Horowhenua District is a territorial authority district on the west coast of the

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-larges ...

of New Zealand, administered by Horowhenua District Council. Located north of

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by ...

and Kapiti, it stretches from slightly north of the town of Ōtaki in the south to just south of

Himatangi Himatangi is a small settlement in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located at the junction of State Highways 1 and 56, 25 kilometres west of Palmerston North, and seven kilometres east of the coastal settle ...

in the north, and from the coast to the top of the

Tararua Range The Tararua Range, often referred to as the Tararua Ranges or Tararua, is one of several mountain ranges in the North Island of New Zealand. The Tararua Range runs northeast–southwest for from near Palmerston North to the upper reaches of ...

. It is in the

Manawatū-Whanganui Manawatū-Whanganui (; spelled Manawatu-Wanganui prior to 2019) is a region in the lower half of the North Island of New Zealand, whose main population centres are the cities of Palmerston North and Whanganui. It is administered by the Manawa ...

local government region. The name ''Horowhenua'' is

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 ...

for landslide. Levin is the main town and the seat of the district council. Other towns include Foxton, Shannon and Tokomaru. The population of the district is

History

Horowhenua County was established in 1885 from the southern part of Manawatu County. It stretched from the

Manawatū River The Manawatū River is a major river of the lower North Island of New Zealand. The river flows from the Ruahine Ranges, through both the Manawatū Gorge and the city of Palmerston North, and across the Manawatū Plains to the Tasman Sea at Foxton ...

Opiki Opiki is a small rural settlement in the Horowhenua district of New Zealand's North Island. It is located on the floodplain of the Manawatu River, southwest of Palmerston North. Opiki and its surrounds had a population of 522 at the 2013 New Ze ...

and Tokomaru in the north, to

Waikanae Waikanae (, ) is a town on the Kapiti Coast, 60 kilometres north of the Wellington CBD. The name is a Māori word meaning "waters" (''wai'') "of the grey mullet". The town lies between Paraparaumu, eight kilometres to the southwest, and Ōt ...

and the

Waikanae River Waikanae River is located on the Kapiti Coast in the North Island of New Zealand. The river drains the western flanks of the Tararua Ranges around Reikorangi and the Akatarawa Valley, then passes to the south of the town of Waikanae to the n ...

in the south. The county offices were in Ōtaki until 1896, when they were moved to Levin. Horowhenua District was established in 1989 from a merger of Horowhenua County, Foxton Borough, Levin Borough and part of the first Manawatu District, as part of New Zealand local government reforms. The southern part of Horowhenua County – the Waikanae and Otaki areas – became part of

Kapiti Coast District The Kapiti Coast District is a local government district of the Wellington Region in the lower North Island of New Zealand, 50 km north of Wellington City. The district is named after Kapiti Island, a prominent island offshore. The popu ...

Populated places

Horowhenua District consists of the following towns, localities, settlements and communities (larger towns shown in bold): * Kere Kere Ward: ** Foxton **

Foxton Beach Foxton Beach is a small settlement in the Horowhenua District of the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located on the South Taranaki Bight at the mouth of the Manawatu River, 35 kilometres southwest of Palmerston No ...

** Moutua * Levin Ward: ** Levin **

Weraroa ''Weraroa'' was a genus of mushrooms from the families Hymenogastraceae and Strophariaceae. The genus was initially described by mycologist Rolf Singer in 1958 to accommodate the single species ''Secotium novae-zelandiae'' reported by Gordon He ...

* Miranu Ward: ** Makerua **

Mangaore Mangaore is a small town in the district of Horowhenua, in the southwestern North Island of New Zealand. It is located 4 kilometres southeast of Shannon. Mangaore Reserve is a park with several sections, one containing Mangaore Hall, and anot ...

** Shannon ** Tokomaru * Waiopehu Ward: **

Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-cons ...

** Heatherlea ** Hokio Beach ** Ihakara ** Koputaroa ** Kuku ** Makahika **

Manakau Manakau is a settlement in the Horowhenua District, at the boundary of the Manawatū-Whanganui and Wellington regions of New Zealand's North Island. It lies 8 km north of Otaki and 12 km south of Levin, and is connected to both vi ...

