Pōrangahau, a

township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Ca ...

close to the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

coast in the south-east of the

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

of New Zealand, has a very small population. It lies in the southernmost part of

Hawke's Bay Hawke's Bay ( mi, Te Matau-a-Māui) is a local government region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region's name derives from Hawke Bay, which was named by Captain James Cook in honour of Admiral Edward Hawke. The region is ...

, 45 kilometres south of

Waipukurau Waipukurau is the largest town in the Central Hawke's Bay District on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is located on the banks of the Tukituki River, 7 kilometres south of Waipawa and 50 kilometres southwest of Hastings. H ...

, and close to the mouth of the Porangahau River. The settlement includes a marae and a school. The

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 ...

name ''Pōrangahau'' expresses the idea of a night (''pō'') of pursuit or of retreat (''rangahau''). Six kilometres southwest of the township stands an insubstantial hill, with the longest place name in the world: ."Porangahau – Home to the longest place name in the world"
/ref> The area west of the main township, known as Mangaorapa, was used for sheep farming during the 20th century. The area has more recently been used for cattle farming and wine growing. The 2370 hectare Mangaorapa Station was the most expensive farm in Central Hawke's Bay when it was sold in 2005.

Demographics

The population of Pōrangahau was 141 in the 2018 census, an increase of 39 from 2013. There were 72 males and 69 females. 42.6% of people identified as European/Pākehā, 70.2% as Māori and 12.8% as Pacific peoples. 23.4% were under 15 years old, 12.8% were 15–29, 44.7% were 30–64, and 21.3% were 65 or older. The statistical area of Taurekaitai, which at 1154 square kilometres is much larger than this township, had a population of 1,893 at the

2018 New Zealand census Eighteen or 18 may refer to: * 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19 * one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018 Film, television and entertainment * ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the sho ...

, an increase of 231 people (13.9%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 135 people (7.7%) since the

2006 census 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

. There were 714 households. There were 966 males and 927 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.04 males per female. The median age was 44.6 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 417 people (22.0%) aged under 15 years, 225 (11.9%) aged 15 to 29, 900 (47.5%) aged 30 to 64, and 354 (18.7%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 86.4% European/Pākehā, 19.5% Māori, 2.5% Pacific peoples, 0.3% Asian, and 1.1% other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100% since people could identify with multiple ethnicities). The proportion of people born overseas was 9.2%, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people objected to giving their religion, 50.4% had no religion, 40.6% were Christian, 0.3% were Buddhist and 1.7% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 261 (17.7%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 285 (19.3%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $31,900, compared with $31,800 nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 753 (51.0%) people were employed full-time, 279 (18.9%) were part-time, and 42 (2.8%) were unemployed.

Marae

The local Rongomaraeroa Marae and its meeting house, Te Poho o Kahungunu, are affiliated with the

Ngāti Kahungunu Ngāti Kahungunu is a Māori iwi located along the eastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The iwi is traditionally centred in the Hawke's Bay and Wairārapa regions. The tribe is organised into six geographical and administrative di ...

hapū of Ngāti Hinetewai, Ngāti Kere,

Ngāti Manuhiri Ngāti Manuhiri is a Māori iwi of the Mahurangi Peninsula area of New Zealand. They have an interest in the region from the Okura River in the south to Mangawhai in the north, and extending out to Great Barrier Island. They are descended from ...

Ngāti Pihere 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 Tamatea Hinepare o Kahungunu.

Education

Porangahau School is a Year 1–8 co-educational state primary school. It is a decile 4 school with a roll of as of Mangaorapa School merged with Porangahau School at the end of 2014.

Notable people

* Max Christie, politician and local farmer * George Hunter, politician and local landowner *

Piri Sciascia Piri John Ngarangikaunuhia Sciascia (6 November 1946 – 18 January 2020) was a New Zealand Māori people, Māori leader, kapa haka exponent, and university administrator. From 2016 until his death, he served as kaumātua and advisor to the gov ...

, Māori leader and

kapa haka Kapa haka is the term for Māori action songs and the groups who perform them. It literally means 'group' () and 'dance' (). Kapa haka is an important avenue for Māori people to express and showcase their heritage and cultural Polynesian identi ...

exponent

References

{{Authority control Central Hawke's Bay District Populated places in the Hawke's Bay Region