 Besides the official name of Te Waipounamu, another Māori name for the South Island is Te Waka-a-Māui, the canoe of Māui.In southern traditions, the South Island is known instead as Te Waka o Aoraki and predates Māui's expedition.Māui sailed a canoe called Maahanui and after he had pulled up the North Island (Te Ika a Maui) he left Maahanui on top of a mountain in the foothills behind what is now Ashburton.