Pahia is a small rural locality in coastal

Southland Southland may refer to: Places Canada * Dunbar–Southlands, Vancouver, British Columbia New Zealand * Southland Region, a region of New Zealand * Southland County, a former New Zealand county * Southland District, part of the wider Southland Re ...

, New Zealand, not to be confused with the North Island tourist resort of

Paihia Paihia is the main tourist town in the Bay of Islands in the Northland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is 60 kilometres north of Whangārei, located close to the historic towns of Russell and Kerikeri. Missionary Henry William ...

. Surrounding areas include Ruahine, Wakapatu, Round Hill,

Colac Bay Colac Bay / Ōraka is a small township situated on the bay of the same name facing Foveaux Strait, and located on the Southern Scenic Route, 10 minutes from Riverton, New Zealand. Surrounding areas include Longwood, Tihaka, Waipango, Round Hil ...

and Orepuki. The main road, Orepuki-Riverton Hwy (section of ), runs through it. Pahia is 15 minutes from Riverton, 20 minutes from

Tuatapere Tuatapere is a small rural town in Southland, New Zealand. It is the self declared "Sausage Capital of New Zealand". Tuatapere is located eight kilometres from the southern coast. The Waiau River flows through the town before reaching Te Waewa ...

and 45 minutes from

Invercargill Invercargill ( , mi, Waihōpai is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. The city lies in the heart of the wide expanse of t ...

History

During the early years of European contact with New Zealand, Pahia was home to a substantial

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

village and island pā (fortified stronghold) near Cosy Nook (known locally as the "Old Pā"). The village served as an important contact point for European

sealers Sealer may refer either to a person or ship engaged in seal hunting, or to a sealant; associated terms include: Seal hunting * Sealer Hill, South Shetland Islands, Antarctica * Sealers' Oven, bread oven of mud and stone built by sealers around 180 ...

and traders requiring potatoes and flax for the Australian market in the 1820s. The naming is uncertain. One theory is that the name 'Pahia' comes from the village Chief of the time, Tahu Pahia. The other theory is that it is a literal translation for 'slapped', referring to the hill resembling meals of mashed or pounded food. It used to have rail running through, a cheese factory, forest industry and a small gold mining industry. It also once used to have a primary school named Pahia School, which closed its doors in 1997. Pahia is part of a historic trail with signage informing you of its history. The area today is made up of many farms, including sheep, dairy and deer. Geographically Pahia lies between the thick, forest-covered

Longwood Range The Longwood Range is a range of hills to the west of the Southland Plains, Southland, New Zealand. From the 1860s until the 1950s gold mining was prevalent in the Longwood Ranges. There are many small towns and localities situated around the per ...

and the

Tasman Sea The Tasman Sea (Māori: ''Te Tai-o-Rēhua'', ) is a marginal sea of the South Pacific Ocean, situated between Australia and New Zealand. It measures about across and about from north to south. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abe ...

. There are outlooks in places over

Te Waewae Bay Te Waewae Bay is the westernmost of three large bays lying on the Foveaux Strait coast of Southland, New Zealand, the others being Oreti Beach and Toetoes Bay. Twenty-seven kilometres in length, the western end of the bay is mountainous, with th ...

and the Princess Mountains, and also

Stewart Island/Rakiura Stewart Island ( mi, Rakiura, ' glowing skies', officially Stewart Island / Rakiura) is New Zealand's third-largest island, located south of the South Island, across the Foveaux Strait. It is a roughly triangular island with a total land ar ...

. Pahia Hill, and across to Ruahine the Ruahine Hills and Mt Victoria make up some of the geographic landmarks. The weather on average is cooler than Central Otago but it is rare to have snow settle on the ground in Winter. Pahia is exposed to the weather coming from across the sea, but also sees its share of fine weather.

Nearby attractions

* Cosy Nook, a very small fishing village * Porridge, a world-famous surf spot

References

{{Coord, 46, 20, S, 167, 45, E, region:NZ_type:city, display=title Populated places in Southland, New Zealand