“New Zealand”

Before they were collectively christened New Zealand by Captain Cook, and later romantically renamed Aotearoa (Land Of The Long White Cloud), the three islands were originally known to Māori as Te Ika-A-Māui, Te Wai Pounamu and Rakiura, and were linked to the fishing legend of Maui and his brothers.

​Te Ika-A-Māui – the “Fish of Maui” – is the North Island, Te Wai Pounamu (also known as Te Waka-o-Māui – the “Boat of Maui”) is the South Island and Rakiura is Stewart Island.

​These lands were significant to the gods, being the place where Tāne-Mahuta separated his parents, Mother Earth from Sky Father (Papatūānuku and Rangi-Nui), allowing the first light to penetrate the world. At the time of this extraordinary event, the land was one significant landmass and remained largely untouched by the often-meddlesome gods and their many off-spring, and was under the care of the gentle Tuatara – the last of the Ancient Ones.

The Northern part of the island had a more pronounced “tail,” Lake Taupo (New Zealands largest lake) was Maunga-taupo (Mount Taupo – now gone), and there was a small thin land-mass that connected what would become the North Island to the South Island. The Southern part of the island had more land at the northern tip, and Stewart Island was part of the Southern Island.​

When the Taniwha took refuge here during the Taniwha Wars, and with their eventual discovery by the opposing Aho, the terrible conflict continued and the land became irreversibly altered through devastating and crippling magic. The landscape became ruptured and separated – mountains were toppled and whole rivers diverted. Forests were destroyed in terrible floods and fire, dormant volcanoes became active and earthquakes ripped and tore at the landscape. The battles were so fierce they were pulling the entire world apart (especially when Maunga-taupo erupted and shook the whole Earth).

​The mighty forest god, Tāne-Mahuta, finally sacrificed himself by permanently digging himself deep into the earth and spreading his roots throughout the world in order to bind the lands together. This selfless act was the last significant geographical change to the tiny islands and the world in general.

​During these events, the Māori arrived and settled the land, having navigated and populated the wider Polynesia. Though much of the greater catastrophic changes were already evident, they did witness some large upheavals that gave rise to their unique legends and mythology.