Ruakituri is a rural area in the northern

Hawke's Bay Hawke's Bay () is a region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region is named for Hawke Bay, which was named in honour of Edward Hawke. The region's main centres are the cities of Napier and Hastings, while the more rural ...

region of New Zealand's eastern

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 ...

, located north of

Wairoa Wairoa is the largest town in the Wairoa District and the northernmost town in the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located on the northern shore of Hawke Bay at the mouth of the Wairoa River and to the west of Mā ...

and west of Gisborne. The

2013 New Zealand census The 2013 New Zealand census was the thirty-third national census. "The National Census Day" used for the census was on Tuesday, 5 March 2013. The population of New Zealand was counted as 4,242,048 – an increase of 214,101 or 5.3% over the 20 ...

recorded 708 people living in the Ruakituri-Morere area. The community is centred around the

Ruakituri River The Ruakituri River is a river of the Gisborne and Hawke's Bay Region of New Zealand's North Island. It initially flows northeast from its sources north of Lake Waikareiti. Within its course are the 72 m high Waitangi Falls. Afterwards it tur ...

, which merges with the

Hangaroa River The Hangaroa River is a river in the Gisborne Region of New Zealand. Its source is the Huiarau Ranges in the Te Urewera National Park, and flows southeast to merge with the Ruakituri River near Te Reinga. The combined rivers form the Wairoa R ...

to form the Wairoa River. The largest settlement is Te Reinga, at the junction of the two rivers, about north of

. This settlement is named after the Te Reinga falls, which are just below the junction. The upper part of the area used to be a lake, called Pupuni. According to legend, the hill Orakai-Whaia on the west side of the

fell in lover with the hill Tauranga-a-Tara on the east side of the river and invited her to marry him; she agreed and moved over to join Orakai-Whaia. This blocked the river and caused the land behind the hills to flood, creating Lake Papuni. Pourangahua rowed over in his canoe and performed magic spells which forced the two hills apart, allowing the river to flow once more. J. H. Mitchell suggested that this story preserves memory of an earthquake that caused a landslip to block the river. In another story, the lake was instead created by the

taniwha In Māori mythology, taniwha () are large supernatural beings that live in deep pools in rivers, dark caves, or in the sea, especially in places with dangerous currents or deceptive breakers (giant waves). They may be considered highly respecte ...

Ruamano, which swam up the Ruakituri River from the ocean, seeking

Lake Waikaremoana Lake Waikaremoana is located in Te Urewera in the North Island of New Zealand, northwest of Wairoa and west-southwest of Gisborne. It covers an area of . From the Māori Waikaremoana translates as 'sea of rippling waters'. The lake lies wi ...

, but became lost and settled down in the area, causing the lake to form. Eventually, Ruamano decided to return to the ocean, creating the outlet of the lake as he burst out.} Lake Pupuni remained there until 1856, when the digging of a channel accidentally burst the weir at the end of the lake. In the eighteenth century, there was a pā called Wharekopae at Te Reinga, inhabited by Tutaki and Puraho. When Tutaki was murdered by Puraho,

Ngaherehere Ngaherehere was a Māori rangatira in the upper Wairoa River valley in the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand. He probably lived around the eighteenth century. Life In his account of the history of Ngati Kahungunu, J. H. Mitchell expresses uncer ...

helped Tutaki's son Tamaroki get revenge and then established himself as the dominant

rangatira In Māori culture, () are tribal chiefs, the leaders (often hereditary) of a (subtribe or clan). Ideally, were people of great practical wisdom who held authority () on behalf of the tribe and maintained boundaries between a tribe's land ( ...

in the area. There are two ''

marae A ' (in Māori language, New Zealand Māori, Cook Islands Māori, Tahitian language, Tahitian), ' (in Tongan language, Tongan), ' (in Marquesan language, Marquesan) or ' (in Samoan language, Samoan) is a communal or sacred place that serves reli ...

'' (local Māori meeting grounds) in the area. Erepēti marae is affiliated with the ''

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

'' (tribe) of

Ngāti Kahungunu Ngāti Kahungunu is a Māori iwi (tribe) located along the eastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The iwi is traditionally centred in the Hawke's Bay and Wairārapa regions. The Kahungunu iwi also comprises 86 hapū (sub-tribes ...

and its ''

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 ...

'' (sub-tribe) of Ngāti Hingānga / Te Aitanga o Pourangahua, and includes the ''

wharenui A wharenui (; literally "large house") is a communal house of the Māori people of New Zealand, generally situated as the focal point of a ''marae''. Wharenui are usually called meeting houses in New Zealand English, or simply called ''wikt:wh ...

'' (meeting house) of Pourangahua. Te Reinga Marae is a meeting ground for the iwi

and its hapū Ngāti Hinehika and

Ngāti Kōhatu Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

, and includes the wharenui of Tuarenga.

Education

Ruakituri School is a Year 1-8 co-educational state primary school. It is a decile 7 school with a roll of as of

References

{{Wairoa District Wairoa District Populated places in Hawke's Bay