they call it the gateway to the South Island. Like, they say it in a way that, like, it's cool. Like, this the gateway to the South Island. (ALL LAUGH) But have you ever been on a farm, and, you know, you have to open and close the gate, and then there's nothing for, like, the next couple of kilometres? That's Picton. (ALL LAUGH) Yeah, it's the gateway, but that's literally all it is ` just a gate. (ALL LAUGHS) Kia ora. I'm Joe Daymond. You may or may not have heard of me. My friends call me Joey D, but really hot girls call me, 'New phone. Who dis?' (CHUCKLES DRILY) But that's not important right now. What is important is that I've teamed up with Kara Rickard. And together, we're like the ultimate search engine. - We're going to leave no stone unturned, as we try and find the real story... behind our country's place names. (SIGNS WHOOSH) Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2022 - Kia ora. Today I'm in Picton, famous as the gateway to the South Island. I wanna find out about the man behind the name Picton and if he should really have a town named after or not. And what's the Maori name for this area? And could it be time for a comeback? So let's get the name right ` for Picton. (UPBEAT MUSIC) (CHILL MUSIC) - My very first trip to the South Island was to Picton. I asked my mum, 'What does Picton mean?' She didn't know. So I just thought it's a place that people go to have a picnic. Maori kid. - Meanest kutais down there. But I have no connection to the name, no. (CHUCKLES) - I feel like it's near the bottom of the South Island. Where is it? Top of the south? Oh, well, yeah. - I'm assuming it's some old white dude. Am I right? Sgt Picton. Capt Picton. Mr Picton. - OK, I'm gonna clear this up, and I know just who to ask. Local Picton history teacher Renee Eynon. - Picton is named after Sir Thomas Picton. He was involved in several campaigns with the British Empire and became a very well-decorated officer. - So he sounds like a bit of a war hero. There's other sides to him, though. He ended up becoming the governor of Trinidad. - OK. - Yep. And he was quite well-known there for being quite brutal. And he was actually known as the Tyrant of Trinidad. He was involved in the slave trade. - What the (BLEEP)? Seriously? - Yep. - Ugh. It makes me feel a little bit sick, to be honest with you. - Goodness. It's dispiriting. - He was known to authorise torture of some of his slaves. - Holy sh` - Wow. He sounds like a real son of a bitch, doesn't he? Far out. Bit of a mongrel. - The most infamous act, I guess, would be his authorising the torture of a 14-year-old girl, Luisa Calderon, to try and get a confession of theft. - Do we need to continue any further? Like, there's no reason to name any of these New Zealand places after these people. Surely. Surely. Surely the evidence is in. I rest` I rest my case, Your Honour. Change 'em all back. - Over in Wellington... - Yeah. - ...they have been trying to change the name Picton Ave to something else. Obviously, cos of the negative connotation. - Of course. - Even in Cardiff in Wales, there's people, including some of Picton's descendants, trying to get rid of statues and paintings. - Even his own whanau are like, bro, you know, 'We gotta` yeah, 'take his name off there, man.' You know? - Do you think this is something that many people know about? Well, I think some do, but probably not everyone. Some would probably be quite disgusted to know that the place is named after him. - OK, that's me. Guys, I think my time is done here. I'm, ah` I'm gonna head on out, because that doesn't need a comment. That's wrong, man! Come on! Get with the programme. They should be 'Picton' a new name. Oh, that was dry. (LAUGHS) - He raureka te hitori o te ingoa nei, a Picton. Engari me ruku ki nga korero tuku iho. Kei reira te ingoa taketake o tenei rohe. Ma te kaumatua nei a Rita pea e awhina. He aha te ingoa Maori o te wahi nei? - Waitohi. Ko Waitohi te ingoa o te pa. And that name comes from the awa. The name of the awa is Te Weranga o Waitohi which means the energy, the power, the strength of the Waitohi. And wai is water and a tohi rite is a ritual that was carried out on warriors before they went to battle. And the whole korero around that tohi was to take the energy, the power, the strength of the water from the awa and instil that in the warriors, so that when they went off to war, they would take that power and energy with them, and it'd bring them back safe. - Do you know when the last Waitohi ceremony took place? - The last one that we know of here at home was carried out on the Maori Battalion when they went off to WWII. - Is giving a name back an opportunity for us to learn about some of these practices, revive some of these practices, once again, have them more broadly used. - Our challenge is how do we keep our history strong? How do we make it the present, not just the past? How do we put it into formats where we can share it with one another and we can hold it strong and we can take it forward with us? We're mindful now that we don't send people