Omanaia ( mi, Ōmanaia) is a settlement in the

Hokianga The Hokianga is an area surrounding the Hokianga Harbour, also known as the Hokianga River, a long estuarine drowned valley on the west coast in the north of the North Island of New Zealand. The original name, still used by local Māori, is ...

area of Northland,

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. It is part of the Hokianga South statistical area, which covers the southern side of Hokianga Harbour between Rawene and Koutu. For demographics of this area, see

Rawene Rawene is a town on the south side of the Hokianga harbour, in Northland, New Zealand. State Highway 12 passes to the south. The town lies at the apex of a peninsula. A car ferry links it to Kohukohu and the northern Hokianga. History Rawene ...

. The New Zealand

Ministry for Culture and Heritage The Ministry for Culture and Heritage (MCH; ) is the department of the New Zealand Government responsible for supporting the arts, culture, built heritage, sport and recreation, and broadcasting sectors in New Zealand and advising government on ...

gives a translation of "place of Manaia" for ''Ōmanaia''. In the 1830s, the Omanaia Maori chief

Papahurihia Penetana Papahurihia (died 1875), also called Te Atua Wera ("the fiery God"), was a Māori tohunga, war leader and prophet. He belonged to Ngā Puhi, by way of the Te Hikutu and Ngāti Hau hapū. In 1833, he founded a religious cult called Te Nakah ...

led a nationalist movement to oppose the spread of Christianity through the Hokianga.

Marae

Te Pīti or Ōmanaia Marae, and Te Piiti meeting house, are a meeting place for the

Ngāpuhi Ngāpuhi (or Ngā Puhi) is a Māori iwi associated with the Northland region of New Zealand and centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands, and Whangārei. According to the 2018 New Zealand census, the estimated population of Ngāpuhi is 165, ...

hapū In Māori and New Zealand English, a ' ("subtribe", or "clan") functions as "the basic political unit within Māori society". A Māori person can belong to or have links to many hapū. Historically, each hapū had its own chief and normally opera ...

Ngāti Hau Ngāti Hau are the Māori ''iwi'' (tribes) of the Whanganui River area in New Zealand. There are two stories of where the name ''Ngāti Hau'' comes from. One is that it comes from Haupipi, who arrived in New Zealand on the '' Aotea'' canoe, afte ...

and

Ngāti Kaharau Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori roughly means "people" or "nation", and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, an ...

. In October 2020, the Government committed $493,685 from the

Provincial Growth Fund Shane Geoffrey Jones (born 3 September 1959) is a New Zealand politician. He served as a New Zealand First list MP from 2017 to 2020 and was previously a Labour list MP from 2005 to 2014. Jones was a cabinet minister in the Fifth Labour Gove ...

for an overflow renovation of the marae, to create multipurpose space, creating 5 jobs. Māhuri Marae and meeting house are a meeting place for the Ngāpuhi hapū of

Ngāti Pākau Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori roughly means "people" or "nation", and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, an ...

and Te Māhurehure.

Education

Omanaia School is a coeducational full primary (years 1–8) school with a roll of students as of

Notes

Far North District Populated places in the Northland Region {{Northland-geo-stub