Beattib. — The Southern Maori, and Greenstone. 45 



Art. XII. — The Southern Maori, and Greenstone. 



By H. Beattie. 

 Communicated by H. D. Skimaer. 



[Read before the Otago Institute, 9th Deceynber, 1919 ; received by Editor, 31st December, 



1919 ; issued separately, 4th June, 1920.] 



While I was gathering place-names from the southern Maori they gave 

 me a little information about greenstone which may be worth recording 

 in print. Although greenstone is not the technical name of this stone, 

 it is the popular one, and I shall adhere to it. 



In his admirable paper in Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. 24, pp. 479-539, 

 Mr. Justice Chapman states that nowhere did the Maori get greenstone in 

 an inland locality, and thus he considers Shortland's statement that it was 

 procured at "Lake Wakatipua " "is erroneous. The southern Maori assure 

 me that Shortland's information was correct, and that you can still see 

 the place where the pounamu was got at Te Koroka, a mountain up the 

 Dart River. One old man said, "Pounamu of the inaka kind was found 

 at Te Koroka, at the head of Whakatipu. It was the only place where it 

 was got inland. Takiwai greenstone was found at ]VIilford and elsewhere." 

 Another said, " Te Koroka, where they got the greenstone, is north of 

 Wakatipu. Taumaro is the name of the mountains between Wakatipu- 

 wai-tai and Wakatipu-wai-maori, and Te Koroka' is one of those heights." 



Some of the Maori say " Wakatipu " and others " Whakatipu." It 

 was explained to me that the word occurs in five place-names. The 

 mountains west of the lake are called Whakatipu, aud the lake is known 

 as Whakatipu-wai-maori (Fresh-water Whakatipu). The Dart River is 

 Te-awa-Whakatipu, the Hollyford . River is Whakatipu-katuku, and Lake 

 McKerrow is Whakatipu-wai-tai (Salt-water Whakatipu). These last three 

 are all on the track by which the Maori went from the head of Lake 

 Wakatipu to Martin's Bay, on the west coast. 



One old Maori said, " Under Te Koroka is a place now called Maori 

 Hill, I believe, but known of old as Puketai, after a chief of note who died 

 there. 'Near this spot stood a kaika called Puia, and there the Maori lived 

 when getting the greenstone. The general name of the whole district 

 north of Lake Wakatipu was Te-wahi-pounamu." This last statement con- 

 flicts with Mr. Justice Chapman's conclusion (p. 522) that Te-wai-pounamu 

 is the correct form of the name, although there is nothing to prevent 

 ^the latter form having been applied to the rivers on the west coast. 

 A chapter could be written on the elision or addition of " h " in the 

 southern dialectal usages ; and in any case — ^again to differ from the con- 

 clusions of Mr. Justice Chapman — the pronunciations of "wai" and "waki" 

 by a southern MaOri are often so aUke as to be indistinguishable save to an 

 acute or trained ear. 



Before leaving the subject of greenstone in the Wakatipu district 

 I may add that Mr. James Cowan kindly lent me some notes he had 

 gathered from the southern Maori in 1905, and among them are the 

 following items of information : " Beyond the head of Whakatipu on the 

 road to Martin's Bay, somewhere near Lake Harris Saddle, is the place 

 where the Maori used to get koko-tangiivai." " Te Koroka is a bold peak 

 at the head of Lake Whakatipu, and the Maori got a sort of coarse green- 

 stone there." 



