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Check the places

The output from local AI is a research queue, not a finished place-name dataset.

For each candidate, preserve the source wording, check what the document actually says, search an identified geographic source, and record why you accepted, rejected or left the match unresolved.

The review path​

Use this sequence:

candidate name → preserve source spelling → check source passage → search Gazetteer → compare possible matches → check historical or local authority where appropriate → accept, reject or leave unresolved → record provenance

Do not change the source-spelling field during this process.

Start with the New Zealand Gazetteer​

The New Zealand Gazetteer is maintained by Toitū Te Whenua Land Information New Zealand and the New Zealand Geographic Board Ngā Pou Taunaha o Aotearoa. It is the main public national source for official geographic names and also contains some recorded unofficial names.

The Gazetteer is useful because it provides more than a display label. Records include a stable name identifier, status, feature type and coordinate information that can be taken into GIS.

For bulk work, use the Gazetteer CSV and GIS guidance. MāoriGIS.nz also has a fuller place names guide.

Preserve three different ideas​

Do not collapse these into one field:

place_as_written
matched_gazetteer_name
gazetteer_name_id

If the source says Ruamahanga River and the Gazetteer record says Ruamāhanga River, both values are useful. One records the evidence. The other records the geographic match you made.

You may also need a separate local_name or historical_name field where an appropriate source supports it.

Compare more than spelling​

A same-looking name is not enough. Check:

  • feature type
  • geographic area
  • nearby named places in the source context
  • official or unofficial status
  • alternative names
  • whether the source is historical and may refer to an older extent or settlement
  • whether several Gazetteer records have similar names

If the evidence cannot distinguish between candidates, use unresolved rather than choosing the closest-looking result.

“Not in the Gazetteer” is not a rejection​

Many locally held, historical and customary names will not appear in a national Gazetteer. Some names should not be public. Some were never submitted for official naming. Some survive in whānau, hapū and iwi kōrero, land records, survey plans, waiata or other sources.

A Gazetteer search that returns no result means only that you did not find a suitable record there.

Where the kaupapa requires more, follow the appropriate local process for checking the name. The person using the AI is not entitled to convert a locally held name into a public map merely because it was found in a document.

Coordinates need a named source​

Once a match is accepted, obtain coordinates or geometry from an identified geographic source. Suitable public sources can include the Gazetteer record or the corresponding NZGB point, line or polygon layers in the LINZ Data Service.

Do not use coordinates generated by an LLM.

Record the coordinate source explicitly:

geometry_source = LINZ New Zealand Gazetteer
geometry_source_id = <name_id>
geometry_status = matched

For locally held names, use the locally approved geometry and provenance process rather than forcing a Gazetteer coordinate onto the record.

Use a review-status field​

A simple set of values works well:

unreviewed
source_checked
matched_public_source
confirmed_local_source
unresolved
rejected_not_place
rejected_wrong_match

The exact vocabulary can be adapted to your organisation. What matters is that an unreviewed AI output cannot silently become indistinguishable from a checked GIS feature.

Record why the match was made​

A useful note might say:

Source page names Lake Wairarapa and Ruamāhanga River in the same passage.
Gazetteer feature type and location are consistent. Source spelling retained separately.

A useful unresolved note might say:

Two similarly named stream records found. Report provides insufficient locality detail to choose between them.

That note is far more defensible than a confidence score with no explanation.

Check sensitivity before geometry​

The fact that a place can be located does not mean it should be mapped at full precision. Before publishing or sharing, review the sensitive locations guidance and Protect, share and publish.

The local-AI workflow can make discovery much faster. That is useful, but it can also make sensitive spatial inference easier. The publication decision therefore remains part of the kaupapa rather than an automatic final step.

Next, turn the reviewed records into GIS data.

Authoritative sources​

Last verified: 22 August 2026

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