New Zealand's two main islands will be known as North Island or Te Ika-a-Maui and South Island or Te Waipounamu following a recommendation from the New Zealand Geographic Board.

After considering 2608 submissions from 1329 submitters, the board has recommended Land Information Minister Maurice Williamson give people a choice about whether they want to use the English or Maori names for the islands.

Of the submissions received for each proposal 64 per cent supported Te Ika-a-Maui, 65 per cent supported Te Waipounamu, 87 per cent supported North Island and 88 per cent supported South Island.

The board discovered New Zealand's named North and South Islands were never made official when it was researching a proposal to revert the South Island to its original Te Waipounamu.

'At that time we noted that the existing English names were recorded names, rather than official names,” says NZGB Chair Dr Don Grant.

'They appeared on LINZ's maps, charts and other official publications but had never been formalised under the NZGB Act.

'The NZGB agreed in principle that the English names should be formalised, that – as a related pair – both islands should also be assigned Maori alternative names, and that all of the names should be formalised at the same time.”

The most appropriate Maori names for the islands are Te Ika-a-Maui – The Fish of Maui, for the North Island, and Te Waipounamu, The Waters of Greenstone, for the South Island.

For more information about New Zealand place naming, and the role of the NZGB, visit http://www.linz.govt.nz/placenames