kahumatamomoe
Te Mata –
‘The headland’
Te
Waipounamu – ‘The greenstone waters’,
the Māori name for the South Island
[IMAGE – Te
Waipounamu]
Te Waipounamu, from
the map featured in Māori Place Names
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