Cook Strait Cook Strait Cook Strait () is a strait that separates the North and South Islands of New Zealand. It connects the Tasman Sea on the northwest with the South Pacific Ocean on the southeast, and runs next to the capital city, Wellington. It is wide at its narrowest point, and is considered one of the most dangerous and unpredictable waters in the world. The strait is named after James Cook, the first European commander to sail through it, in 1770. In Māori it has the name "Raukawa" or "Te Moana-o-Raukawa". "Raukawa" may mean "bitter leaves". In Māori legend, Cook Strait
Locations in New Zealand with a Scottish name Locations in New Zealand with a Scottish name This is a list of placenames in Scotland which have subsequently been applied to parts of New Zealand by Scottish emigrants or . The South Island also contains the Strath-Taieri and the Ben Ohau Range of mountains, both combining Scots Gaelic and Māori origins, as does Glentaki, in the lower valley of the Waitaki River. Invercargill has the appearance of a Scottish name, since it combines the Scottish prefix "Inver" ("Inbhir"), meaning a river's mouth, with "Cargill", the name of Scottish early settler William Cargill. (Invercargill's main streets are named after Scottish