New Zealand Place Names

Within New Zealand, the legislative requirements for place names are set out in the New Zealand Geographic Board (Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa) Act 2008. National coordination and standardisation is managed by the Board.

 

Principles and guidelines

Standards, frameworks, guidelines and protocols assist those making proposals for place names. They include expectations for consulting for Māori.

 

Gazetteer of New Zealand

The New Zealand Gazetteer provides for easily accessible and searchable information about place names and their stories. It is a web based system with standard search functionality using basemaps for context and filters to refine searching. Downloads are available to .CSV files, as well as data layers served up on the LINZ Data Service providing through Web Feature Services.

 

Identifying and contacting the New Zealand national naming authority

For terrestrial New Zealand including offshore islands and coastal waters to 12 nautical miles; undersea features out to the limits of the New Zealand Continental Shelf; and all land and undersea features south of 60°S latitude and within the Ross Dependency, contact the New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa

 

Related Initiatives

International involvement

New Zealand is also involved in international conversations and collaborations related to place names, such as: