Rangiora


Name Origin:

As a South Island name the meaning may be either 'Good weather' after a bad spell, or 'Invalid recovering from sickness', or 'Day of peace or health'.

Rangi: Sky or Day    Ora: Health

There are several places of this name in the North Island, all of which are probably named after the native shrub Brachyglottis repanda. According to D.N. Hawkins in Beyond the Waimakariri, the Canterbury Rangiora was named to commemorate a peace between Ngāi Tahu and Ngāti Māmoe iwi, entered into at Kaiapoi, and therefore means Day of peace. This is an acceptable meaning, for although ora does not normally mean peace, it has the cognate meanings of safety, satisfaction, survival, and recovery.

Source: The Reed Dictionary of New Zealand Place Names, 2002 via. Waimakariri Place Names and Statistics