Māngere | |
|---|---|
 Massey Homestead, the former residence of William Massey prime minister of New Zealand and notable resident of Māngere | |
 Interactive map of Māngere | |
| Coordinates:36°58′S174°48′E / 36.967°S 174.800°E /-36.967; 174.800 | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| City | Auckland |
| Local authority | Auckland Council |
| Electoral ward | Manukau ward |
| Local board | Māngere-Ōtāhuhu Local Board |
| Area | |
| • Land | 3,210 ha (7,900 acres) |
| Population (June 2025)[2] | |
• Total | 23,310 |
| • Density | 726/km2 (1,880/sq mi) |
| Postcode | 2022 |
| Airports | Auckland Airport |
| Māngere Bridge | Favona | Māngere East |
| (Puketutu Island) |   Māngere  | Māngere East |
| Airport Oaks | (Manukau Harbour) | Wiri |
Māngere (Māori pronunciation:[ˈmaːŋɛɾɛ]) is a major suburb inSouth Auckland,New Zealand, located on mainly flat land on the northeastern shore of theManukau Harbour, to the northwest ofManukau City Centre and 15 kilometres (9.3 miles) south of theAuckland city centre. It is the location ofAuckland Airport, which lies close to the harbour's edge to the south of the suburb.
The area has been inhabited byTāmaki Māori since early periods of Māori history, including large-scale agricultural stonefields, such asIhumātao, andMāngere Mountain, which was home to a fortifiedpā.Te Ākitai Waiohua communities in Māngere thrived in the 1840s and 1850s after the establishment of aWesleyan Mission and extensive wheat farms, until theInvasion of the Waikato in 1863. Māngere remained a rural community until the mid-20th Century, when Māngere became one of the largest state housing developments in Auckland.
The name Māngere is a shortened form of theMāori language name Ngā Hau Māngere, a name given to the area by Taikehu, one of therangatira of theTainui canoe, referring to the gentle breezes in the area.[3][4] The spelling of the area was inconsistent in English in the 19th century, with Māngere variously spelt Mangere, Mangerei or Mangare.[5] The spelling Mangere became more consistently used after 1897, when the post office began using this spelling.[6] In 2019, the name of the suburb was officially gazetted as Māngere, with amacron.[7]
Central Māngere was traditionally known by the name Taotaoroa, or "The Extensive Plains".[3]
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Māngere is a peninsula of theManukau Harbour, south of theAuckland isthmus. Many features of theAuckland volcanic field can be found around Māngere, most visiblyMāngere Mountain, an 106-metre volcanic cone to the north-west.[8] The oldest known feature is theBoggust Park Crater, which erupted an estimated 130,000 years ago,[9] while the most recent feature isWaitomokia, which erupted around 20,300 years before the present.[10] The low-lying volcanic features of the area, such as theMāngere Lagoon,Crater Hill, andPukaki Lagoon were collectively known by the name Nga Tapuwae a Mataoho ("The Sacred Footprints ofMataoho") toTāmaki Māori peoples, referring to the deity who was involved in their creation.[11][12]
A number of waterways are found in the area, including the Tararata Creek andHarania Creek which drain into theMāngere Inlet in the north,[13] andPukaki Creek and Waokauri Creek in the south.[14]
| Climate data for Mangere (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1959–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 29.7 (85.5) | 30.5 (86.9) | 28.1 (82.6) | 26.7 (80.1) | 24.5 (76.1) | 21.7 (71.1) | 19.2 (66.6) | 21.3 (70.3) | 22.8 (73.0) | 23.5 (74.3) | 26.8 (80.2) | 27.9 (82.2) | 30.5 (86.9) |
| Mean maximum °C (°F) | 27.3 (81.1) | 27.4 (81.3) | 26.0 (78.8) | 24.2 (75.6) | 21.3 (70.3) | 18.6 (65.5) | 17.6 (63.7) | 18.3 (64.9) | 19.4 (66.9) | 21.3 (70.3) | 23.4 (74.1) | 25.6 (78.1) | 27.7 (81.9) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 23.6 (74.5) | 24.3 (75.7) | 22.7 (72.9) | 20.5 (68.9) | 17.8 (64.0) | 15.5 (59.9) | 14.7 (58.5) | 15.2 (59.4) | 16.4 (61.5) | 17.7 (63.9) | 19.5 (67.1) | 21.8 (71.2) | 19.1 (66.5) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 19.9 (67.8) | 20.4 (68.7) | 18.7 (65.7) | 16.6 (61.9) | 14.2 (57.6) | 12.1 (53.8) | 11.1 (52.0) | 11.8 (53.2) | 13.0 (55.4) | 14.4 (57.9) | 16.1 (61.0) | 18.4 (65.1) | 15.6 (60.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 16.1 (61.0) | 16.5 (61.7) | 14.8 (58.6) | 12.7 (54.9) | 10.5 (50.9) | 8.7 (47.7) | 7.5 (45.5) | 8.3 (46.9) | 9.6 (49.3) | 11.0 (51.8) | 12.7 (54.9) | 14.9 (58.8) | 11.9 (53.5) |
