Waioeka is a rural community in the

Ōpōtiki District Ōpōtiki District is a Districts of New Zealand, territorial authority district in the eastern Bay of Plenty Region on the North Island of New Zealand. It stretches from Kutarere and the eastern shore of Ōhiwa Harbour in the west to Cape Runaw ...

and

Bay of Plenty Region The Bay of Plenty Region is a Regions of New Zealand, local government region in the North Island of New Zealand. Also called just the Bay of Plenty (BOP), it is situated around the Bay of Plenty, marine bight of that same name. The bay was name ...

of New Zealand's

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 ...

. Its name was officially changed to Waioweka in 2024. The community is on the east bank of the

Waioeka River The Waioeka River is in the eastern Bay of Plenty Region of New Zealand's North Island. Its name was officially changed to Waioweka River in 2024. The river flows northwards for from Te Urewera National Park to reach the sea at Ōpōtiki. It ...

Demographics

Oponae statistical area covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². Oponae Bridge

Oponae had a population of 330 at the

2018 New Zealand census The 2018 New Zealand census, which took place on Tuesday 6 March 2018, was the thirty-fourth national census in New Zealand. The population of New Zealand was counted as 4,699,755 – an increase of 457,707 (10.79%) over the 2013 census. Resu ...

, an increase of 36 people (12.2%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 30 people (10.0%) since the 2006 census. There were 93 households, comprising 165 males and 168 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.98 males per female. The median age was 35.1 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 90 people (27.3%) aged under 15 years, 57 (17.3%) aged 15 to 29, 144 (43.6%) aged 30 to 64, and 39 (11.8%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 49.1% European/

Pākehā ''Pākehā'' (or ''Pakeha''; ; ) is a Māori language, Māori-language word used in English, particularly in New Zealand. It generally means a non-Polynesians, Polynesian New Zealanders, New Zealander or more specifically a European New Zeala ...

, 60.0%

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 ...

, 2.7% Pacific peoples, 0.9% Asian, and 0.9% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 7.3, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 34.5% had no religion, 28.2% were

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

, and 28.2% had

Māori religious beliefs 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 ...

. Of those at least 15 years old, 30 (12.5%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 69 (28.8%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $19,900, compared with $31,800 nationally. 12 people (5.0%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 90 (37.5%) people were employed full-time, 42 (17.5%) were part-time, and 24 (10.0%) were unemployed.

Marae

The local

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 ...

is known variously as Ōpeke Marae, Opekerau Marae or Waioeka Marae. It is the traditional tribal meeting place of the

Whakatōhea Te Whakatōhea is a Māori iwi of the eastern Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand. Their traditional territory extends along the coastline eastwards from Ōhiwa Harbour to Opape, and inland to Mātāwai, and is centred in the area around th ...

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 ...

Ngāti Irapuaia / Ngāti Ira. The meeting house is called Irapuaia. Waioeka was the location of Tanewhirinaki, at the time one of the largest

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 ...

ever built. The structure, which was built by

Te Kooti Te Kooti Arikirangi Te Turuki ( 1832–1893) was a Māori leader and guerrilla fighter who was the founder of the Ringatū religion. While fighting alongside government forces against the Hauhau in 1865, he was accused of spying. Exiled to ...

for his followers, was completed in the late 1860s.

Education

Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Waioweka is a co-educational Māori language immersion state primary school for Year 1 to 8 students, with a roll of as of

References

{{Ōpōtiki District Ōpōtiki District Populated places in the Bay of Plenty Region