Blenheim is the most populous town in the region of Marlborough, in the north east of the South Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of 28,200. The surrounding Marlborough wine region is well known as the centre of the New Zealand wine industry. It enjoys one of New Zealand's sunniest climates, with warm, relatively dry summers and cool, crisp winters.
Blenheim is named after the Battle of Blenheim, where troops led by John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough defeated a combined French and Bavarian force.
The New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage gives a translation of "flax stream" for Waiharakeke.