Arapuni
Arapuni | |
|---|---|
Rural settlement | |
 | |
 Interactive map of Arapuni | |
| Coordinates: 38°04â²S 175°39â²E / 38.067°S 175.650°E | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Region | Waikato Region |
| District | South Waikato District |
| Ward | PutÄruru Ward |
| Electorates | |
| Government | |
|  â¢Â Territorial Authority | South Waikato District Council |
|  â¢Â Regional council | Waikato Regional Council |
|  â¢Â Mayor of South Waikato | Gary Petley[1] |
|  â¢Â TaupÅ MP | Louise Upston[2] |
|  â¢Â Te Tai HauÄuru MP | Debbie Ngarewa-Packer[3] |
| Area | |
 â¢Â Total | 1.83 km2 (0.71 sq mi) |
| Population  (June 2025)[5] | |
 â¢Â Total | 330 |
|  â¢Â Density | 180/km2 (470/sq mi) |
Arapuni is a rural town centre on the Waikato river in the South Waikato District of New Zealand.
The town sits next to the Arapuni Dam, a hydroelectric dam at Lake Arapuni commissioned in 1929. The Arapuni Power Station consists of eight turbines which give a total output of 196 MW, the largest of the power stations on the Waikato river. The Arapuni hydro station is owned and operated by Mercury Energy.[6]
The name Arapuni derives from Ara, meaning path, and puni, meaning blocked or covered, and translates as blocked or covered path. The New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage gives a translation of "blocked path" for Arapuni.[7]
The Arapuni Suspension Bridge below the dam is freely open to public.
Arapuni post office opened in 1924[8] and closed from 5 February 1988 when Postmaster-General, Richard Prebble, closed or reduced 580 offices.[9] It was moved to 10 Amber Lane, Puketaha in 2004.[10]
Marae
[edit]The local PÅhara Marae is a meeting ground of the NgÄti Raukawa hapÅ« of NgÄti KorokÄ« and NgÄti Mahuta, the NgÄti KorokÄ« Kahukura hapÅ« of NgÄti Hourua, and the Waikato Tainui hapÅ« of NgÄti KorokÄ« and NgÄti Raukawa ki PanehÄkua.[11]
It features the RangiÄtea meeting house.[12]
In October 2020, the Government committed $2,584,751 from the Provincial Growth Fund to upgrade the marae and 5 other Waikato Tainui marae, creating 69 jobs.[13]
Demographics
[edit]Statistics New Zealand describes Arapuni as a rural settlement, which covers 1.83 km2 (0.71 sq mi).[4] It had an estimated population of 330 as of June 2025,[5] with a population density of 180 people per km2. The settlement is part of the larger PutÄruru Rural statistical area.[14]
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 234 | â    |
| 2013 | 237 | +0.18% |
| 2018 | 291 | +4.19% |
| 2023 | 324 | +2.17% |
| Source: [15][16] | ||
Arapuni had a population of 324 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 33 people (11.3%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 87 people (36.7%) since the 2013 census. There were 150 males and 177 females in 141 dwellings.[17] 0.9% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 47.2 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 63 people (19.4%) aged under 15 years, 39 (12.0%) aged 15 to 29, 159 (49.1%) aged 30 to 64, and 63 (19.4%) aged 65 or older.[15]
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 88.9% European (PÄkehÄ); 20.4% MÄori; 5.6% Pasifika; 1.9% Asian; 1.9% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 5.6% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 97.2%, MÄori by 4.6%, and other languages by 4.6%. No language could be spoken by 2.8% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.9%. The percentage of people born overseas was 19.4, compared with 28.8% nationally.[15]
Religious affiliations were 21.3% Christian, 0.9% Hindu, 1.9% Buddhist, 0.9% New Age, 0.9% Jewish, and 1.9% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 58.3%, and 15.7% of people did not answer the census question.[15]
Of those at least 15 years old, 45 (17.2%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 156 (59.8%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 57 (21.8%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $40,800, compared with $41,500 nationally. 18 people (6.9%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 138 (52.9%) full-time, 27 (10.3%) part-time, and 6 (2.3%) unemployed.[15]
Climate
[edit]| Climate data for Arapuni (1981â2010) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 24.7 (76.5) |
24.6 (76.3) |
22.6 (72.7) |
19.5 (67.1) |
16.2 (61.2) |
13.6 (56.5) |
13.0 (55.4) |
14.1 (57.4) |
16.1 (61.0) |
18.1 (64.6) |
20.6 (69.1) |
23.1 (73.6) |
18.8 (66.0) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 18.5 (65.3) |
18.7 (65.7) |
16.8 (62.2) |
14.0 (57.2) |
11.3 (52.3) |
9.1 (48.4) |
8.2 (46.8) |
9.2 (48.6) |
11.2 (52.2) |
12.9 (55.2) |
15.1 (59.2) |
17.3 (63.1) |
13.5 (56.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 12.4 (54.3) |
12.8 (55.0) |
11.0 (51.8) |
8.5 (47.3) |
6.3 (43.3) |
4.6 (40.3) |
3.3 (37.9) |
4.3 (39.7) |
6.3 (43.3) |
7.8 (46.0) |
9.6 (49.3) |
11.5 (52.7) |
8.2 (46.7) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 98.3 (3.87) |
74.9 (2.95) |
105.9 (4.17) |
85.6 (3.37) |
98.3 (3.87) |
121.6 (4.79) |
118.8 (4.68) |
163.0 (6.42) |
100.9 (3.97) |
126.6 (4.98) |
106.8 (4.20) |
117.7 (4.63) |
1,318.4 (51.9) |
| Source: NIWA[18] | |||||||||||||
References
[edit]- â "2025 Triennial Elections Declaration of Result" (PDF). Electionz. Retrieved 20 October 2025.
- â "TaupÅ - Preliminary Count". Electoral Commission. 7 November 2026. Retrieved 10 November 2026.
- â "Te Tai HauÄuru - Preliminary Count". Electoral Commission. 7 November 2026. Retrieved 10 November 2026.
- 1 2 "Stats NZ Geographic Data Service". Urban Rural 2023 (generalised). Retrieved 2 May 2025.
- 1 2 "Subnational population estimates - Aotearoa Data Explorer". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 29 October 2025.
- â "Arapuni". Mighty River Power. Archived from the original on 16 May 2008.
- â "1000 MÄori place names". New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage. 6 August 2019.
- â "Local and General. Putaruru Press". 3 April 1924.
- â "List of P.O. closings and modifications". The Press. 16 October 1987. Retrieved 13 October 2024 â via paperspast.natlib.govt.nz.
- â "Post Office [Relocated]". www.heritage.org.nz. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
- â "Te KÄhui MÄngai directory". tkm.govt.nz. Te Puni KÅkiri.
- â "MÄori Maps". maorimaps.com. Te Potiki National Trust.
- â "Marae Announcements" (Excel). growregions.govt.nz. Provincial Growth Fund. 9 October 2020.
- â "Geographic Boundary Viewer". Stats NZ. Urban Rural â 2023 and Statistical Area 2 â 2023.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ â Tatauranga Aotearoa â Aotearoa Data Explorer. Arapuni (1196). Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- â "Statistical area 1 dataset for 2018 Census". Statistics New Zealand. March 2020. 7013058 and 7013059.
- â "Totals by topic for dwellings, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ â Tatauranga Aotearoa â Aotearoa Data Explorer. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- â "CliFlo â National Climate Database : Arapuni Power Stn". NIWA. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