** Muhunoa ** Muhunoa East **

Ōhau Ōhau is a village and semi-rural community in the Horowhenua District and Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located just south of Levin on State Highway 1. The New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage give ...

Poroutawhao Poroutawhao is a small rural settlement in the Horowhenua District of New Zealand's North Island. It is located just north-west of Levin on State Highway 1. The settlement has a school and a community hall, which due to its old age has been expe ...

** Waikawa Beach ** Waitarere Beach

Demographics

Horowhenua District covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². Horowhenua District had a population of 33,261 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 short ...

, an increase of 3,165 people (10.5%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 3,393 people (11.4%) since the 2006 census. There were 13,230 households. There were 16,143 males and 17,118 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.94 males per female. The median age was 46.8 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 6,087 people (18.3%) aged under 15 years, 5,244 (15.8%) aged 15 to 29, 13,707 (41.2%) aged 30 to 64, and 8,223 (24.7%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 81.0% European/Pākehā, 24.5% Māori, 5.7% Pacific peoples, 4.1% Asian, and 1.6% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 14.1, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people objected to giving their religion, 51.1% had no religion, 36.0% were Christian, 0.4% were Hindu, 0.1% were Muslim, 0.4% were Buddhist and 2.9% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 2,877 (10.6%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 7,806 (28.7%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $23,900, compared with $31,800 nationally. 2,337 people (8.6%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 10,905 (40.1%) people were employed full-time, 3,567 (13.1%) were part-time, and 1,311 (4.8%) were unemployed.

Land use

Much of the area was once an extensive wetland and the centre of a substantial flax industry. It has been progressively drained and converted to productive but flood-prone farmland, with a mixture of

loam Loam (in geology and soil science) is soil composed mostly of sand ( particle size > ), silt (particle size > ), and a smaller amount of clay (particle size < ). By weight, its mineral composition is about 40–40–20% concentration of sand–si ...

and

peat Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and ...

based soils. Some parts of the wetland, particularly those around Lake Horowhenua are being returned to their former state as a conservation area, with the help of local

. One of the local tribal authorities is th
Muaūpoko Tribal Authority

Museums

* Te Awahou Nieuwe Stroom – Foxton
Piriharakeke Generation Inspiration Centre
– Foxton *

Oranjehof

Flax Stripper Museum
– Foxton

– Foxton

Schools

Secondary: *

Manawatū College Manawatū College is a state secondary co-educational high school in Foxton, New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and ...

, Foxton *

Horowhenua College Horowhenua College is a state co-educational secondary school located in Levin, New Zealand. The school has students from Years 9 to 13 (ages 12 to 18) as of . It was opened in 1940, replacing the secondary school department of Levin School. It ...

, Levin * Waiopehu College, Levin Primary: * Foxton Beach School, Foxton Beach * Coley Street School, Foxton * Foxton Primary, Foxton * St. Marys, Foxton * Levin East School, Levin * Fairfield School, Levin * Ohau School, Ohau (Levin Rural) * Koputuroa School, Levin Rural * St. Josephs, Levin * Levin School, Levin * Levin North School, Levin * Taitoko School, Levin * Poroutawhao School, Levin Rural * Shannon School, Shannon * Manakau School, Manakau * Opiki School, Opiki * Tokomaru School, Tokomaru Intermediate: *Levin Intermediate, Levin

Sport

In rugby, a combined Horowhenua-Kapiti team represents the area in the amateur

Heartland Championship The Heartland Championship competition, known for sponsorship reasons as the Bunnings Warehouse Heartland Championship, is a domestic rugby union competition in New Zealand. It was founded in 2006 as one of two successor competitions to the countr ...

. In cricket, a Horowhenua-Kapiti team has competed in the

Hawke Cup The Hawke Cup is a non-first-class cricket competition for New Zealand's district associations. Apart from 1910–11, 1912–13 and 2000–01 the competition has always been on a challenge basis. To win the Hawke Cup, the challengers must beat t ...

since 2002.

References

External links

Horowhenua District Council
{{Cities and districts of New Zealand Districts of New Zealand