Āwhitu Peninsula
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The Āwhitu Peninsula is a long peninsula in the
North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...
of New Zealand, extending north from the mouth of the
Waikato River The Waikato River is the longest river in New Zealand, running for through the North Island. It rises on the eastern slopes of Mount Ruapehu, joining the Tongariro River system and flowing through Lake Taupō, New Zealand's largest lake. It th ...
to the entrance to
Manukau Harbour The Manukau Harbour is the second largest natural harbour in New Zealand by area. It is located to the southwest of the Auckland isthmus, and opens out into the Tasman Sea. Geography The harbour mouth is between the northern head ("Burnett ...
. The Peninsula is bounded in the west by rugged cliffs over the
Tasman Sea The Tasman Sea 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 Abel Janszoon Tasman, who in 1642 wa ...
, but it slopes gently to the east, with low-lying pastoral and swamp land along the edge of the Waiuku River and Manukau Harbour. At the northern tip, the Manukau Heads rises to a prominence above the entrance to the similarly named harbour. The nearby historic Manukau Heads Lighthouse is one of the few in the country open to the public. The peninsula is relatively sparsely populated, despite its proximity to the centre of
Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...
city (which lies to the northeast). The largest settlement on or near the peninsula is
Waiuku Waiuku is a rural town in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is located at the southern end of the Waiuku River, which is an estuary, estuarial arm of the Manukau Harbour, and lies on the isthmus of the Āwhitu Peninsula, which extends to th ...
, which lies at the peninsula's isthmus. There are rural settlements at Grahams Beach and Matakawau Point.


Geology

The Āwhitu Peninsula was formed geologically recently, from black volcanic sand from eruptions of
Mount Taranaki Mount Taranaki (), officially Taranaki Maunga and also known as Mount Egmont, is a dormant stratovolcano in the Taranaki region on the west coast of New Zealand's North Island. At , it is the second highest mountain in the North Island, afte ...
mixed with white quartz and pumice sand, carried from the
Waikato River The Waikato River is the longest river in New Zealand, running for through the North Island. It rises on the eastern slopes of Mount Ruapehu, joining the Tongariro River system and flowing through Lake Taupō, New Zealand's largest lake. It th ...
. Prior to this, the Manukau Harbour was an extensive bay. The peninsula is a sand dune which developed over the last two million years. Historically much of the peninsula was native forest dominated by taraire, with significant numbers of
kauri ''Agathis'', commonly known as kauri or dammara, is a genus of evergreen coniferous trees, native to Australasia and Southeast Asia. It is one of three extant genera in the family Araucariaceae, alongside '' Wollemia'' and ''Araucaria'' (being ...
,
pūriri ''Vitex lucens'', commonly known as pūriri, is an evergreen tree endemic to New Zealand. History Pūriri was first collected (by Europeans) at Tolaga Bay by Banks and Solander during Cook's first visit in 1769. The plant was described by S ...
, tawa, karaka,
kohekohe Kohekohe (''Didymocheton spectabilis'') is a medium-sized tree in the Meliaceae family, native to New Zealand. It is found in lowland and coastal forests throughout most of the North Island and also occurs in the Marlborough Sounds in the no ...
, tītoki,
tōtara ''Podocarpus totara'' (), commonly known as the , is a species of Podocarpus, podocarp tree endemism, endemic to New Zealand. It grows throughout the North Island, South Island and rarely on Stewart Island, Stewart Island / Rakiura in lowland, ...
and
kahikatea ''Dacrycarpus dacrydioides'', commonly known as kahikatea (from Māori language, Māori) and white pine, is a Pinophyta, coniferous tree endemism, endemic to New Zealand. A Podocarpaceae, podocarp, it is New Zealand's tallest tree, gaining hei ...
. Hamiltons Gap is a small gap in the western coast of the Āwhitu Peninsula, where the path of a stream has cut through the terrain.


