The name refers to the exploits of Māui, an ancestor from our ancient mythologies, who pulled up a huge fish from the depths of the ocean that became the North Island of New Zealand, as we know it today. Ruatāhuna is also the place where our tribe originated – from the union of mist and mountains in time immemorial.
Ruatāhuna is located in the heart of remote untouched indigenous forests known as Te Urewera which is the homeland of our tribe Tūhoe. Thus, Ruatāhuna is a place of great significance in our world – the cradle of our tribe, the heart of our homeland.