Waioeka is a rural community in the

Ōpōtiki District Ōpōtiki District is a territorial authority district in the North Island of New Zealand. The Ōpōtiki District Council is headquartered in the largest town, Ōpōtiki. The district falls within the Bay of Plenty region. Lyn Riesterer has be ...

and

Bay of Plenty Region The Bay of Plenty ( mi, Te Moana-a-Toi) is a region of New Zealand, situated around a bight of the same name in the northern coast of the North Island. The bight stretches 260 km from the Coromandel Peninsula in the west to Cape Runaway ...

of New Zealand's

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 ...

Demographics

The statistical area of Oponae, which at 1,255 square kilometres is much larger than this community, had a population of 330 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 36 people (12.2%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 30 people (10.0%) 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 93 households. There were 165 males and 168 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.98 males per female. The median age was 35.1 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 90 people (27.3%) aged under 15 years, 57 (17.3%) aged 15 to 29, 144 (43.6%) aged 30 to 64, and 39 (11.8%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 49.1% European/Pākehā, 60.0% Māori, 2.7% Pacific peoples, 0.9% Asian, and 0.9% other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100% since people could identify with multiple ethnicities). The proportion of people born overseas was 7.3%, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people objected to giving their religion, 34.5% had no religion, 28.2% were Christian and 28.2% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 30 (12.5%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 69 (28.8%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $19,900, compared with $31,800 nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 90 (37.5%) people were employed full-time, 42 (17.5%) were part-time, and 24 (10.0%) were unemployed.

Marae

The local

marae A ' (in New Zealand Māori, Cook Islands Māori, Tahitian), ' (in Tongan), ' (in Marquesan) or ' (in Samoan) is a communal or sacred place that serves religious and social purposes in Polynesian societies. In all these languages, the term a ...

is known variously as Ōpeke Marae, Opekerau Marae or Waioeka Marae. It is the traditional tribal meeting place of the

Whakatōhea Whakatōhea is a Māori people, Māori iwi located in the eastern Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand. The iwi is traditionally centred in the area around the town of Ōpōtiki. The traditional territorial lands extend eastwards from Ohiwa Har ...

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 Irapuaia / Ngāti Ira. The meeting house is called Irapuaia. Waioeka was the location of Tanewhirinaki, at the time one of the largest

wharenui A wharenui (; literally "large house") is a communal house of the Māori people of New Zealand, generally situated as the focal point of a ''marae''. Wharenui are usually called meeting houses in New Zealand English, or simply called ''whare'' ( ...

ever built. The structure, which was built by

Te Kooti Te Kooti Arikirangi Te Turuki (c. 1832–1893) was a Māori leader, the founder of the Ringatū religion and guerrilla fighter. While fighting alongside government forces against the Hauhau in 1865, he was accused of spying. Exiled to the Cha ...

for his followers, was completed in the late 1860s.

Education

Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Waioweka is a co-educational Māori language immersion state primary school for Year 1 to 8 students, with a roll of as of

References

{{Ōpōtiki District Ōpōtiki District Populated places in the Bay of Plenty Region