Awapuni is a suburb of the

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

city of Gisborne, located in the southwest of the city. It is named after the Awapuni lagoon, where the

Waipaoa River The Waipaoa River is in the Gisborne District, in the northeast of New Zealand's North Island. It rises on the eastern slopes of the Raukūmara Range, flowing south for to reach Poverty Bay and the Pacific Ocean just south of Gisborne. For a ...

runs into the ocean. 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 Creative New Zealand, arts, Culture of New Zealand, culture, New Zealand Historic Places Trust, built heritage, Sport Ne ...

gives a translation of "blocked-up river" for ''Awapuni''. The local Awapuni Pā, also known as Te Kuri a Tuatai, is a tribal meeting place of the

Rongowhakaata Rongowhakaata is a Māori iwi of the Gisborne region of New Zealand. Hapū and marae There are three primary ''hapū'' (subtribes) of Rongowhakaata today: Ngāti Kaipoho, Ngāi Tawhiri and Ngāti Maru. Ngāti Kaipoho Ngāti Kaipoho descend fr ...

hapū In Māori language, 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 ...

Ruapani Ruapani was a rangatira ( chief) of the Māori in Tūranganui-a-Kiwa (the Poverty Bay-region on the East Coast of New Zealand) in the 15th and 16th century. He is said to have been the paramount chief of all the Tūranganui-a-Kiwa tribes around 15 ...

, Ngāi Tāwhiri and Te Whānau a Iwi. It includes the Whareroa meeting house.

Demographics

The statistical area of Makaraka-Awapuni, which also includes Makaraka, covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². Makaraka-Awapuni had a population of 969 at the

2018 New Zealand census The 2018 New Zealand census, which took place on Tuesday 6 March 2018, was the thirty-fourth national census in New Zealand. The population of New Zealand was counted as 4,699,755 – an increase of 457,707 (10.79%) over the 2013 census. Resu ...

, an increase of 141 people (17.0%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 105 people (12.2%) since the 2006 census. There were 345 households, comprising 504 males and 465 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.08 males per female. The median age was 44.6 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 171 people (17.6%) aged under 15 years, 159 (16.4%) aged 15 to 29, 459 (47.4%) aged 30 to 64, and 180 (18.6%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 74.0% 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 ...

, 38.1%

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 ...

, 3.7% Pacific peoples, 3.4% Asian, and 2.2% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 11.5, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 50.5% had no religion, 35.0% were

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 ...

, 2.5% had

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 ...

, 0.6% were

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 ...

, 0.6% were

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 ...

and 2.2% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 117 (14.7%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 186 (23.3%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $29,400, compared with $31,800 nationally. 102 people (12.8%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 417 (52.3%) people were employed full-time, 111 (13.9%) were part-time, and 27 (3.4%) were unemployed.

Parks

Awapuni has three sports grounds: Awapuni Stadium, the Oval Reserve

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

and

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby union: 15 players per side *** American flag rugby *** Beach rugby *** Mini rugby *** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side *** Rugby tens, 10 players per side *** Snow rugby *** Tou ...

ground, and Watson Park. Midway Beach includes a beach,

barbecue area A barbecue grill or barbeque grill (known as a barbecue in Canada and barbecue or barbie in Australia and New Zealand) is a device that cooks food by applying heat from below. There are several varieties of grills, with most falling into one of t ...

horse riding Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding ( Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...

area,

jet skiing A personal watercraft (PWC), also called Jet Ski or water scooter, is a primarily recreational watercraft that is designed to hold only a small number of occupants, who sit or stand on top of the craft, not within the craft as in a boat. P ...

area,

kite surfing Kiteboarding or kitesurfing is a sport that involves using wind power with a large power kite to pull a rider across a water, land, snow, sand, or other surface. It combines the aspects of paragliding, surfing, windsurfing, skateboarding, snow ...

area, dog walking area, and the Kopututea Sand Dunes. Adventure Playground includes a picnic area and

public toilets A public toilet, restroom, bathroom or washroom is a room or small building with toilets (or urinals) and sinks for use by the general public. The facilities are available to customers, travelers, employees of a business, school pupils or pris ...

Education

Awapuni School is a Year 1–6 co-educational state primary school with a roll of as of

References

{{Gisborne District Suburbs of Gisborne, New Zealand