| Mean minimum °C (°F) | 10.8 (51.4) | 11.4 (52.5) | 9.5 (49.1) | 6.4 (43.5) | 4.0 (39.2) | 1.9 (35.4) | 1.0 (33.8) | 2.6 (36.7) | 3.8 (38.8) | 5.8 (42.4) | 7.8 (46.0) | 10.2 (50.4) | 0.5 (32.9) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 6.8 (44.2) | 4.4 (39.9) | 3.4 (38.1) | 1.7 (35.1) | −0.3 (31.5) | −1.5 (29.3) | −2.2 (28.0) | −2.0 (28.4) | −0.1 (31.8) | 1.9 (35.4) | 3.3 (37.9) | 6.3 (43.3) | −2.2 (28.0) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 55.4 (2.18) | 59.1 (2.33) | 85.4 (3.36) | 91.9 (3.62) | 113.4 (4.46) | 123.7 (4.87) | 136.8 (5.39) | 116.9 (4.60) | 103.8 (4.09) | 81.9 (3.22) | 62.5 (2.46) | 80.3 (3.16) | 1,111.1 (43.74) |
| Source: NIWA[15] | |||||||||||||
The first evidence ofTāmaki Māori in the coastal Māngere area comes from the 14th century, with evidence of the first settlements later in the 15th century.[16] Pukaki Creek formed an important part of theWaokauri / Pūkaki portage, connecting theManukau Harbour andTāmaki River viaPapatoetoe, and was often used by Tāmaki Māori to avoid theTe Tō Waka andKaretu portages, controlled by the people who lived atŌtāhuhu / Mount Richmond.[17] Much of the coastal Manukau Harbour area was farmed using Polynesian stonefield agricultural techniques, such as the Ōtuataua Stonefields atIhumātao.[18]
In the early 18th century, Te Pane o Mataaho / Māngere Mountain was a majorpā for theWaiohua, a confederacy ofTāmaki Māoriiwi.[19] The mountain complex may have been home to thousands of people, with the mountain acting as a central place for rua (food storage pits).[20]: 63 Paramount chiefKiwi Tāmaki stayed at Māngere seasonally, when it was the time of year to hunt sharks in the Manukau Harbour.[21] The southern slopes of Te Pane o Mataaho / Māngere Mountain were known as Taotaoroa, an extensive garden that sat between wetlands, and fed by the waters of three streams: Te Ararata (Tararata Creek), theHarania Creek and the Ōtaki Creek, a tributary of theTāmaki River.[4]
In the early 1740s, Kiwi Tāmaki was slain in battle by theTe Taoūhapū ofNgāti Whātua.[22] After the battle, most Waiohua fled the region, although many of the remaining Waiohua warriors regrouped at Te Pane o Mataaho.[23] The warriors strewpipi shells around the base of the mountain to warn against attacks, but Te Taoū warriors covered the pipi shells with dogskin cloaks to muffle the sound, and raided the pā at dawn. An alternate name for the mountain, Te Ara Pueru ("the dogskin cloak path"), references this event.[23]
After the events of this war,Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, a hapū created by the members of Te Taoū who remained near theTāmaki isthmus, who intermarried with defeated members of Waiohua, settled the region. Originally the iwi were based onMaungakiekie / One Tree Hill, but after the death of paramount chief Tūperiri (circa 1795), the Māngere Bridge area andOnehunga became permanentkāinga (settlements) for Ngāti Whātua. The location was chosen because of the good quality soils for gardening, resources from theManukau Harbour, and the area acting as a junction for surrounding trade routes.[24] Māngere-Onehunga remained the principal residence of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei until the 1840s, before the iwi moved to Ōrākei.[24]
When the Waiohua people began to re-establish themselves in the Tāmaki Makaurau area in the latter 18th century, most settled around theManukau Harbour andSouth Auckland. A majoriwi who formed in the area from these people wasTe Ākitai Waiohua.[25] By the 19th Century, most Tāmaki Māori peoples moved away from fortified pā and favouredkāinga closer to resources and transport routes. A kāinga called Te Ararata was found near modern central Māngere along the banks of the Tararata Creek, and the central Māngere area was used as an area for growing food, medicine and plants for weaving.[3]
