6 Bizarrely Named Towns In New Zealand

Too often written off as Australia’s less-recognizable little sibling, New Zealand is so frequently left off of world maps that there’s a whole Reddit devoted to maps that leave a blank where New Zealand should be. It’s a pity, because there’s no place quite like Aotearoa (its original Maori name) — and its most unusual town names attest to that. From its breathtaking natural beauty and found-nowhere-else wildlife to its proud adherence to ancient Maori traditions, New Zealand is a pretty unique place. So who’d be surprised to learn that it’s got a handful of memorably colorful place names? When these six delightfully bizarre New Zealand place names are left off, the world map is poorer for it.

Bulls

This town on New Zealand’s North Island has a fairly mainstream origin story: it was founded by an English settler named John Bull, and somewhere along the line, his name was pluralized. But where another town might have let a good joke die there, Bulls is inclined to do no such thing. Its claim to fame? Mining its name for as many pun possibilities as it can.

“A town like no udder,” Bulls proudly proclaims itself. A bull statue crowns the tiny town’s square, and one notable local business is What A Load of Bull sauce company (unsurprisingly, it offers primarily sauces that pair well with meat). Visitors to Bulls will find countless bovine puns on signage and in the names of businesses. Bulls might not be the most audacious place name on this list, but its 1,630 residents — who we think would approve of this pun — truly milk it for all it’s worth.

Gore

It sounds like a pretty grisly place, but Gore is another innocent victim of English nouns doubling as surnames. In reality, the Southland town of Gore is a cheerful place known for its annual country music festival — hardly what you’d expect of a place that shares its name with a subgenre of horror films. After its agricultural fortunes went into decline in the late 20th century, Gore regained its economic footing by switching focus to dairy farming. Now, it’s a thriving town where country music and fly fishing bring in tourist dollars as well. So why a name like Gore?

Like many oddly-named New Zealand locales, Gore was named in honor of an English settler with an unfortunate surname. Thomas Gore Browne was a governor of New Zealand in the 19th century, and when the town was surveyed in 1862, the surveyors named it in his honor.

Naseby

Plenty of towns have famous namesakes. Whether they take their name from a regional chief, a notable British political figure, or the settler who founded the town as we know it now, it's not uncommon for New Zealand towns to bear the name of an influential figure. But the quaint-sounding town of Naseby's namesake isn't even human.

Because New Zealand was a British colony, many of its English place names are simply named for existing British towns. Naseby is a particularly bucolic transplant with that classic so-cutesy-it-might-be-made-up English countryside vibe. A former gold rush boomtown, Naseby adds to its charm with an equally quirky town motto: "2000 feet above worry level" - that's sea level to all you geographers.

Nightcaps

Fancy a shot before bedtime? You might be a little disappointed by this New Zealand town, then: its name has very little to do with alcohol. Once a coal-mining boomtown, Nightcaps gets its memorable name not from its fondness for a tipple, but for its unique geography. Nightcaps is located in the mountainous Southlands, with clear views of the Takitimu Mountains. One theory as to how the town got its name points to those mountain views: their prominent snow-capped peaks may have inspired the townspeople’s poetic choice of names.

Another postulates that a different accident of geography was responsible. One account of the town’s early settlement recounts a traveling party passing by fog-covered hills and commenting that they “had their nightcaps on,” hence the name. Will either story ever be confirmed? Probably not. But what we do know almost certainly is that Nightcaps didn’t take its name from a rowdy night at the local pub.

Pirongia

At first glance, this Te Reo (Maori) town name doesn't seem to stand out. It actually rolls off the tongue quite nicely, and you would probably not think to stop and take a photo of a "Welcome to Pirongia" sign if you saw one. But it's significantly more unusual if you know a little about its origins.

These days, it's famous for rugby; once, it was the site of a major battle. But Pirongia's name reflects none of those things. It's a shortening of the name of a mountain in the region, which was in turn named for a sick woman who trekked through the area seeking relief from her illness. Translations vary from "scented pathway" (the gentlest option) to "putrid aroma" (the one that lands Pirongia on this list). Luckily, the only aroma you're likely to notice in this lovely rural town is that of its famous Clydesdale horses.

Whakapapa

If you're visiting New Zealand's famous Tongariro National Park, chances are you'll enter the park through the friendly village of Whakapapa. But to the uninitiated, the town's name - which has the perfectly ordinary meaning of "genealogy" in the Maori language - might give pause.

Although its meaning isn't nearly as funny as it sounds to an English speaker, "Whakapapa" provokes giggles from many a passing motorist because it sounds like it may be suggesting giving dear old dad a good smack upside the head. Photographers here will want to capture the beautiful mountains of Tongariro, of course - but the town's sign is worth capturing, too.

A New Zealand road trip will treat you to friendly people, charming wildlife, unbelievable landscapes, and a whole lot of sheep — but it’ll also introduce you to a few seriously memorable place names. And whether they’re punny or matter-of-fact, these six New Zealand towns and geographic features make for memorable travels in the other, much more underrated Land Down Under.