Mitimiti is a small settlement in

Northland Northland may refer to: Corporations * Northland Organic Foods Corporation, headquartered in Saint Paul, Minnesota * Northland Resources, a mining business * Northland Communications, an American cable television, telephone and internet service ...

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 the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

. It lies close to the Warawara Forest, between the mouths of the Whangape Harbour and Hokianga Harbour on Northland's west coast, 44 km west of Kohukohu. Mitimiti is part of the Hokianga North statistical area. For demographics of this area, see Panguru.

Name

There are several stories about the origin of the name Mitimiti. The name "Mitimiti" is thought to come from a

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 ...

term meaning "to lick", a reference to the belief that the souls of the dead, on their way to

Cape Reinga , type =Cape , photo = Cape Reinga, Northland, New Zealand, October 2007.jpg , photo_width = 270px , photo_alt = , photo_caption = , map = New Zealand , map_width = 270px ...

, paused here to drink at the mouth of the Mitimiti Stream. Another story is that the great chief More Te Korohanga was slain in a battle there. The warriors wanted a piece of the chief, but there wasn't enough of his body for everyone, so they licked his blood from the rocks there.

History

SS Ventnor

On 27 October 1902, the SS Ventnor sank near the Hokianga Heads. The ship was carrying the remains of 499 Chinese miners back to China, however, none of the Chinese bodies were recovered initially. For weeks and months following the wreck, bones washed ashore along the Hokianga, including on the beach at Mitimiti. Locals, unsure of the origins of the bones, buried them in their cemeteries. In 2007, Chinese settlers began to make links between the story of the SS Ventnor and the bones, and official relationships between Te Rarawa and The New Zealand Chinese Association were formed. In 2013, a memorial gateway was unveiled in the cemetery in Mitimiti, to honor the sinking. It was blessed by both Māori and Chinese

Marae

The local Matihetihe Marae is affiliated with the

Te Rarawa Te Rarawa is a Māori iwi of Northland, New Zealand. The iwi is one of five Muriwhenua iwi of the far north of the North Island. Rūnanga and marae Te Rarawa has 23 foundation marae: *Korou Kore Marae, ''Ahipara'', represents the hapū of Ng� ...

hapū In 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 and normally ope ...

of Taomaui. The name ''Matihetihe'' is reference to the tihetihe, or tumble weeds that grow on the sanddunes. The marae complex consists of a

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 ''whare'' ( ...

named Tūmoana after the captain of the Tinana canoe, and a wharekai named Nga Ringa Rau o Te Akau (The many hands on the shore). Next to the marae complex is Hato Hemi a catholic church. Above the marae on a hill sits the wahi tapu (cemetery) named Hione. In February 2015 the marae was chosen to be part of TV3's Marae DIY. The

was completely refurbished on the show. At the same time, the marae was connected to fibre broadband, in a project named Mititmiti on the Grid. In October 2020, the Government committed $1,407,731 from the

Provincial Growth Fund Shane Geoffrey Jones (born 3 September 1959) is a New Zealand politician. He served as a New Zealand First list MP from 2017 to 2020 and was previously a Labour list MP from 2005 to 2014. Jones was a cabinet minister in the Fifth Labour G ...

to upgrade the marae and 8 other Te Rarawa marae, creating 100 jobs.

Education

Matihetihe School is a coeducational full primary (years 1–8) school with a roll of students as of The school was founded in 1890, and was initially a part-time Native School taught at the Matihetihe whare.

Notable people

Artist

Ralph Hotere Hone Papita Raukura "Ralph" Hotere (11 August 1931 – 24 February 2013) was a New Zealand artist. He was born in Mitimiti, Northland and is widely regarded as one of New Zealand's most important artists. In 1994 he was awarded an honorary do ...

was born in Mitimiti in 1931, and was buried there in 2013. He also attended Matihetihe school. Poet Hone Tuwhare wrote poem ''A fall of rain at Mitimiti: Hokianga'' which was published in 1974 in his collection ''Something Nothing''.

References

Populated places in the Northland Region Hokianga Far North District {{NorthlandNZ-geo-stub