Māori Culture in Blenheim
The name Te Waiharakeke, Rangitāne o Wairau, Te Pokohiwi o Kupe, the Wairau Affray, the marae and te reo classes.
Te Waiharakeke is a Māori name for Blenheim, on the Wairau plain in Te Tauihu, the top of the South Island. Rangitāne o Wairau trace their tūpuna to Te Pokohiwi o Kupe, the Wairau Bar, one of the oldest known settlement sites in Aotearoa. Here’s what to know about Māori culture in Blenheim: Te Pokohiwi and the museum, the Wairau Affray, the marae, the iwi and te reo.
Te Waiharakeke and Te Wairau
Before the town, Blenheim was a large flax swamp where the Omaka and Ōpaoa rivers meet, which gave it the name Te Waiharakeke, the waters of flax.
Te Wairau
The river and plain, named in the Rangitāne o Wairau pepeha.
Te Pokohiwi o Kupe
The shoulder of Kupe: the Wairau Bar, at the river mouth.
Tapuae-o-Uenuku
The maunga of Rangitāne o Wairau and of Ōmaka and Tuamātene marae.
Kei puta Te Wairau
The call that closes the Rangitāne o Wairau mihi on their website.
Places to know in and around Blenheim
The museum tells the story of Te Pokohiwi. The bar itself is a wāhi tapu, so this guide does not send you onto it. Check with each place for dates and prices.
Marlborough Museum: Te Pokohiwi
The museum’s Te Pokohiwi exhibition includes artefacts from the Wairau Bar. In 2024 Rangitāne o Wairau said their long-term goal is for those taonga to come back into Rangitāne care, and for the Wairau Bar story to be told by them. Adults $10, children 15 and under free.
Visit the museumTe Pokohiwi o Kupe (Wairau Bar)
Settled around 1300 by the direct ancestors of Rangitāne o Wairau, it is one of the oldest known settlement sites in Aotearoa. In 2009 Rangitāne brought their tūpuna home from Canterbury Museum and reburied them there. The burial site is wāhi tapu, off-limits to the public, with no road access. In February 2026 Rangitāne o Wairau and DOC signed an agreement appointing the iwi as the reserve’s Control and Management Authority. The southern end can be seen from across the river, from Wairau Bar Road.
Destination MarlboroughWairau Affray site
On 17 June 1843 an armed party of settlers clashed with Ngāti Toa at Tuamarina over Wairau land that, in Destination Marlborough’s words, “had been included in a fraudulent deed”, and which Te Rauparaha and Te Rangihaeata tried to protect for their people. 22 Europeans and at least four Māori were killed; some accounts say nine. Governor FitzRoy later exonerated the two rangatira. Today Ngāti Toa is acknowledged as guardian of the site under its Treaty settlement.
The ProwMarae near Blenheim
Marae are the gathering places of hapū and iwi. They are not visitor attractions: you visit a marae when you’re invited, or by arrangement with the marae, often with a group, a school or an event. Each marae has its own kawa (protocol), so ask your hosts what they expect.
Ōmaka
Māori Maps says Ōmaka is shared by many iwi, principal among them Rangitāne o Wairau and the hapū of Huataki. Its whare rūnanga, Te Aroha o te Waipounamu, was opened on 27 October 1985; the wharekai is Te Waiora. It grew from the Marlborough Māori Community Club, formed in 1959.
Māori MapsTuamātene
In Rangitāne o Wairau’s words, “Tuamātene is an ancient pā and is a home for all uri of Rangitāne o Wairau.” The wharenui is Te Pokohiwi o Kupe (it shares its name with the Wairau Bar) and the wharekai is Pokapoka.
Rangitāne o WairauWairau Pā
Māori Maps says it belongs to Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Rangitāne o Wairau and Ngāti Rārua. It is just north of Blenheim, on Wairau Bar Road.
Māori MapsHow a welcome usually goes
- GatherThe visitors assemble together, and the hosts begin the welcome.
- KarangaA woman from the hosts calls you on, and a caller from your group answers. Walk on together as the calling continues.
- Whaikōrero and waiataSpeeches from hosts and visitors, each followed by a song.
- KohaA gift, usually money in an envelope, laid down by your last speaker.
- Hongi and harirūShake hands and press noses with the hosts.
- HākariA shared meal ends the welcome and lifts the tapu of the pōwhiri.
