Māori Party campaigns to change New Zealand's name to Aotearoa
CNN
New Zealand's Māori Party has launched a petition to change the official name of the country to Aotearoa, its name in the te reo Māori language.
(CNN) — New Zealand's Māori Party has launched a petition to change the official name of the country to Aotearoa, its name in the te reo Māori language.
The campaign also calls on the House of Representatives to restore the Māori names for all towns, cities and place names, according to a statement announcing the petition on Tuesday.
"It's well past time that Te Reo Māori was restored to its rightful place as the first and official language of this country. We are a Polynesian country -- we are Aotearoa," reads the statement, which calls for the renaming process to be completed by 2026.
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