This article was first published by RNZ.
Public consultation opens today on a proposal to correct the spelling of the Lower Hutt suburb Petone to Pito One.
The proposal was made to Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa New Zealand Geographic Board by The Wellington Tenths Trust and the Palmerston North Māori Reserve Trust with support from the Hutt City Council and numerous iwi groups from the region.
Board secretary Wendy Shaw said Pito One was the correct spelling for the suburb.
“The name refers to the burial of pito (umbilical cord) in the one (sand) as a symbolic tethering of a newborn to the land and their tūrangawaewae (place to stand) and as an expression of ahi kā (continuous occupation).
“Pito One pā was the place where senior rangatira Hōniana Te Puni met William Wakefield and the New Zealand Company settlers in 1839,” she said.
Early correspondence and maps show the use of Pitoni, Pito One, Pito-One and Pitoone. However, over time, Petone became commonly used.
At various times since 1930 the board has recognised that the spelling of the name is incorrect but has never formally resolved the matter.
The spelling Pito One has been confirmed by kaumātua at Te Taura Whiri i te Reo, the Māori Language Commission.
Māori Language Commissioner Ngahiwi Apanui wants to make sure iwi are considered in consultation and a good process followed.
Te Taura Whiri supported changing place names in certain cases but also supported a good process for getting to a name change, he said.
“We’ve supported the local iwi here in Wellington with the name Pito One because we want to see a good process, we want to see iwi considered. It was their ancestors who came up with the name in the first place, so it’s good to consult with them and do it in a really meaningful way.
“I’ve grown up with those names. I never called Taranaki Egmont it was always Maunga Taranaki from when I was a child. So for me seeing them returned to their rightful names, on a personal level is something I really, really appreciate.”
If an iwi’s treaty settlement has a language clause as part of it, that takes precedence over Te Taura Whiri’s te reo conventions, Apanui said.
“One of the things that we’d like to think is that the conventions are not so rigid that they exclude iwi from having a say in those names. The iwi of Taranaki Whānui and Te Āti Awa would prefer, and I think there’s enough evidence to support it, that it’s written as Pito One, not as Petone.”
The Geographic Board is now looking to hear from the wider community before any final decisions are made.
Submissions on the proposal can be made in the following ways:
- Online at linz.govt.nz/consultations
- By emailing nzgbsubmissions@linz.govt.nz
- In writing by posting a letter to: Secretary of the New Zealand Geographic Board, PO Box 5501, Wellington 6145.
Consultation closes on September 10.
- RNZ