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Story: Waka – canoes

Māui fishes up the North Island

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Māui fishes up the North Island

With the help of his brothers, the mythical hero Māui fishes up Te Ika-roa-a-Māui (Māui’s great fish) – now known as the North Island of New Zealand. In some traditions, his waka (canoe) became the South Island, known as Te Waka a Māui. In others, it is known as Nukutaimemeha, and is said to reside on the summit of Hikurangi, the ancestral mountain of the Ngāti Porou tribe.

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Learning Media Ltd

Reference: Eke Panuku 14, Wellington: Learning Media Ltd, 2004.

by Manu Smith

This material is reproduced by permission of the publishers, Learning Media Ltd, PO Box 3293, Wellington, New Zealand.

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How to cite this page

Hoturoa Barclay-Kerr, Waka – canoes – Pacific origins, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/5982/maui-fishes-up-the-north-island (accessed 16 June 2026).

Story by Hoturoa Barclay-Kerr, published 2 March 2009.