Kaiwhaiki

Kaiwhaiki is a settlement 18 kilometres (11 mi) upriver from Whanganui, New Zealand.

Looking down upon the Whanganui River, a paddle steamer ferry, and the town of Kaiwhaiki, c. 1910. Photograph taken by William Archer Price.

Kaiwhaiki in the 1840s was a small pā of a two to three dozen people.^[1] In Ronaldson's 1847 survey, the inhabitants were noted as being of the hapū Ngāti Rongomaitawhiri.^[2][1] In 1852 Kaiwhaiki became the first settlement on the Whanganui River to host a Catholic mission.^[3] By the early 1860s, it was described as a "large pa" and its population were mostly Kingites, opposed to the colonial government.^[1]

Kaiwhaiki is the home of the Ngā Paerangi hapū of the iwi Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi;^[3] their unique twin-gabled wharenui Te Kiritahi was built in 1912.^[4][5] It was the birthplace of composer and choirmaster Morvin Simon, who led the nationally known Kaiwhaiki-based kapa haka group Te Matapihi.

A quarry near Kaiwhaiki supplied the shellrock used to build the Durie Hill war memorial tower in Whanganui.^[3]

Marae

Kaiwhaiki currently has three marae:

• Kaiwhaiki Marae and Te Kiritahi or Rongotepoi meeting house are affiliated with Ngā Paerangi
• Rākato Marae and Rākato meeting house are affiliated with Ngāti Hine o Te Rā
• Whangaehu Marae and its Rangitahuahua meeting house are affiliated with Ngāti Apa^[6][7]

In October 2020, the Government committed $377,123 from the Provincial Growth Fund to restore and renovate the Whangaehu Marae, creating 24 jobs.^[8]