It's cultural censorship, 150 years in the making.
That's the view of Keith Darroch, who has won a "bittersweet" battle with the New Zealand Geographic Board over names for the North and South Islands.
In 2004, Mr Darroch, of Christchurch, submitted the South Island be renamed Te Waipounamu, and the North Island be called Aotearoa - their original names.
Yesterday, the board announced the North Island and South Island were not official names under legislation and it would begin a process of formalising alternative Maori names and making the North and South Island official.
Mr Darroch said the announcement was "bittersweet" as the board made no mention of Aotearoa, the term originally used for the North Island - and kept alive "150 years of cultural censorship".
Aotearoa was used by the Kingitanga movement in the 1850s to refer to the North Island, which was given its name about 100 years ago, he said.
Board chairman Dr Don Grant said the English names (North Island and South Island), or the Maori names (Te Ika a Maui for the North Island and Te Waipounamu for the South) could be used either individually or together.
The move has been criticised by Wanganui Mayor Michael Laws, a critic of the board after it moved to change Wanganui to Whanganui.
He called the board "cultural zealots".
"It is political correctness of the worst kind - unthinking, unfeeling and completely immune from any heritage and history that is not Maori. Their bias is obvious."
The board is expected to consult iwi for traditional names before public consultation.
South Island tribe Ngai Tahu would consult iwi members before making submissions, and "the tribe actively supports the reinstatement of traditional place names", kaiwhakahaere (chairman) Mark Solomon said.
"Te Waipounamu (the water of greenstone) is the most commonly used Maori name for the South Island, but that does not preclude discussion of other names - of which there are several - and it is important that the views of other iwi are sought," he said.
Other possible names for the South Island include, Te Waka a Maui (the canoe of Maui), or the more colloquial "mainland".
Invercargill Mayor Tim Shadbolt said he favoured "turning the compass" and renaming the South Island "East Island" with the North Island renamed "West Island".
"That should satisfy the New Zealand Geographic Board," he said.
