Whatatutu is a small settlement in the northeast of

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

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 ...

. It is located north of

Te Karaka Te Karaka is a small settlement inland from Gisborne, in the northeast of New Zealand's North Island. It is located in the valley of the Waipaoa River close to its junction with its tributary, the Waihora River. Te Karaka is located on State H ...

on the upper reaches of the

Waipaoa River The Waipaoa River is in the Gisborne District, in the northeast of New Zealand's North Island. It rises on the eastern slopes of the Raukūmara Range, flowing south for to reach Poverty Bay and the Pacific Ocean just south of Gisborne. For a ...

, close to its meeting with its tributaries, the Mangatū River and Waingaromia River. Whatatutu is about 45 minutes from Gisborne and is home to about 300 people. Oil-bearing rock has been known to exist in small quantities for many years, but not in commercial quantities. The search for more economically viable sources continues in the area.

Marae

Whatatutu has three

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 ...

related to the

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 ...

of Te Aitanga ā Māhaki, originally belonging to 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. ...

of Ngariki Kaiputahi. Māngatu Marae and Te Ngāwari meeting house is a meeting place of Ngariki Kaiputahi. In October 2020, the Government committed $185,301 from the

Provincial Growth Fund Shane Geoffrey Jones (born 3 September 1959) is a New Zealand politician and a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives for the New Zealand First party. Jones' political career began 2005 New Zealand general election, in 2005 as a l ...

to upgrade the marae's effluent system, creating 3 jobs. Te Wainui and Te Whare o Hera meeting house is also affiliated with the Ngariki Kaiputahi iwi. In October 2020, the Government committed $812,548 to upgrade Mahaki marae and

Mātāwai Marae Mātāwai is a small inland settlement in the Gisborne Region in the northeast of New Zealand's North Island. It is located on the upper reaches of the Mōtū River, in the Raukumara Range. It is on New Zealand State Highway 2, State Highway 2 bet ...

, creating 15.4 jobs. Taihamiti Marae is a meeting place of Ngāi Tamatea.

Climate

References

Populated places in the Gisborne District {{Gisborne-geo-stub