New signs for Pākaraka township this summer
Published on 25 November 2022
Mai i Ngāti Maika, Manutohikura ee, Pūorotia te reo maimaia a te tōpuni rākau Karaka o te wao o Ngāti Maika te pae o Rauru kiitahi. Numi aronui mai e ngā manu o te uta o te tai. Hei whakamauri ake i te rangi e tohia ai te ingoa o Pākaraka. Te Kawa ora ee.
Ngāti Maika, hapū of Ngā Rauru Kītahi, has advised that signs naming the locality of Pākaraka will be installed at each end of the township in January 2023.
Ngāti Maika spokesperson Derek Carroll says the hapū is looking forward to an inclusive occasion to mark the event. “Details have yet to be finalised,” he says, “but this will be open to all members of the community.”
“Ngāti Maika is currently liaising with Whanganui District Council and Waka Kotahi with regards to traffic management to ensure the signs can be blessed and installed safely.”
Ngāti Maika applied to the New Zealand Geographic Board in 2021 to change the name of the locality of Maxwell to Pākaraka, a name which means a settlement surrounded by an abundance of karaka trees, and the application was upheld in February 2022.
Whanganui District Council supported the application and assisted with community consultation, which was required as part of the renaming process. 255 submissions were received with 189 supporting the renaming of Maxwell to the proposed name of Pākaraka.
Associations with the name Maxwell have been a grievance carried for generations and are a reminder of historical pain, in particular the attack on Māori children in 1868 in what is known as the Handley Woolshed incident.
The Ngā Rauru Deed of Settlement recognised the Handley Woolshed incident and encouraged discussions between Whanganui District Council and the Ngā Rauru Iwi Authority or the Governance Entity in relation to the name of the town of Maxwell.
Whanganui District Council chief executive David Langford says, “The council has provided the signs for Pākaraka and we will assist with the installation in January. This will be a moving and historic occasion and we are pleased to be able to continue our support in this way.”