off to physical battle, but as an iwi, we're starting to have conversations about is there an appropriate time where that ceremony might be carried out on some of our uri for some special significance? - E whakahokia mai ana, e whakarauoratia ana nga iwi i era tikanga i o ratou rohe ake. - He aha nga rohe kei raro i te maru o Waitohi? - So Waitohi is the harbour area where the original pa was, the Waitohi pa. And so that whole area from the harbour back across the foreshore and all the cultivations that were behind it sits under the maunga of Piripiri. - What happened... to Maori when the Pakeha came and kicked them out of their pa and sent them over to Waikawa? - So we were moved off Waitohi out to Waikawa. The word Waikawa, wai, again, being water. Kawa being sour. And, so, one of the korero that we have around that significance was the water supply that we were drinking wasn't healthy, and so it made many people sick. A tupuna of ours named Ropoama, he found a well that was healthy and fresh, and so that water resurged our people. - That is just another great example of it not just being a place name, but when you look into it, that the korero is so much deeper. - Definitely. For us as Te Atiawa, that gives us that cultural strength so that we know who we are on our whenua and we understand those links between us and our whenua. And a lot of it is carried in the names, i roto i nga ingoa Maori. - Waitohi. It actually` it's so rich in its knowledge and it gives you so much more perspective or it links you to things of our history. And I don't know what the hesitation is in this country to not learn about things that are te ao Maori, because I feel like the more you know, the more informed you are, the more meaning it can or can't give to your life. But I definitely know it's a lot more meaning than Picton. - Does anyone know where the name Picton comes from? I don't really know how to say this, but it comes from a man named Thomas Picton who... owned and sold slaves in Trinidad. (TENSE MUSIC) Hectic, eh? (ALL LAUGH) Yeah. Picton... where you catch the Interislander to. Named after a slave owner. Isn't that crazy? 'I guess it's only crazy if people living here actually know the truth. 'And that's exactly what I intend to find out.' (UPBEAT MUSIC) Do you know much about the name Picton and where it comes from? - I don't actually. Sorry. - No. No, I don't. - Yeah. - Yeah. No. - Fair enough. - I don't know the details, but I think it was named after a man who wasn't very nice. - Just that it's, like, named after some dude that owned slaves. Yeah. Classic colonialist history. - You do think it should be changed to something else? - I think it would` yeah. I think it'd be a good idea. - I wouldn't want to keep it. - Do you think Picton should be named after someone like that? - It was named Picton long before I ever knew about it. - Yeah, right. - And about him. - Yeah. - Well, I mean, why don't we know this stuff? Why isn't this taught in our schools so that everyone learns a little bit more and thinks, 'Well, let's rename the place.' To name a beautiful place like Waitohi after him is, yeah, what a kick in the guts that is. - Do you still think it should stay the same? - Yes, I do. I do, cos everyone knows it is as Picton. - It's so well known as Picton, and especially with the ferries coming in and out. - Picton's always the first stop. - So if we change it to Waitohi the Interislander wouldn't know where to go? (SCOFFS) - People catch on pretty fast, I reckon. I reckon they'll find out where Waitohi is. - No, he should not have got Picton named after him. Changed the name ` immediately! (CHUCKLES) - I'm surprised that there's any resistance to a name change here. Maybe author and local resident Brian Morris can explain it to me. - Well, it's the name we've got. It's well-known around the world as being a beautiful place to come with great weather, nice people. Why would we want to change that? - Do you know much about the history of` - Oh, I know a little bit. I know Picton was not a very nice fellow, but if you name places after only nice people, you wouldn't have anything named after Churchill. You wouldn't have anything named after even Princess Diana. This would be Mother Teresa wharf, Mother Teresa park down there. This would be Mother Teresa Town. - Do you not feel like it's different here in New Zealand Aotearoa where we do actually have, you know, very worthy replacements for these names, which is their original Maori name. - What you're offering is a solution to a problem we don't have. - Right. IMITATES OLD PERSON: 'Yes, that's old Picton, but look at new Picton. 'Hills... 