New Zealand 'forgets' to name itself legally

Experts searching for alternative Maori names for New Zealand’s two main islands were startled to find their commonly used English names – North Island and South Island – were never made legal, they revealed today.

To repair the 200-year-old oversight, the country’s Geographic Board said it would take steps to legally name the two South Pacific islands that make up more than 95% of New Zealand’s land area.