Te Wai Pounamu is the M?ori name for New Zealand's South Island which is also sometimes referred to as Te Waka a Maui (The canoe of Maui), referring to mythology.

Ng?i Tahu, the principal M?ori iwi (tribe) of the southern region of New Zealand, utilised the very hard greenstone (jade) to make adzes and other implements, as well as ornaments. Particularly valued was a paler nephrite which the M?ori called inanga, gathered in a remote area near what is now called the Dart Valley. M?ori named the district w?hi pounamu, meaning "place of greenstone", and the South Island came to be called Te W?hi Pounamu. This somehow evolved into Te Wai Pounamu which means "the water(s) of greenstone" but bears no relation to the original meaning.

References

• Evison, Harry C, "The Ngai Tahu Deeds, A Window on New Zealand History," (Canterbury University Press, [2006]). ISBN 1-877257-39-7