karangahape road takes its name from the ridge it stands on - known in pre-european times as te ara o karangahape - "the path of karangahape" - the name possibly indicates the route that was taken to visit an eminent chief (or mythical entity) called hape who lived on the shores of the manukau harbour to the south west. from about 1900 to the early 1960s k' road was auckland's busiest shopping street with a large range of clothing and shoe shops along with several department stores.