Eketāhuna

Eketāhuna is a small rural settlement, in the south of the Tararua District and the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand's North Island.

Eketāhuna
Eketāhuna Kiwi
Coordinates: 40.62465°S 175.56085°E / -40.62465; 175.56085
CountryNew Zealand
RegionManawatū-Whanganui
Territorial authorityTararua District
Government
 • Mayor of TararuaTracey Collins
 • Wairarapa MPKieran McAnulty
 • Ikaroa-Rāwhiti MPMeka Whaitiri
Area
 • Total892.66 km2 (344.66 sq mi)
 • Land892.66 km2 (344.66 sq mi)
 • Water0 km2 (0 sq mi)
Population
 (June 2020)
 • Total1,630[1]
Time zoneUTC+12 (NZST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+13 (NZDT)
Postcode
4900
Area code(s)06

The town is located at eastern foot of the Tararua Ranges, 35 kilometres north of Masterton and a similar distance south of Palmerston North. It is situated on State Highway 2, on the eastern bank of the Makakahi River.[2]

Eketāhuna has become synonymous with stereotypes of remote rural New Zealand towns, with New Zealanders colloquially referring to the town in the same way other English speakers refer to Timbuktu.[3]

The New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage gives a translation of "land on the sandbank" for Eketāhuna.[4] The name sounds like a sentence in Afrikaans which translates to "I have a chicken", making it amusing to immigrant Afrikaans-speaking South Africans in New Zealand.[5]

Geography

The corresponding Statistics New Zealand statistical area covers an area of 892.66 km².[6]

The Mount Bruce bird sanctuary is located to the south of the town.[5]

History

Early settlement

Eketāhuna was settled in 1872, under the name Mellemskov.[5] It was renamed soon after its founding.[7]

Modern history

The population of Eketāhuna and the wider area has plummeted in the 21st century, dropping from 1,920 in 1996 to just 630 in 2013.[8]

On 20 January 2014, the town was the epicenter of the 2014 Eketahuna earthquake. Measuring 6.2 on the Richter magnitude scale, the quake caused moderate damage all over the southern North Island.[9]

In July 2020, the name of the town was officially gazetted as Eketāhuna by the New Zealand Geographic Board.[10]

Demography

The area has an estimated population of 1,630, with a population density of 1.83 people per km² in 2019.[11]

As of the 2018 census, the median age was 38.8, the median income was $27,600, 4.0% of people earned over $100,00, 12.3% had a Bachelor's Degree or higher, and 5.0% of the workforce was unemployed.[8]

Ethnically, the population was 89.8% New Zealand European, 22.6% Māori, 1.1% Pacific peoples, 1.7% Asian; 8.8% were born overseas.[8]

Religiously, the population is 57.7% non-religious and 28.0% Christian.[8]

Economy

In 2018, 5.0% of the workforce worked in manufacturing, 6.1% worked in construction, 5.0% worked in hospitality, 1.4% worked in transport, 3.9% worked in education, and 6.4% worked in healthcare.[8]

Transport

As of 2018, among those who commute to work, 46.4% drove a car and 3.2% rode in a car. No one commuted by public transport, walked, ran or cycled.[8]

Education

Eketahuna School is a co-educational state primary school for Year 1 to 8 students,[12][13] with a roll of 121 as of March 2020.[14]

Notable people
  • Tania Lineham, born 1966 in Eketahuna. Royal Society of New Zealand, Science and Technology Teacher Fellowship in 1999 and the Prime Minister's Science Teacher Prize in 2015.
  • Kieran McAnulty, born 1985 in Eketahuna. Member of Parliament since 2017.

See also

Notes
  1. "Population estimate tables - NZ.Stat". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  2. "Eketahuna Travel Guide". Jasons Travel Media.
  3. Davison, Isaac (29 August 2017). "Heartbeat: Eketahuna makes a community-led recovery". New Zealand Media and Entertainment. New Zealand Herald.
  4. "1000 Māori place names". New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage. 6 August 2019.
  5. Easther, Elisabeth (20 March 2015). "Kia ora: Eketahuna". New Zealand Media and Entertainment. New Zealand Herald.
  6. "Statistical Area 2 2018 (generalised) GIS" (Data table). stats.govt.nz. Statistics New Zealand.
  7. "Horizons Regional Council – Regional Policy Statement". horizons.govt.nz. Horizons Regional Council.
  8. "Place Summary – Nireaha-Eketahuna". Stats NZ. Statistics New Zealand.
  9. "6.2-magnitude earthquake hits lower North Island". The New Zealand Herald. 20 January 2014. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
  10. "Notice of approved official geographic names" (PDF). New Zealand Gazette. 16 July 2020. Retrieved 24 July 2020.
  11. "Provisional Statistics". stats.govt.nz. Statistics New Zealand.
  12. "Official School Website". eketahuna.school.nz.
  13. "Ministry of Education School Profile". educationcounts.govt.nz. Ministry of Education.
  14. "Education Review Office Report". ero.govt.nz. Education Review Office.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.