In the 1820s and early 1830s, the threat ofNgāpuhi raiders from the north during theMusket Wars caused most of the Tāmaki Makaurau area to become deserted.[24] During this period, a peace accord between Ngāpuhi andWaikato Tainui was reached through the marriage of Matire Toha, daughter of Ngāpuhi chief Rewa was married to Kati Takiwaru, the younger brother of Tainui chiefPōtatau Te Wherowhero, and they settled together on the slopes of Māngere Mountain.[20]: 67 Ngāti Whātua returned to the Māngere-Onehunga area by the mid-1830s,[24] re-establishing a pā on Māngere Mountain called Whakarongo.[26]
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In January 1836 missionaryWilliam Thomas Fairburn brokered a land sale betweenTāmaki Māori chiefs,Pōtatau Te Wherowhero and Turia ofNgāti Te Rau, covering the majority of modern-daySouth Auckland betweenŌtāhuhu andPapakura. The sale was envisioned as a way to end hostilities in the area, but it is unclear what the chiefs understood or consented to. Māori continued to live in South Auckland, unchanged by this sale.[27] Fairburn was criticised for the sheer size of the purchase, and in 1842 theCrown significantly reduced the size of his land holdings,[28] and the Crown partitioned much of the land for European settlers.[27]
On 20 March 1840, Ngāti Whātua chiefApihai Te Kawau signed theTreaty of Waitangi at Orua Bay on the Manukau Harbour,[29] inviting Lieutenant-GovernorWilliam Hobson to settle in Auckland, hoping this would protect the land and people living in Auckland.[30] In the winter of 1840, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei moved the majority of the iwi to theWaitematā Harbour, with most iwi members resettling to theRemuera-Ōrākei area, closer to the new European settlement atWaihorotiu (modern-dayAuckland CBD). A smaller Ngāti Whātua presence remained at Māngere-Onehunga, as well as members ofTe Uringutu,[31][32] and the western banks of the Waokauri Creek were reserved by the Crown as a native settlement in the 1850s, around the Te Ākitai Waiohua kāinga.[25]
In the late 1840s, aWesleyan Mission was established atIhumātao. The area flourished as a farming area primarily for wheat and oat crops, which were processed at a mill at Ihumātao.[5] Until the 1860s, the Māori population of the Manukau Harbour andWaikato areas produced goods to sell or barter at the port ofOnehunga.[33]: 3 During this period, the Māori population of Māngere was significantly larger than the European population.[5]
On 9 July 1863, due to fears of the Māori King Movement, Governor Grey proclaimed that all Māori living in the South Auckland area needed to swear loyalty to the Queen and give up their weapons. Most people refused due to strong links to Tainui, leaving for the south before the Government'sInvasion of the Waikato. Six men remained in the Māngere area, in order to tend to the farms and forahi kā (land rights through continued occupation).[20]: 68 [33]: 4 Lieutenant-ColonelMarmaduke Nixon, who settled on the shores of Pukaki Creek in the 1850s, arrested his neighbour, the Te Ākitai WaiohuarangatiraIhaka Takanini, who later died onRakino Island.[34]
European settlers continued to live in the area, often looting the abandoned settlements.[33]: 4 In 1867, theNative Compensation Court returned 144 of the original 485 acres that had been seized by the crown.[33]: 4 The remaining land was kept by the crown as reserves, or sold on to British immigrant farmers.[33]: 4 [35] Te Ākitai Waiohua began returning to the area in 1866, settling to the west of Pukaki Creek and at Ihumātao.[25]
