Nearly 2000 submissions received on Gisborne's Poverty Bay name change proposal

Friday, 9 February 2018

Gisborne District Council is asking the public if there is support for Turanganui a Kiwa to be used instead of Poverty Bay.

Almost 2000 public submissions have been received on a proposal to restore Poverty Bay to its original Māori name.

The iwi of Rongowhakaata made the proposal to change the name of the east coast region back to Tūranganui-ā-kiwa.

Gisborne Mayor Meng Foon said there was a mixed response, with some wanting the current name retained, some supporting the change, and others wanting the two names to be combined.

There were also submissions for the region to be given a different name entirely, such as Beautiful Bay or Prosperity Bay.

**READ MORE:

Locals have responded in large numbers to a proposal to change Poverty Bay to its original name of Turanganui a Kiwa.

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'There's been tremendous interest in the proposition,' Foon said.

'We've got all the submissions in front of us and we'll consider that.'

Gisborne Mayor Meng Foon would like the original name restored, but says the final solution may be a combination of the Māori and English names.

Foon was in no doubt as to his preference, saying restoring the original name of Tūranganui-ā-kiwa would represent a return to the region's roots and whakapapa.

'But I would say to get it through, it will probably be the joint name of Tūranganui-ā-kiwa-Poverty Bay,' he said.

'It's a journey, the whole thing is a journey.

'The area was nameless before Māori came here, then Māori named it Tūranganui-ā-kiwa, then came 1769 when [Captain James] Cook named it Endeavour Bay.

'About 10 minutes later, he crossed that name out and called it Poverty Bay.'

Foon said the name would quickly catch on, and would not be hard to adjust to.

'People get used to it, they learn it. More particularly the young people, they embrace the culture very quickly.

'And tourists as well - they want to pronounce the name correctly, just like we want to pronounce place names correctly when we go overseas.'

The Gisborne District Council will consider the feedback at a meeting next month, but Foon expected the change to go through.

From there, it would go before the New Zealand Geographic Board for final consultation and a decision.