{{Short description|Town in Coromandel Peninsula, New Zealand}} {{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}} {{Use New Zealand English|date=July 2019}} {{Infobox settlement | name = Pauanui | image_skyline = New.zealand pauanui.jpg | image_caption = View of Pauanui from the top of Mount Paku | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = [[New Zealand]] | subdivision_type1 = Region | subdivision_name1 = [[Waikato]] | subdivision_type2 = District | subdivision_name2 = [[Thames-Coromandel District]] | subdivision_type3 = Ward | subdivision_name3 = South Eastern ward | subdivision_type4 = Community Board | subdivision_name4 = Tairua-Pāuanui Community | leader_title = Council | leader_name = [[Thames-Coromandel District Council]] | leader_title1 = Regional council | leader_name1 = [[Waikato Regional Council]] | leader_title2 = [[Mayor of Thames-Coromandel]] | leader_name2 = {{NZ officeholder data|Thames-Coromandel District Mayor|y}} | leader_title3 = [[Coromandel (New Zealand electorate)|Coromandel MP]] | leader_name3 = {{NZ officeholder data|Coromandel MP|y}} | leader_title4 = [[Hauraki-Waikato|Hauraki-Waikato MP]] | leader_name4 = {{NZ officeholder data|Hauraki-Waikato MP|y}} | seat_type = Electorates | seat = {{ubl|[[Coromandel (New Zealand electorate)|Coromandel]]|[[Hauraki-Waikato]] (Māori)}} | area_footnotes = <ref name="Area"/> | area_total_km2 = 9.75 | population_footnotes = {{NZ population data 2018||||y}} | population_total = {{NZ population data 2018|Pauanui|y}} | population_as_of = {{NZ population data 2018|||y}} | population_density_km2 = auto | mapframe = yes | mapframe-zoom = 11 | coordinates = {{coord|37|1|5|S|175|51|45|E|region:NZ|display=it}} }}
The town of '''Pauanui''' ({{langx|mi|Pāuanui}}, meaning "big [[pāua]]")<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/maori-language-week/1000-maori-place-names|title=1000 Māori place names|publisher=New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage|date=6 August 2019}}</ref> is on the east coast of the [[Coromandel Peninsula]] in the [[North Island]] of [[New Zealand]]. It lies at the mouth of the [[Tairua River]] on its south bank, directly opposite the larger town of [[Tairua]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Reed New Zealand Atlas|year=2004|isbn=0-7900-0952-8|editor=Peter Dowling |publisher=Reed Books|pages=map 17}}</ref>
The two settlements are 30 kilometres east of [[Thames, New Zealand|Thames]]. Several islands lie off the mouth of the river, notably [[Slipper Island]] to the southeast and the [[Aldermen Islands]] 20 kilometres to the East.
The area is a popular holiday destination, with an estimated summer holidaymaker population of over 15,000. Pauanui is known as New Zealand's holiday destination for the elite and wealthy. It is approximately a one-hour 50-minute drive from [[Auckland]], New Zealand's most populous city.
The settlement has an airstrip used by recreational light-aircraft pilots and is noted for [[game fishing]], [[Underwater diving|diving]], [[surfing]] and its excellent beach.
The area was developed in the late 1960s with a focus on families and included features that were first of their kind in New Zealand, such as red-coloured roads to improve the visibility of pedestrians.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tcdc.govt.nz/Our-Services/Airfields/Pauanui-Airfield-NZUN/|title=Pauanui Airfield (NZUN) - About Pauanui|publisher=Thames Coromandel District Council|accessdate=23 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210621121248/https://tcdc.govt.nz/Our-Services/Airfields/Pauanui-Airfield-NZUN/|archive-date=21 June 2021}}</ref>
==Demographics== Pauanui covers {{Convert|9.75|km2||abbr=on}}<ref name="Area">{{Cite web|title=Stats NZ Geographic Data Service|url=https://datafinder.stats.govt.nz/data/|at=Urban Rural 2023 (generalised)|access-date=3 March 2025}}</ref> and had an estimated population of {{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Pauanui|y}} as of {{NZ population data 2023 SA2|||y|y||,}} with a population density of {{Decimals|{{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Pauanui|y}}|R}}/9.75|0}} people per km<sup>2</sup>.
