Omakau is a settlement in
Central Otago
Central Otago is located in the inland part of the Otago region in the South Island of New Zealand. The motto for the area is "A World of Difference".
The area is dominated by mountain ranges and the upper reaches of the Clutha River and trib ...
,
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 ...
, located between
Alexandra and
Ranfurly on the northwest bank of the
Manuherikia River. The smaller settlement of
Ophir, New Zealand is located on the opposite bank, three kilometres to the southeast.
The New Zealand
Ministry for Culture and Heritage
The Ministry for Culture and Heritage (MCH; ) is the department of the New Zealand Government responsible for supporting the arts, culture, built heritage, sport and recreation, and broadcasting sectors in New Zealand and advising government on s ...
gives a translation of "belonging to husband and wife" for ''Ōmakau''.
Omakau grew when the
Otago Central Railway
The Otago Central Railway (OCR) or in later years Otago Central Branch Railway, now often referred to as the Taieri Gorge Railway, was a secondary railway line in Central Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand.
Construction
Construction o ...
was opened in 1904. Today Omakau has a population of about 250, and is a stopover on both
State Highway 85 and the
Otago Rail Trail.
Omakau is the site of many historic buildings, including the local hotel built in 1898 and the Catholic Church. Omakau also hosts the Central Otago A&P Show at the local domain, which attracts people from all over the country in February.
Demographics
Omakau is described as a rural settlement by Statistics New Zealand. The urban area of Omakau covers and had a population of 141 in 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 sh ...
. The Statistics New Zealand description relates to a larger area including
Ophir
Ophir (; ) is a port or region mentioned in the Bible, famous for its wealth. King Solomon received a shipment from Ophir every three years (1 Kings 10:22) which consisted of gold, silver, sandalwood, pearls, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
...
which covers .
It is part of the much larger Manuherikia-Ida Valleys statistical area.
Omakau and its surrounds had a population of 336 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 sh ...
, an increase of 39 people (13.1%) since the
2013 census, and an increase of 39 people (13.1%) since the
2006 census. There were 138 households. There were 171 males and 165 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.04 males per female, with 57 people (17.0%) aged under 15 years, 33 (9.8%) aged 15 to 29, 147 (43.8%) aged 30 to 64, and 99 (29.5%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 91.1% European/Pākehā, 8.9% Māori, 0.9% Pacific peoples, 2.7% Asian, and 0.9% other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100% since people could identify with multiple ethnicities).
Although some people objected to giving their religion, 46.4% had no religion, 47.3% were Christian, 0.9% were Hindu and 0.9% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 30 (10.8%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 72 (25.8%) people had no formal qualifications. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 132 (47.3%) people were employed full-time, 69 (24.7%) were part-time, and 3 (1.1%) were unemployed.
Manuherikia-Ida Valleys
The Manuherikia-Ida Valleys statistical area includes Omakau and covers .
It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km
2.
Manuherikia-Ida Valleys had a population of 1,119 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 sh ...
, an increase of 99 people (9.7%) since the
2013 census, and an increase of 159 people (16.6%) since the
2006 census. There were 441 households. There were 594 males and 519 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.14 males per female. The median age was 43.9 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 219 people (19.6%) aged under 15 years, 132 (11.8%) aged 15 to 29, 564 (50.4%) aged 30 to 64, and 204 (18.2%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 93.3% European/Pākehā, 8.0% Māori, 0.5% Pacific peoples, 1.6% Asian, and 2.1% other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100% since people could identify with multiple ethnicities).
The proportion of people born overseas was 10.5%, compared with 27.1% nationally.
Although some people objected to giving their religion, 54.7% had no religion, 37.3% were Christian, 0.3% were Hindu, 0.3% were Buddhist and 0.3% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 162 (18.0%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 171 (19.0%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $33,900, compared with $31,800 nationally. 90 people (10.0%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 519 (57.7%) people were employed full-time, 180 (20.0%) were part-time, and 9 (1.0%) were unemployed.
Education
Omakau School is a co-educational state primary school for Year 1 to 8 students,
with a roll of as of .
The school opened in 1935, and is the only remaining one of 13 schools which at one point served the Manuherikia Valley area.
References
{{Central Otago
Populated places in Otago
Central Otago District