The Lady on the Rock

On a rock at the entrance to the Whakatane harbour, facing out to sea stands the proud and elegant figure of the Lady on the Rock - a statue of lady Wairaka. The story behind Wairaka’s arrival in New Zealand is a story of great importance to the inhabitants of the area, because it is also the story of how the Whakatane area was named.
Many years ago the first Maori people arrived in New Zealand on great canoes, travelling from the distant Hawaiki to a new land of plenty. The Mataatua canoe, captained by Toroa, was one of this fleet of canoes, and it came to shore in the mouth of the Whakatane river, where Whakatane township stands today. The strong men pulled the canoe up on the shore and leapt out, eager to explore this new land. Racing up onto the cliffs above the river, they set out to search for danger and scout the land, leaving the women and children relaxing on the shore, glad to be on solid land again.
What the people hadn’t realised when they came into shore was how very tidal the Whakatane river is. While they were at ease and enjoying the wonder of this new home, their canoe - laden with all their possessions, everything they owned in the world, not to mention the only connection they had with their homeland - began to drift out to sea on the tide.
Lulled by the warm sands into a sense of security, it was a while before the women on the shore noticed this disaster, and when Toroa’s daughter, Wairaka, finally saw Mataatua’s predicament it was already well on its way down the river, out towards the ocean. Looking about her, Wairaka quickly realised how deep their dilemma was - the men being absent, there were only tired women and scared children to do anything about the disaster.
Yet Wairaka, the daughter of a famous and powerful captain, was not to be deterred by these circumstances. Diving cleanly into the water, she swam out to the fleeing canoe, no mean feat in the dangerous waters of the Whakatane river mouth. Climbing aboard the canoe, she prepared herself for the next task - saving the canoe and herself.
But how to do it? Maori tradition forbade the right of women to paddle the great canoes. So Wairaka, although she was the only person aboard the Mataatua, could not, by custom, do anything to save it. And yet she could not allow so much to be lost for so little.
Standing in the bows of the canoe, Wairaka raised her head and cried, “Kia Whakatane Au I Ahau!” which means literally, I Will Become A Man, by which she meant that she would take upon herself the work of a man. And so saying, she lifted a paddle, and brought the Mataatua canoe safely to shore.
And this is how Whakatane got its name, from Wairaka’s desperate cry, as she battled against the elements and against tradition. Whakatane - to become a man.

Victoria :o)