Whistling up name for Welly’s wild wind

In France, a northerly wind is called the mistral, and Greymouth has the barber. But despite Wellington being known for its wild wind, it has no official name.

With Wellington’s 180th birthday just around the corner, a historian says it is time for Wellingtonians to have a conversation about naming the wind.

Kauma¯ tua Kura Moeahu from iwi Te A¯ ti Awa said he had named two types in a haka called Kupe Hautoa.

The winds were called te hau ma¯ takataka and te hau a¯ whiowhio – te hau ma¯ takataka referred to trees being filled and roofs being lifted while te hau a¯whiowhio was connected to whirlwinds and tornados.

‘‘We have been naming winds all our lives and in terms of te ao Ma¯ ori, we’re going to keep doing that,’’ he said. ‘‘If there was to be an official name for the winds, I’d suggest te hau ma¯ takataka and te hau a¯ whiowhio.’’

Historian Redmer Yska said it was time for Wellingtonians to ‘‘own’’ the city’s shocking wind.

Winds had been tormenting locals forever and spring gales turned Wellington into ‘‘s... sville’’, he said.

Calling it a northerly or southerly was simply boring and he felt a Ma¯ ori name would be nice to recognise the region’s special wind.

‘‘It creates community because we’re all cursing it together,’’ he said.

Mayor Andy Foster said naming the wind was a great idea if that was part of the area’s ‘‘growing identity’’.

However, it was not a high priority for his term.

National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa) meteorologist Ben Nolls said Wellington was a windy place due to the geography and lay of the land.

For 24 days of the year, Wellington Airport experienced gusts exceeding 96kmh and 166 days of the year exceeding 63kmh.

A Niwa investigation in 2011 found the frequency of extreme winds over the course of the next century was likely to increase in all regions of New Zealand during winter and decrease in summer – especially for Wellington and the South Island.

‘‘It’s consistent with recent findings and recent work.’’

Officially naming Wellington’s wind was an interesting thought and would be an easy way to remember it – like how tropical cyclones were named, he said.

MetService meteorologist Tom Adams said, depending on how you defined it, Wellington was the windiest city in the world based on average wind speed.

‘‘Winds that would barely be noticed in Wellington can cause significant damage in other cities that are less used to the wind,’’ Adams said. ‘‘It’s windy but at least the trees and buildings are used to and designed for it.’’

What do you think? Email your preferred name for the wind and a few lines explaining why to: letters@dompost.co.nz