Rich Cultural History

Waikato has a mighty river and a mighty history to match. Maori have lived in the area for centuries, since the great voyaging Tainui waka (canoe) made landfall. Since then wars have been fought, peace has been forged and generations have told their stories and recorded their histories. Today, the region has forged ahead, with a rich farming heritage and a confident innovation-based future alongside a proud Maori tradition.

Waikato River Trail

History is around every bend in the majestic Waikato River which gives the region its name and gave the early Maori inhabitants a source of nourishment and life. Their spiritual relationship with the river, which they regard as an ancestor, is summed up in the famous saying: “Waikato taniwha rau, he piko he taniwha.” (Waikato of a hundred taniwha, every bend a taniwha.) The taniwha (water monsters) are also a symbol for great chiefs so the second line can also be translated as “Waikato of a hundred chiefs, every bend a chief”.

Maori placenames tell the story of the region, starting with the name Waikato itself. The great voyaging Tainui waka (canoe) passed by the river’s mouth during its migration to Kawhia on the region’s west coast. It is said that when it did so, the river’s current could be seen exerting a pull (kato) in the sea — so the river was named Waikato (with “wai” meaning “water”). Sometimes the name is simply translated as flowing water.

Even the haka made famous by the All Blacks has links to the area. It was devised by the chief Te Rauparaha, who came from Kawhia. “Ka mate, ka mate, ka ora, ka ora” (I die, I die, I live, I live) he chanted at the start of the haka, after a brush with death.

The story of the Waikato region is also the story of Kingitanga (the King Movement), formed to unite the Maori people in defense of their land and independence in the Waikato Land Wars of the nineteenth century. History has moved with them and today the Maori King has his impressive base at Turangawaewae in Ngaruawahia just north of Hamilton.

Waka taua (war canoe) Te Winika – Waikato Museum in Hamilton

Taonga (treasures) of Tainui are held in historical places and museums throughout the region including the Waikato Museum in Hamilton — including the showpiece waka taua (war canoe) Te Winika. The museum also holds items chronicling the history of Hamilton, which was founded as a military settlement in the 1860s, and an interactive exhibition on the city — from its past to is present has recently been opened to commemorate milestones and memories.

At the heart of New Zealand’s richest agricultural area, Hamilton is now one of the fastest growing cities in the country and at the centre of a network of towns reflecting the region’s farming prosperity. Situated on the floodplain basin created by the Waikato River the region’s fertile soils have made it one of the leading agricultural and bio-technology centres in the country.