{{Historical populations|2006|801|2013|825|2018|1,005|2023|1,068|percentages=pagr|align=left|source=<ref name="Census 2018">{{NZ census 2018|Pauanui (168200)|pauanui|Pauanui}}</ref><ref name="Census 2023"/>}} [[File:Pauanui Airfield Right Within The Village 01.jpg|thumb|The Pauanui airfield, with aircraft parked almost in the backyards of properties.]] Pauanui had a population of 1,068 in the [[2023 New Zealand census]], an increase of 63 people (6.3%) since the [[2018 New Zealand census|2018 census]], and an increase of 243 people (29.5%) since the [[2013 New Zealand census|2013 census]]. There were 519 males, 537 females and 9 people of [[non-binary gender|other genders]] in 486 dwellings.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://explore.data.stats.govt.nz/vis?fs[0]=2023%20Census%2C0%7CTotals%20by%20topic%23CAT_TOTALS_BY_TOPIC%23&pg=0&fc=Variable%20codes&bp=true&snb=9&df[ds]=ds-nsiws-disseminate&df[id]=CEN23_TBT_005&df[ag]=STATSNZ&df[vs]=1.0&dq=doTotal%2Bdo1.1144.2023&ly[rw]=CEN23_TBT_DWD_003|publisher=Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer|access-date=3 October 2024|title=Totals by topic for dwellings, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses}}</ref> 1.7% of people identified as [[LGBTQ|LGBTIQ+]]. The median age was 61.8 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 96 people (9.0%) aged under 15 years, 102 (9.6%) aged 15 to 29, 390 (36.5%) aged 30 to 64, and 483 (45.2%) aged 65 or older.<ref name="Census 2023"/>
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 94.9% [[European New Zealanders|European]] ([[Pākehā]]); 6.7% [[Māori people|Māori]]; 0.3% [[Pasifika New Zealanders|Pasifika]]; 3.9% [[Asian New Zealanders|Asian]]; 0.6% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 1.7% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 98.9%, Māori language by 1.7%, and other languages by 5.6%. No language could be spoken by 0.8% (e.g. too young to talk). [[New Zealand Sign Language]] was known by 0.3%. The percentage of people born overseas was 20.2, compared with 28.8% nationally.<ref name="Census 2023"/>
Religious affiliations were 36.5% [[Christianity in New Zealand|Christian]], 1.4% [[Hinduism in New Zealand|Hindu]], 0.8% [[Buddhism in New Zealand|Buddhist]], 0.6% [[New Age]], and 0.8% other religions. People who answered that they had [[Irreligion in New Zealand|no religion]] were 53.4%, and 6.5% of people did not answer the census question.<ref name="Census 2023"/>
Of those at least 15 years old, 162 (16.7%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 600 (61.7%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 207 (21.3%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $33,300, compared with $41,500 nationally. 96 people (9.9%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 312 (32.1%) people were employed full-time, 135 (13.9%) were part-time, and 3 (0.3%) were unemployed.<ref name="Census 2023">{{Cite web|url=https://explore.data.stats.govt.nz/vis?fs[0]=2023%20Census%2C0%7CTotals%20by%20topic%23CAT_TOTALS_BY_TOPIC%23&pg=0&fc=Variable%20codes&bp=true&snb=9&df[ds]=ds-nsiws-disseminate&df[id]=CEN23_TBT_008&df[ag]=STATSNZ&df[vs]=1.0&dq=hq011%2Bhq010%2Bhq009%2Bhq008%2Bhq007%2Bhq006%2Bhq005%2Bhq004%2Bhq003%2Bhq002%2Bhq001%2Bhq000%2Bws1%2Bsp99%2Bra80%2Bra08%2Bra07%2Bra06%2Bra05%2Bra01%2Bra04%2Bra03%2Bra02%2Bra00%2Brb1%2Bls66%2Bls03%2Bls02%2Bls05%2Bls04%2Bls01%2Beg6%2Beg5%2Beg4%2Beg3%2Beg2%2Beg1%2BbiTotal%2Bbi0%2Bbi1%2BasTotalLG%2Bas4%2Bas3%2Bas2%2Bas1%2Bws4%2Bws3%2Bws2%2Bge3%2Bge2%2Bge1%2Brc%2BasMed%2BegTotal%2BlsTotal%2BgeTotal%2BrbTotal%2BraTotal%2BhqTotal%2BibTotal%2Bib7%2Bibmed%2BwsTotal.1144.2013%2B2018%2B2023&to[TIME]=false&ly[rw]=CEN23_TBT_IND_003&ly[cl]=CEN23_YEAR_001|publisher=Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer|access-date=3 October 2024|title=Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses|at=Pāuanui (1144)}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
== External links == * [http://www.topomap.co.nz/NZTopoMap/nz8312/Pauanui/Waikato 1:50,000 map]
{{Wikivoyage}}
{{Thames-Coromandel District}} {{Authority control}}
[[Category:Thames-Coromandel District]] [[Category:Populated places in Waikato]]