| Tauranga Taupō | |
| Settlement Type: | Rural settlement |
| Coordinates: | -38.9109°N 175.9036°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | New Zealand |
| Subdivision Type1: | Region |
| Subdivision Name1: | Waikato region |
| Subdivision Type2: | District |
| Subdivision Name2: | Taupō District |
| Subdivision Type3: | Ward |
| Subdivision Name3: | Turangi-Tongariro Ward |
| Subdivision Type4: | Community |
| Subdivision Name4: | Turangi-Tongariro Community |
| Leader Title: | Territorial Authority |
| Leader Name: | Taupō District Council |
| Leader Title1: | Regional council |
| Leader Name1: | Waikato Regional Council |
| Seat Type: | Electorates |
| Area Total Km2: | 2.75 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
Tauranga Taupō is a semi-rural area located at the mouth of Tauranga Taupō River, on the southern shores of Lake Taupō in New Zealand's North Island.
The area includes three contiguous settlements: Oruatua, near the mouth of the Tauranga Taupō River. [1] Te Rangiita or Rangiita,[2] and Waitetoko or Waitetoko Beach.[3] These settlements are located southwest to northeast on State Highway 1.
The closest towns are Tūrangi which is 13km south of Te Rangiita and Taupō, which is 37km northwest .
The shores of Lake Taupō were first inhabited by Ngāti Hotu during the fourteenth century. Māori legends speak about explorers Tia and Ngātoro-i-rangi, who competed to claim land along the shores of Lake Taupō[4] and passed through Tauranga Taupō. The children of Ngātoro-i-rangi's descendant Tūwharetoa[5] came to the Taupō District and created the iwi Ngāti Tūwharetoa. A descendant of Tūwharetoa named Te Rangi-ita and his son Tama-mutu became important figures in the iwi around the seventeenth century.[6] They were warrior chiefs who established territories in the Taupō District and established the Ngāti Te Rangi-ita hapū in the Tauranga Taupō area.[7]
Europeans began arriving to the Taupō area in the early nineteenth century.[8] The first road along the south eastern side of the lake was built in 1883. 1924 saw the construction of the Tauranga-Taupō bridge completing the road from Taupō to Tokaanu.[9] This would later become State Highway One.
The local Waitetoko Marae is a marae for the local Ngāti Tūwharetoa hapū of Ngāti Te Rangiita.[10] It includes Te Kapua Whakapipi meeting house.[11]
Statistics New Zealand describes Oruatua-Te Rangiita-Waitetoko as a rural settlement, which covers 2.75km2[12] and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2. The settlement is part of the larger Lake Taupo Bays statistical area.
Oruatua-Te Rangiita-Waitetoko had a population of 162 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 15 people (10.2%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 15 people (10.2%) since the 2006 census. There were 69 households, comprising 81 males and 81 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.0 males per female. The median age was 53.3 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 24 people (14.8%) aged under 15 years, 24 (14.8%) aged 15 to 29, 75 (46.3%) aged 30 to 64, and 39 (24.1%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 75.9% European/Pākehā, 31.5% Māori, 3.7% Pacific peoples, 1.9% Asian, and 3.7% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.
Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 53.7% had no religion, 35.2% were Christian, 1.9% had Māori religious beliefs and 1.9% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 15 (10.9%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 24 (17.4%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $24,900, compared with $31,800 nationally. 15 people (10.9%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 54 (39.1%) people were employed full-time, 24 (17.4%) were part-time, and 6 (4.3%) were unemployed.