A proposed "spelling correction" that would have seen Whangarei's Hatea River become the Hoteo is on hold.
The New Zealand Geographic Board - which makes recommendations to the government about place name changes - was to have considered the Hatea/Hoteo issue at a meeting scheduled for August 29. However, board secretary Wendy Shaw said the proposal had been put on hold after a request by the Whangarei District Council for more time.
The Rodney District Council had also raised concerns about possible confusion with another Hoteo River, flowing into the southern Kaipara.
Whangarei Mayor Pamela Peters said the spelling change application had not been withdrawn, but she had asked the Geographic Board for "a little more time".
"I thought it would be prudent to pause and, as David Lange said, have a cup of tea."
Mrs Peters said that during discussions about Parahaki/Parihaka, she learnt that Whangarei Maori were not unanimous in backing a change from Hatea to Hoteo.
Nor had there been the same level of discussion and evidence to support changing the river's spelling as there had been for the hill. Mrs Peters said she was now waiting for a hui with the district's kaumatua, before going back to the council for a decision. There was no date fixed for the hui as yet.
Whangarei kaumatua Te Ihi Tito - who made the original request for the spelling change - said "Hoteo" meant "stone calabash", after a calabash-shaped pool under a waterfall. Hatea was the original name of a creek, now filled in, that flowed from the Bank St area.
Mr Tito "totally agreed" with taking the proposal back to local kaumatua, but was concerned the council could be tempted to drop the Hatea/Hoteo spelling change as a compromise to appease those who opposed the change to Parihaka.
Meanwhile, the Parahaki/Parihaka change becomes official on September 4.
The earliest a name change or spelling correction can take effect is six months after an "intention to assign" notice is published in the New Zealand Gazette. The Parahaki/Parihaka notice was published on March 3.
The decision to change the name of Whangarei's landmark hill divided the community.
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