Aotearoa

did you know that is the Maori name for New Zealand? learned that from the creator of thedailyenglishshow, Sarah, in her profile. well, actually i read it in her profile and had to look it up in Wikipedia.

translation from Wikipedia:
The original derivation of Aotearoa is not known for certain. Ao = cloud, tea = white and roa = long, and it is accordingly most often translated as "The land of the long white cloud". According to oral tradition, the daughter of explorer Kupe saw white on the horizon and called "He ao! He ao!" ("a cloud! a cloud!"). The first land sighted was accordingly named Aotea (White Cloud) and is now commonly known as Great Barrier Island. When a much larger landmass was found beyond Aotea, it was called Aotea-roa (Long Aotea). Thus Aotearoa is a traditional name only of the North Island, though it now commonly refers to the whole country.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aotearoa#Translation