History

The peninsula is named after the traditional settlement of Āwhitu, located to the west of Orua Bay. The name refers to the regret
Hoturoa According to Māori tradition, Hoturoa was the leader of the ''Tainui'' canoe, during the migration of the Māori people to New Zealand, around 1400. He is considered the founding ancestor of the Tainui confederation of tribes (iwi), who now in ...
, captain of the ''
Tainui Tainui is a tribal waka (canoe), waka confederation of New Zealand Māori people, Māori iwi. The Tainui confederation comprises four principal related Māori iwi of the central North Island of New Zealand: Hauraki Māori, Hauraki, Ngāti Maniapo ...
'' migratory canoe, felt as he left the area. The area has strong significance for Ngāti Te Ata Waiohua, and is the location of Tāhuna Marae. The west coast of the Āwhitu Peninsula is the former site of Paorae, a flat sand dune land which was a major kūmara (sweet potato) cultivation area for Tāmaki Māori iwi. The land eroded during the 18th century. The northern shore of the Āwhitu Peninsula around the Manukau Heads is one of the earliest archaeological sites in the Auckland region. In 1834, a Wesleyan mission was established at Orua Bay on the peninsula by William Woon. On 20 March 1840, Orua Bay became one of the locations where the
Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi (), sometimes referred to as ''Te Tiriti'', is a document of central importance to the history of New Zealand, Constitution of New Zealand, its constitution, and its national mythos. It has played a major role in the tr ...
was signed, by Manukau and Waikato chiefs. During the event,
Apihai Te Kawau Apihai Te Kawau (died November 1869) was a paramount chief of the Ngāti Whātua Māori iwi (tribe) of Auckland (), New Zealand in the 19th century. Te Kawau's father was Tarahawaiki and his grandfather was Tūperiri, the principal leader of T ...
of
Ngāti Whātua Ngāti Whātua is a Māori iwi (tribe) of the lower Northland Peninsula of New Zealand's North Island. It comprises a confederation of four hapū (subtribes) interconnected both by ancestry and by association over time: Te Uri-o-Hau, Te Roroa ...
signed, but several
Waikato Tainui Waikato Tainui, Waikato or Tainui is a group of Māori ''iwi'' based in the Waikato Region, in the western central region of New Zealand's North Island. It is part of the larger Tainui confederation of Polynesian settlers who arrived to New Zeal ...
chiefs refused. From 1835, the
kauri ''Agathis'', commonly known as kauri or dammara, is a genus of evergreen coniferous trees, native to Australasia and Southeast Asia. It is one of three extant genera in the family Araucariaceae, alongside '' Wollemia'' and ''Araucaria'' (being ...
forest on the peninsula was logged. During the early colonial period, the native bush of the peninsula was converted to farmland. Between 1870 and 1900, the peninsula, alongside neighbouring
Waiuku Waiuku is a rural town in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is located at the southern end of the Waiuku River, which is an estuary, estuarial arm of the Manukau Harbour, and lies on the isthmus of the Āwhitu Peninsula, which extends to th ...
and Karaka were major centres for the
kauri gum Kauri gum is resin from kauri trees (''Agathis australis''), which historically had several important industrial uses. It can also be used to make crafts such as jewellery. Kauri forests once covered much of the North Island of New Zealand, bef ...
industry.


Demographics

Āwhitu covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2. Āwhitu had a population of 3,081 in the
2023 New Zealand census The 2023 New Zealand census, which took place on 7 March 2023, was the thirty-fifth national census in New Zealand. It implemented measures that aimed to increase the Census' effectiveness in response to the issues faced with the 2018 census, i ...
, an increase of 267 people (9.5%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 657 people (27.1%) since the 2013 census. There were 1,578 males, 1,497 females and 6 people of other genders in 1,152 dwellings. 2.1% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 49.8 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 498 people (16.2%) aged under 15 years, 384 (12.5%) aged 15 to 29, 1,527 (49.6%) aged 30 to 64, and 672 (21.8%) aged 65 or older. People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 87.0% European (
Pākehā ''Pākehā'' (or ''Pakeha''; ; ) is a Māori language, Māori-language word used in English, particularly in New Zealand. It generally means a non-Polynesians, Polynesian New Zealanders, New Zealander or more specifically a European New Zeala ...
); 16.2%
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 Co ...
; 3.9% Pasifika; 5.3% Asian; 0.6% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.2% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 98.4%, Māori language by 2.7%, Samoan by 0.4%, and other languages by 6.7%. No language could be spoken by 1.0% (e.g. too young to talk).
New Zealand Sign Language New Zealand Sign Language or NZSL () is the main language of the deaf community in New Zealand. It became an official language of New Zealand in April 2006 under the New Zealand Sign Language Act 2006. The purpose of the act was to create rights ...
was known by 0.4%. The percentage of people born overseas was 17.9, compared with 28.8% nationally. Religious affiliations were 24.3%
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
, 1.2%
Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
, 0.4%
Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
, 0.6%
Māori religious beliefs 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 Co ...
, 0.5%
Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
, 0.5%
New Age New Age is a range of Spirituality, spiritual or Religion, religious practices and beliefs that rapidly grew in Western world, Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclecticism, eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise d ...
, 0.1%
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
, and 1.7% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 61.9%, and 9.0% of people did not answer the census question. Of those at least 15 years old, 387 (15.0%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 1,476 (57.1%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 714 (27.6%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $37,000, compared with $41,500 nationally. 315 people (12.2%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 1,242 (48.1%) people were employed full-time, 339 (13.1%) were part-time, and 78 (3.0%) were unemployed.


Education

The former Awhitu Central School Awhitu District School and Waipipi School are coeducational full primary schools (years 1-8) with rolls of and students respectively as of


Biodiversity

The Peninsula has a high sympatric diversity of native New Zealand land snails. Communities of >70 native species in a 4 ha patch of bush can be found here, whereas in other parts of the world, 15 sympatric land snail species would be considered high. Grazing and other habitat disturbances can negatively impact this diversity.


Climate


References

{{Subject bar, auto=y, d=y Franklin Local Board Area Peninsulas of the Auckland Region Kauri gum