The Maniototo

During the 1860s the region was one of the sites of the Otago gold rush, and relics from that era can still be seen around the towns of Kyeburn, Naseby, and St. Bathans.

It was larger than the statistical area, at 1,239 sq mi (3,210 km2) and included the ridings of Mount Ida (Naseby), Hyde, St Bathans, Serpentine, Kyeburn, Puketoi and Idaburn.

[6] The original Māori name for the area is Māniatoto,[7] 'plains of blood', which either referred to the red tussock that covers the landscape[7] or to old battles.

[10] 'Maniatoto' was the official name adopted by the Honorary Geographic Board of New Zealand in 1928, but the county council preferred 'Maniototo', possibly because it had already installed a large sign with that spelling.

[11] While the New Zealand Geographic Board reaffirmed the Maniatoto spelling in 1948, it changed the official name to Maniototo in 1954 due to "long and accepted usage".

[10] In late May 2024, the Central Otago District Council (CODC) rejected a motion to rename Maniototo Community Board to its correct Māori name Māniatoto.

Today, there is much work underway through an initiative called Tiaki Maniototo the local community, farmers and business to restore the scroll plain and enrich the biodiversity that can be found here.

In the novel Living in the Maniototo by Janet Frame, the region acts as a metaphor for the 'bloody plain' of the human imagination.

The scenery between Omakau and Ranfurly appeared in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings film trilogy as the location for many of the scenes set in Rohan.