The Marlborough Sounds (te reo Māori: Te Tauihu-o-te-Waka) are an extensive network of sea-drowned valleys at the northern end of the South Island of New Zealand. The Marlborough Sounds were created by a combination of land subsidence and rising sea levels. According to Māori mythology, the sounds are the prows of the many sunken waka of Aoraki.
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👉 Marlborough Sounds in the context of Cook Strait
Cook Strait (Māori: Te Moana-o-Raukawa, lit. 'The Sea of Raukawa') is a strait that separates the North and South Islands of New Zealand. The strait connects the Tasman Sea on the northwest with the South Pacific Ocean on the southeast. It is 22 kilometres (14 mi) wide at its narrowest point, and has been described as "one of the most dangerous and unpredictable waters in the world". Regular ferry services run across the strait between Picton in the Marlborough Sounds and Wellington.
The strait is named after James Cook, the first European commander to sail through it, in 1770. The waters of Cook Strait are dominated by strong tidal flows. The tidal flow through Cook Strait is unusual in that the tidal elevation at the ends of the strait are almost exactly out of phase with one another, so high water on one side meets low water on the other. A number of ships have been wrecked in Cook Strait with significant loss of life, such as the Maria in 1851, the City of Dunedin in 1865, the St Vincent in 1869, the Lastingham in 1884, SS Penguin in 1909 and TEV Wahine in 1968.
In this Dossier
- ⭐ Core Definition: Marlborough Sounds
- 👉 Marlborough Sounds in the context of Cook Strait
- Marlborough Sounds in the context of Ngāti Kuia
- Marlborough Sounds in the context of D'Urville Island
- Marlborough Sounds in the context of Tasman Bay
- Marlborough Sounds in the context of Te Atiawa o Te Waka-a-Māui
- Marlborough Sounds in the context of Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere
- Marlborough Sounds in the context of Arapaoa Island
Marlborough Sounds in the context of Ngāti Kuia
Ngāti Kuia is a Māori iwi of the Northern South Island in New Zealand. They first settled in the Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere, and later spread to the Marlborough Sounds, Nelson and Tasman districts to Taitapu on the West Coast, and as far south as the Nelson Lakes National Park. Ngāti Kuia tradition states that their founding tupuna Matua Hautere, a descendant of Kupe, came to Te Waipounamu in his waka Te Hoiere, guided by the kaitiaki (tribal guardian) Kaikaiawaro.
Ngāti Kuia are the largest and oldest iwi of Te Tauihu o Te Waka a Māui in Te Waipounamu (The Prow of the Canoe of Māui). Also known as The Top of the South Island of New Zealand.
Marlborough Sounds in the context of D'Urville Island
D'Urville Island (/dɜːrˈvɪl/), Māori name Rangitoto ki te Tonga, is the largest island in the Marlborough Sounds, on the northern coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It was named after the French explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville. With an area of approximately 150 square kilometres (58 sq mi), it is the eighth-largest island of New Zealand, and has around 52 permanent residents. The local authority is the Marlborough District Council.
Marlborough Sounds in the context of Tasman Bay
Tasman Bay (Māori: Te Tai-o-Aorere; officially Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere), originally known in English as Blind Bay, is a large V-shaped bay at the north end of New Zealand's South Island. Located in the centre of the island's northern coast, it stretches along 120 kilometres (75 mi) of coastline and is 70 kilometres (43 mi) across at its widest point. It is an arm of the Tasman Sea, lying on the western approach to Cook Strait.
At the bay's western extremity, the land around the bay is rough and densely forested. Separation Point, the westernmost point of the bay, is located in Abel Tasman National Park and separates Tasman Bay from its smaller neighbour, Golden Bay. To the east, the land is also steep, with the westernmost points of sea-drowned valleys of the Marlborough Sounds. D'Urville Island sits to the northeast of Tasman Bay's easternmost point. Arrow Rock is situated off the coast of Nelson.
Marlborough Sounds in the context of Te Atiawa o Te Waka-a-Māui
Te Atiawa o Te Waka-a-Māui is a Māori iwi (tribe) in the upper South Island of New Zealand. Its rohe (tribal area) extends from Golden Bay and Marlborough Sounds at the top of the South Island to Cape Campbell, St Arnaud and Westport.
Marlborough Sounds in the context of Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere
Pelorus Sound (Māori: Te Hoiere; officially Pelorus Sound / Te Hoiere) is the largest of the sounds which make up the Marlborough Sounds at the north of the South Island, New Zealand.
The Marlborough Sounds is a system of drowned river valleys, which were formed after the last ice age around 10,000 years ago. Pelorus Sound has a main channel which winds south from Cook Strait for about 55 kilometres (34 mi), between steeply sloped wooded hills, until it reaches its head close to the Havelock township. Pelorus has several major arms, notably Tennyson Inlet, Tawhitinui Reach, Kenepuru Sound and the Crail/Clova/Beatrix Bay complex. Its shoreline runs for 380 kilometres (240 mi).
Marlborough Sounds in the context of Arapaoa Island
Arapaoa Island (formerly spelled Arapawa Island) is the second-largest island in the Marlborough Sounds, at the north-east tip of the South Island of New Zealand. The island has a land area of 75 km (29 square miles). Queen Charlotte Sound defines its western side, while to the south lies Tory Channel, which is on the sea route between Wellington in the North Island to Picton. Cook Strait's narrowest point is between Arapaoa Island's Perano Head and Cape Terawhiti in the North Island.