Whangārei


Whangārei is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the largest settlement of the Northland Region. It is part of the Whangarei District, created in 1989 from the former Whangarei City, Whangarei County and Hikurangi Town councils to administer both the city and its hinterland. The city population was estimated to be an increase from 47,000 in 2001.

Etymology

The origin of the name Whangārei is unclear, as a number of traditional Māori stories are associated with the harbour. One major tradition involves the sisters Reitū and Reipae of the Tainui migratory waka, who either flew from the Waikato north on the backs of birds, or in the form of birds.
Other traditions describe the meaning of Whangārei as "lying in wait to ambush", referring to warriors watching over the harbour from Castle Rock, or Whangārei meaning "to gather", referring to the harbour as a gathering place for whales or for important rangatira.

History

The harbour is known from traditional histories as a landing point for many of the migratory waka which reached New Zealand, including Tūnui-ā-rangi and Te Arawa. Many stories involving the Whangārei Harbour involve the legendary chief Manaia. Whangārei was traditionally an important location for trade during much of pre-European Māori history, linking the Muriwhenua iwi of the far north, the residents of the Hauraki Gulf islands, and Tāmaki Māori iwi to the south. An overland route, the Mangapai portage, allowed waka to be hauled between the Whangārei Harbour in the east, and the Wairoa River and Kaipara Harbour to the west along the Mangapai River.
A number of Māori iwi are associated with the early history of Whangārei, including Ngare Raumati, Ngāi Tāhuhu, Ngātiwai and Te Parawhau. In the late 18th century, Ngāpuhi expanded south into the Whangārei area.
Captain James Cook and the crew of the Endeavour were the first Europeans to sight the Whangārei Harbour entrance. On 15 November 1769 they caught about a hundred fish in the harbour, which they classified as "bream", prompting Cook to name the area Bream Bay. In the early 19th century, when Europeans began visiting the harbour more regularly, Ngāpuhi occupied Whangārei, and the Te Parawhau hapū lived at the head of the harbour.
In the 1820s, the area was repeatedly attacked by Waikato and Ngāti Pāoa raiders during the Musket Wars. The first European settler was William Carruth, a Scotsman and trader, who arrived in 1839 and was joined six years later by Gilbert Mair and his family. Relations between the settlers and local Māori were generally friendly, but in February 1842, all settler farms were plundered in revenge for transgressions of tapu. In April 1845, during the Flagstaff War, all settlers fled from Whangārei. Most of the original settlers never returned, but by the mid-1850s there were a number of farmers and orchardists in the area. From 1855, a small town developed, driven by the kauri gum trade. Today's 'Town Basin' on the Hātea River was the original port. Early exports included kauri gum and native timber, followed later by coal from Whau Valley, Kamo, and Hikurangi. Coal from the Kiripaka field was exported via the Ngunguru River. By 1864, the nucleus of the present city was established.
Fire bricks made from fire clay deposits near the Kamo mines supported a brickworks over several decades. Good quality limestone was quarried at Hikurangi, Portland and Limestone Island, and initially sold as agricultural lime, and later combined with local coal to produce Portland cement at the settlement of Portland on the south side of the harbour. Local limestone is still used in cement manufacture, but the coal is now imported from the West Coast of the South Island.
Whangārei was the most urbanised area in Northland towards the end of the 19th century, but grew slowly in the 20th century. The district slowly exhausted most of its natural resources but was sustained by agriculture, especially dairying. Shipping was the main transport link until the North Auckland railway line reached the town in 1925, and the road from Auckland was not suitable for travel in poor weather until 1934. These terrestrial travel routes forced a rapid decline in coastal shipping but stimulated Whangārei to become the service centre for Northland. The population was 14,000 in 1945, but grew rapidly in the 1960s, incorporating Kamo and other outlying areas. In 1964, Whangārei was declared a city. Its population the following year was 31,000.
The second half of the twentieth century brought the establishment and expansion of the oil refinery at Marsden Point on Bream Bay, the adjacent development of timber processing and the establishment of Northland Port, which is mainly focused on timber exporting.
Building of the Hundertwasser Art Centre with Wairau Māori Art Gallery commenced in 2018 after the funding target of $20.97 million was raised by a volunteer team in time for a June 2017 deadline, and the centre opened in February 2022.

