Ngāti Tūwharetoa is an iwi (Māori tribe) descended from Ngātoro-i-rangi, the priest who navigated the Arawa canoe to New Zealand. The Tūwharetoa region extends from Te Awa o te Atua (Tarawera River) at Matata across the central plateau of the North Island to the lands around Mount Tongariro and Lake Taupo.