Ngā Rā-a-Kupe (), formerly known as Kupe's Sail, is a geological formation near the eastern end of
Palliser Bay at the southern end of the North Island of
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
.
It is composed of sedimentary rock which has been thrust up in an earthquake, resulting in a characteristic flat triangular ridge having the appearance of the kind of sail regularly used by Pacific explorers such as
Kupe
Kupe was a legendary Polynesian explorer who, according to Māori oral history, was the first person to discover New Zealand. He is generally held to have been born to a father from Rarotonga and a mother from Raiatea, and probably spoke a ...
. According to
Māori mythology
Māori mythology and Māori traditions are two major categories into which the remote oral history of New Zealand's Māori people, Māori may be divided. Māori myths concern tales of supernatural events relating to the origins of what was the ...
, the formation is the result of a sail-making competition between Kupe and his companion Ngake. After the sails were made, they were hung out to dry and were said to have formed the rock formation, which was then named after the legend.
On 7 March 2023, the name of the rock formation was officially gazetted as Ngā Rā-a-Kupe, following the enactment of the Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairarapa Tāmaki nui-a-Rua Claims Settlement Act 2022.
References
Sources
1966 Encyclopedia of New ZealandThe Great New Zealand Maritime Heritage Trail
Rock formations of the Wellington Region
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