Future

A container port could follow, linked by rail to Auckland. The extensive, flat undeveloped land around Northport is a suggested solution to excess population growth in Auckland and the associated lack of industrial land.

Geography

Geographical features

Mount Parihaka is a volcanic dome rising to the northeast of the city centre and part of the Whangārei volcanic field. It is about 20 million years old, and aligns with the Harbour Fault, which also aligns with the volcanoes of Parakiore near Kamo, and Hikurangi near the town of the same name. The dome is surrounded by the Parihaka Scenic Reserve. There is road access to the summit of Parihaka and walking tracks through the reserve, and a bridge linking it to Mair Park. The dome is frequently called Mount Parahaki, but the original Māori spelling of Parihaka was confirmed by the government in 2005.
The Hātea River flows south through the city and empties into Whangārei Harbour. The river has a spectacular waterfall in Tikipunga, north of the city.
Matakohe, or Limestone Island, lies in the harbour close to the city. Owned by Whangarei District, it is subject to ecological island restoration by the Friends of Matakohe/Limestone Island Society.

Suburbs

is the main business district. The city's urban area spreads through the valleys of the surrounding area. The suburbs are:
Whangārei has an oceanic climate. The climate in this area has mild differences between highs and lows. Summer days occasionally exceed 30 °C, and there is plentiful rainfall spread relatively evenly throughout the year. Using the Trewartha classification Whangārei is firmly a maritime subtropical climate due to its absence of winter cold.

Demographics

The Whangārei urban area covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2.
The urban area had a population of 53,841 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 1,947 people since the 2018 census, and an increase of 9,111 people since the 2013 census. There were 25,776 males, 27,918 females and 147 people of other genders in 19,821 dwellings. 3.0% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 38.2 years. There were 11,022 people aged under 15 years, 9,714 aged 15 to 29, 22,353 aged 30 to 64, and 10,752 aged 65 or older.
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 68.5% European ; 37.3% Māori; 5.6% Pasifika; 8.9% Asian; 0.8% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders ; and 2.0% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 96.3%, Māori language by 9.6%, Samoan by 0.4% and other languages by 9.6%. No language could be spoken by 2.3%. New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.7%. The percentage of people born overseas was 19.2, compared with 28.8% nationally.
Religious affiliations were 32.9% Christian, 1.4% Hindu, 0.4% Islam, 3.5% Māori religious beliefs, 0.6% Buddhist, 0.5% New Age, 0.1% Jewish, and 1.5% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 51.6%, and 7.6% of people did not answer the census question.
Of those at least 15 years old, 5,895 people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 23,538 had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 11,589 people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $35,300, compared with $41,500 nationally. 2,832 people earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 19,677 people were employed full-time, 5,100 were part-time, and 1,500 were unemployed.

Government

National

Whangārei is within the Whangārei electorate and the Te Tai Tokerau Māori electorate. The current MP of the Whangārei electorate is Shane Reti of the National Party. The current MP of the Te Tai Tokerau electorate is Mariameno Kapa-Kingi of Te Pāti Māori.

Local

At a local level, Whangārei comes under the Northland Regional Council, of which the city is the seat.
Whangārei is governed locally by the Whangarei District Council. The city is split into two of the council wards, Denby, which takes the northern suburbs, and Okara, which takes the southern half of the city.
Whangārei is covered by the Northland Police District, which is split into two areas, Whangārei/Kaipara and Mid/Far North.
Judicially, the town is served by the Whangarei District Court and is also the base of the region's only High Court.

Transport

from Auckland to Cape Reinga passes through Whangārei. State Highway 14 from Dargaville connects to State Highway 1 in Whangārei. In July 2013, a second road crossing of the Hātea River was opened, in the form of a bascule bridge.
There are several cycle/walk ways under development connecting the city centre with the outer suburbs. These include Kamo, Onerahi and Raumanga/Maunu. The Hātea Loop is a central mixed space walkway connecting the Town Basin, Hihiaua Peninsula, Okara, Pohe Island and Riverside areas of the central city.
Whangārei is served by Northport, a seaport at Marsden Point. It was previously served by Port Whangārei, in the upper harbour near the city, which was operated by the Northland Harbour Board until 1988, when it was transferred to the Northland Port Corporation. The first two berths at Marsden Point opened in 2002, and Port Whangārei closed to commercial shipping in 2007 when the remaining cargo operations were transferred to Marsden Point.