'water.' Yeah, the hills look mean. But it's named after a dude that owned slaves. And with the original name being Waitohi... - Yeah. - ...do you not think that should be acknowledged as the name if that was the name before it became Picton? - You see, I don't have any Maori connections, as such. - Yeah. - So I don't have any great ethnic links to Waitohi, but I respect those who do. - Yeah. - And I think good luck to them. But it's not the name of this city, this town anymore. - Yeah. - It was changed. It was all part of the agreement 100 or so years ago. - And what would your thoughts be if it was to change back, then? - I wouldn't like it. Think about the disruption to life and commerce... and the culture of the people who have been brought up here. - 'Hmm. Isn't he talking about what happened to Maori 100 or so years ago?' - They say, 'I'm a Pictonite.' - The problem is it being a Maori name, because as soon as you start renaming places Maori names, then you have to acknowledge that the indigenous people were there, that there was someone there before you got there. Hello. - Is that just an ideal that you have reserved just for Picton, or when it comes to, you know, all place names across Aotearoa, you like it staying the name? - I like it staying the same. Right. - Whatever it is written on the map is what it should be. - OK. - Look, if it's not broke, don't fix it. - Right. - And the name Picton isn't broke or broken. - I guess that's my argument, is that the name is broken. - No, it's not. - Right. - Where's the evidence that Picton the name is broken? It's well-known around the world. - But, I don't know, for example, who's a really bad person in your eyes? - Putin. - Putin. If we were to name a place` - Which we would not. - And why wouldn't we? - Cos he's Russian. He's not New Zealand. - Picton's not from New Zealand either. He's never even been here. - Picton is this place. It is New Zealand. That's the name given to it, and we live with it. We don't go looking for the trouble of a fellow with a colourful background. - That place has been named after this person who has a terrible legacy. Like, why is it so hard for you to adjust your mindset? - If you really think about it... - Which I have. - ...there's a lot of similarities between Putin and Picton. - Not really, no. - There's a few. - You're looking for a problem that isn't here. Look around at this beautiful place. Sunshine, peaceful people going about their business, not looking for anything to do with somebody who lived 200 years ago. Nothing to do with us now. - Mm. Apart from the name. - Right. Are we done? - People are set in their ways. What do we do about that, you know? When people are so, sooo set in their ways, my heart, really` I can only have empathy for people who don't see any other way but that. - Kihai nga pakeke o Picton i whakarata atu ki a Joe, engari kei te hiahia ke au ki te rongo he aha i whakahirahira ai te ingoa nei a Waitohi ki te whakatipuranga hou kei Waikawa Marae. Is that the moana? - I haven't decided yet. - OK, you haven't decided. Could be the sky. Could be the ocean. This is a cool pikitia. Ko wai tenei? Who's this? - Me. - Are you playing rugby? - Yeah. - Do you play for the Waitohi rugby team? - Yes. We haven't lost a game for the whole season yet. - Really? You guys must be really good. Can you tell me some of the cool places in Waitohi? - Waikawa Marae, out the bay, and the Waitohi Rugby Club. - Pizza. - Yeah. - If we were gonna change the name from Picton to Waitohi, how do you think we should do it? - Asking people. - I think that's a good idea too. Guys, I love all of the pictures that you've drawn. And today, we're actually gonna go down to the awa, down to Waitohi and do a waitohi ceremony. We've got a bunch of guys that are coming to do it. Do you guys want to come and give them a mihi and a bit of tautoko as they head off to do it? - ALL: Yeah! - All right. Let's go. Me haere tatou. - Who here likes the song Ignition Remix by R Kelly? (ALL LAUGH) You can say you like that song, cos it's a banger. I could still sing it word for word, and I still do. There's just a lot of shame attached. We can call it Picton, but pretty much you're saying you're all good with slaves after that, though. - Ko Waitohi te ingoa taketake o tenei whenua, a, he hohonu ake nga korero tuku iho ki era o Picton. E hikaka ana ki te whai wahi atu ki te tikanga nei i tapaina ki tenei whenua. (TENSE MUSIC) - In the days before colonisation, us as Maori had our own processes and beliefs. Warriors, before they left the area, they would line up alongside the Waitohi awa and the tohunga would give the appropriate ruruku and slap each toa on their right shoulder before they left for war. - When we're able to recover these rituals, these things... - Te mauri ki runga. Te mauri ki a Rangi. Te mauri kia puta ki te wao, ki te ao marama. - ...like, there's just a snowball effect of connection, I think, from person to person, from the person to the land, from, you know, for an entire group of people. And I just think it enriches the culture. - Turuturu o whiti whakamaua kia tina. - ALL: Tina. - Hui e. - ALL: Taiki e. - When it comes to tikanga, like the tohi, you know, those rituals, they're really sacred. - Yeah. Awesome. Great to see Te Atiawa reclaiming one of their beautiful traditions from the past. Makes sense. Way to go, whanau. Yeah. WHISPERS: Picton's an arsehole. (LAUGHS) - It's a hard one, like, names. My name is