Iwi of the Wairau
In their own words, Rangitāne have lived in Te Tauihu “since the migration from the Wairarapa in the sixteenth century under the Rangatira Te Huataki, Te Whakamana and Tukanae”, and are a Kurahaupō iwi with close whakapapa to Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō and Ngāti Kuia. The Rangitāne whakataukī: “Tini whetū ki te rangi … ko Rangitāne ki te whenua”, like the multitudes of stars in the sky, so great is Rangitāne on the earth. Ngāti Rārua say that “By 1840, Ngāti Rārua were resident in the Cloudy Bay and Wairau districts” (Our Story), and with Ngāti Toa Rangatira they hold Wairau Pā. Te Kāhui Māngai lists nine iwi with interests in Marlborough District: the eight iwi of Te Tauihu and Ngāi Tahu, through Te Rūnanga o Kaikōura.
- Rangitāne o Wairau
- Ngāti Apa ki te Rā Tō
- Ngāti Kuia
- Ngāti Koata
- Ngāti Rārua
- Ngāti Tama ki Te Waipounamu
- Ngāti Toa Rangatira
- Te Ātiawa o Te Waka-a-Māui
- Ngāi Tahu, through Te Rūnanga o Kaikōura
Māori history and stories
Te Pokohiwi o Kupe holds the remains of some of the first people to live in Aotearoa, and DNA research done with Rangitāne o Wairau has shown the iwi today are their direct descendants (Scoop). In 1843 the clash at Tuamarina over the New Zealand Company’s claim to the Wairau Valley was the first significant armed conflict between Māori and British settlers after the signing of the Treaty.
Māori History in Blenheim
Te Waiharakeke, Te Pokohiwi and the iwi of the Wairau.
Read the historyRangitāne o Wairau, Our Story
The Kurahaupō waka, Te Huataki and the Rangitāne rohe, in their own words.
Read itLearning te reo Māori in Blenheim
Te reo Māori learning for adults. Check each provider for the latest dates.
NMIT Marlborough
A Level 1 te reo course with zero fees in 2027 (a student service fee applies). In Blenheim it runs on Wednesday evenings, 5pm to 9pm, from 15 February 2027.
Find out moreKōhanga reo
Kōhanga reo are Māori-language early learning centres. Find one on the Kōhanga Reo National Trust map.
- Te Kōhanga Reo o Ngā Puāwai (Riversdale)
Schools that teach in te reo Māori
Te Pā Wānanga o Ōmaka Marae
Full primary school at Ōmaka Marae. All students taught in te reo Māori.
Read our school guideBohally Intermediate also has some students taught in te reo Māori.
About this page
Explore Blenheim is an independent local guide. This page draws on the websites of Rangitāne o Wairau, Ngāti Rārua, Te Kāhui Māngai, Māori Maps, Destination Marlborough, Marlborough Museum, Marlborough Online, The Prow, Te Ara, Te Ao Māori News, Scoop, the Ministry of Education and the providers’ own sites. Spotted something to add or correct? Let us know.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Māori name for Blenheim?
Te Waiharakeke, the waters of flax, from the flax swamp where the Omaka and Ōpaoa rivers meet.
What iwi is Blenheim?
Rangitāne o Wairau trace their tūpuna to Te Pokohiwi o Kupe, and Ngāti Rārua and Ngāti Toa Rangatira hold Wairau Pā. Te Kāhui Māngai lists nine iwi with interests in Marlborough: the eight iwi of Te Tauihu and Ngāi Tahu, through Te Rūnanga o Kaikōura.
What is Te Pokohiwi o Kupe?
The Wairau Bar, where the Wairau River meets Cloudy Bay: one of the oldest known settlement sites in Aotearoa. Rangitāne reburied their tūpuna there in 2009, and the burial site is wāhi tapu, off-limits to the public.
Can you visit the Wairau Bar?
No. Te Pokohiwi is wāhi tapu and the burial site is off-limits to the public. View the southern end only from across the river, from Wairau Bar Road, and please do not cross onto the bar. Wairau Bar Road also passes Wairau Pā marae, so do not enter the marae grounds uninvited. Marlborough Museum tells the story.
What was the Wairau Affray?
A clash at Tuamarina on 17 June 1843 between armed settlers and Ngāti Toa over Wairau land, in which 22 Europeans and at least four Māori were killed (some accounts say nine).
Is there a marae in Blenheim?
Ōmaka Marae on Aerodrome Road is shared by many iwi, with Tuamātene at Grovetown and Wairau Pā at Spring Creek nearby. Visits are by invitation or arrangement.
When is the Marlborough Museum open?
Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11am to 3pm, at 26 Arthur Baker Place in Brayshaw Heritage Park.
Where can I learn te reo Māori in Blenheim?
NMIT Marlborough runs a Level 1 te reo course with zero fees in 2027, on Wednesday evenings from 15 February 2027.