Rejected as the title for Central Otago's highest unnamed peak after much debate, the Te Kohua name is now being proposed for the nearby lake.
A compromise after negotiations between the Central Otago District Council and Ngai Tahu has resulted in the New Zealand Geographic Board seeking comment on three proposed names for unnamed features in the district, and one alteration to an existing name.
The proposals will be advertised at the end of this month and early in May and submissions close on July 26.
The proposed names for the two highest peaks in a range between the Remarkables and the Hector Mountains are Te Karearea Peak (proposed by the district council), after the native falcon, for the most prominent and visible peak viewed from Cromwell, and Mt Tuwhakaroria for the peak next to it.
Mt Tuwhakaroria is proposed by Ngai Tahu and related to a Ngai Tahu legend, in which Rakaihautu formed the great lakes in the South Island with Tuwhakaroria, his digging stick.
The third name proposed for an unnamed feature was Lake Te Kohua for the lake at the base of those mountains.
That title was proposed by Central Otago Mayor Tony Lepper. It came from the Maori name for the three-legged iron cooking pot. Ngai Tahu chief Reko guided Otago farmer Nathanael Chalmers through Central Otago in 1853 and was paid with the cooking pot.
''That's what we've come up with after meetings with the iwi and the board and it is a compromise, reached after negotiation,'' Mr Lepper said.
''From my personal point of view, I'm happy the most prominent peak would be named Karearea and I don't mind the second peak being named Tuwhakaroria - why not have a traditional story behind it - but all these names will go out for consultation, so we'll see what the public think about them.''
The negotiation between the parties followed an outcry after the board recommended the name Te Kohua for the highest peak in 2011, despite strong opposition. Thirty-five of the 37 submissions received by the board opposed the name. The board had consulted the local iwi about the name but not the district council.
Land Information Minister Maurice Williamson had the final say on the matter and he rejected the Te Kohua name and asked the council for its preferred choice of name. Results from a council survey which attracted 278 responses favoured the names Nevis Peak or Karearea.
The name Te Kohua gained 28 votes. Mr Williamson said the process also highlighted a number of other unnamed geographic features in the area and suggested the parties work together to come up with names.
Mr Lepper together with his wife Bernie and district councillor Gordon Stewart climbed almost to the top of the peak in June 2011. They abandoned the climb about 150m from the top as the light was fading, but returned last year in early spring, and climbed to the top.
Geographic board secretary Wendy Shaw said the dual name of Tapuae o Uenuku/Hector Mountains had also been proposed for the Hector Mountains by Ngai Tahu.
The area was used as a mahinga kai site, where weka and mountain daisies were gathered and the dual name recognised the equal significance of both the Maori and non-Maori names, she said. Submissions on all proposals would be considered by the board at its October 18 meeting.