Joseph Neihana Maui Daymond. There's a lot of history to that. In high school, my nickname was... 50 Cent. Nah, I get it. Like, I get where the joke comes from, cos, you know, that's what's in my pocket. But it's not my name. One place where using the wrong name seems to be acceptable is on social media. Just like my bro and social media influencer Terewai Kopua aka That Cuzzy Trexx. (HIP-HOP MUSIC) Your name's Terewai Kopua, correct? - Terewai Kopua, yup. - But everyone obviously knows you as... - ...Trexx. - Yeah. - See, when I got into social media, my name initially was That Cuzzy Terewai. But then because people couldn't pronounce it, they'd be like, 'That Cuzzy T-T-T.' - Eh? - They'd be like, 'That Cuzzy T!' or, 'Terry-why', so they wouldn't say it right. So I'd be like` just made it a bit more commercial. - Yeah. - I sold out, really. Yeah, you did sell out. Trexx. - I really sold out. Trexx. - So society is perfectly happy to accept the name change when it's a sell-out celebrity like my bro, That Cuzzy Trexx, that I wonder if they even know how common it is. - Thomas Mapother. - Who do you think that is? - Tom Hanks? - Tom Jones. - Tom Jones, oh. - Tom Jones? - You'll know him. - Oh, eh? Um... - Tom Cruise? - Yeah! There it is. Stefani Joanne... Alla-Allagenia. - Angelina. Germanotta. - Carmanotta. Yeah. Let's go. - Um. - Gwen Stefani? - It's another girl and also incorrect. - Britney Spears? - (LAUGHS) Just throw someone random. - Is that Lady Gaga? - 100%. It's Lady Gaga! - Where's the guitar? Nah, jokes. - (IMITATES GUITAR) - # Used to spend my night out in the back of the barroom. - Ooh! - (EXCLAIMS) - How's that? - Who knows? Your name might be on here one day. - Oh, who knows? Yeah. My name is Fai. - And then your stage name would be... - ...Fai Fai Pea. (ALL LAUGH) - When you are referred to as Terewai, what sort of mind-set does that put you in? - The people that do call me Terewai are those closest to me. It holds a lot of meaning, you know, cos I'm named after my dad and my dad's named after my koro's brother. - Which name do you feel most attached to, Terewai or Trexx? - Definitely Terewai. - So what are your feelings when people refer to you as Trexx, though? - I just know that that's sort of someone that doesn't really know me that well. - Yeah, got you. - You know? So, and that's fine. I'm fine with that. - So no one seems to care if celebrities change their names. I might change my name to Terrence. But what Trexx and I want to know is how do they react to place names, starting with the North and South Islands. What we're getting people to do is just rank their favourite down to their least favourite of the four. - Te Waipounamu at the top. Te Ika a Maui. And then... ooh. Cos I'm from Rotorua, I'll go North Island, and then South. - Yeah. The North Island. - And then your second favourite? - South Island. Well, you can't accuse the colonisers of being too innovative with the names, can ya? - How come you prefer the English names over the Maori names? - Cos that's the names that I know. - Do you have trouble pronouncing them at all? - Te Ika a Maui. Te Waipounamu. - I see you, bro. - You're on, brother. - All right, kaumatua. - Ka pai. Ka pai. (ALL LAUGH) - Bro, straight from the marae! - Oosh, this guy. - Yeah. All goods, brother. - I'm Tim. Nice to meet you. - Trexx, bro. You're a handsome fulla, eh? Got a good smile on you. - Yeah. Hard. Where are you from, bro? - Hastings. - Oh, I take it back. (ALL LAUGH) - We were brought up as South Island, North Island. - Yeah. - Besides that, I can't say those names. - Yeah, yeah. - Nah, I think both the Maori names, eh? - So why do you prefer those ones? - Cos that's who we are in Aotearoa. - I'd rather the Maori names said more. - I have to go with the original te reo, eh? We're living on the land, eh? - Yeah, yeah, yeah. - Out of them two, I reckon Te Ika a Maui is the best. - There's stories behind the Maori version, eh? They're good stories too. - Back in the ra, i nga wa o mua, Maui fished up the North Island Te Ika a Maui. So, you know, the fish of Maui. - I reckon he thought, 'Far, this is bigger than everyone's fish! My whanau can live on here!' Yeah. - There's a story there. And it's so much more fascinating and more interesting and connected to the land and the people. Like, why would you just go for boring North and South? - TREXX: Chur, eah. - Can we grab a photo? - Yeah, yeah. For sure. Yeah. - Place names represent significant moments. It's those moments that shape who we are and bring us together as people. - What's powerful about the Treaty is that it's not Maori saying these are our customs, our ways of thinking, don't touch them. It's saying we invite you to share with this, and for you to feel a part of this. - Bro just put` just go like this. (ALL LAUGH) - Pronouncing te reo names is difficult for some people. - Whaka... - ...oriori. - ...ori. - I'd call it Tah-herah-nee-cow. - They wanted me to say Waimate, but they wanted me to say it the white way. www.able.co.nz Copyright Able 2022 - Ko te reo te take.