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In 1862, the first local government was established in the area, with the formation of the Mangerei Highway Board.[5] The first school, Mangere Central School, opened in 1859, and churches were built in central Māngere in 1874 and 1894.[5] Māngere had become known as a wheat-producing area, and by the 1880s became known for dairy farming. In October 1887, Ambury and English Ltd opened a dairy factory in the area, supplying milk from the dairy farms (which includes modern dayAmbury Regional Park, and farms along Wallace Road and Creamery Road)[36] to their stores onKarangahape Road andPonsonby Road. The creamery closed in 1937, and in 1943 operations were sold to theNew Zealand Co-operative Dairy Company.[37][20]: 68 By 1915,Chinese New Zealand market garden were established around Māngere.[5]
The Māngere area was primarily rural for the first half of the 20th century, except for theMāngere Bridge area, where the first suburban housing developed in 1875 after the construction of the firstMāngere Bridge.[38][5]Māngere East began to develop as a suburban area after the opening of theOtahuhu Railway Workshops in the late 1920s.[5] ThePukaki Lagoon was drained and used as a speedway from 1928 untilWorld War II, and by the 1950s Croatian immigrant Andrew Fistonich established the first vineyards in the area, which later grew to becomeVilla Maria Estates.[5]
In the 1950s, Chinese New Zealand gardenersFay Gock andJoe Gock began cultivatingkūmara (sweet potatoes) at their farm beside Pukaki Creek, using plants donated to them by their neighbours at Pūkaki Marae. The Gocks developed a disease-resistant variety of kūmara that became the modern Owairaka Red variety.[39][40]
In 1958, theMangere Aerodrome was chosen by theNew Zealand Government as the site of a new purpose-built airport, to replace theRNZAF Base Auckland atWhenuapai served as the civilian airport for Auckland. TheAuckland Airport opened in 1966.[41] In 1962, central Māngere was chosen as a location for a large-scale state housing development. This followedGlen Innes andŌtara as the third large-scale state housing development in Auckland aimed a low-income families, centred around a retail and community centre.[5] By the 1980s, central Māngere had become one of the more economically deprived areas in New Zealand.[5] By the early 2000s, Māngere had become a multicultural area of Auckland.[42]
In 1997,State Highway 20 (commonly known as the Southwestern Motorway) extended south to Massey Road.[43] The entireWestern Ring Route project, connecting theNorthwestern Motorway to theSouthern Motorway was completed in 2017.[44] In the 2010s, discussions began to create alight rail connection between theAuckland city centre to Māngere.[45]: 18 [46] After the2023 New Zealand general election, plans for light rail to Māngere were placed on hold.[47]
Māngere covers 32.10 km2 (12.39 sq mi)[1] and had an estimated population of 23,310 as of June 2025,[2] with a population density of 726 people per km2.
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 19,560 | — |
| 2013 | 19,866 | +0.22% |
| 2018 | 21,990 | +2.05% |
| 2023 | 21,357 | −0.58% |
| Source:[50][51] | ||
Māngere had a population of 21,357 in the2023 New Zealand census, a decrease of 633 people (−2.9%) since the2018 census, and an increase of 1,491 people (7.5%) since the2013 census. There were 10,485 males, 10,824 females and 51 people ofother genders in 4,794 dwellings.[52] 1.9% of people identified asLGBTIQ+. The median age was 29.3 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 5,202 people (24.4%) aged under 15 years, 5,703 (26.7%) aged 15 to 29, 8,610 (40.3%) aged 30 to 64, and 1,842 (8.6%) aged 65 or older.[51]
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 11.7%European (Pākehā); 17.5%Māori; 66.1%Pasifika; 19.2%Asian; 0.7% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 0.8% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 89.9%, Māori language by 5.0%, Samoan by 20.8%, and other languages by 26.0%. No language could be spoken by 2.9% (e.g. too young to talk).New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.5%. The percentage of people born overseas was 39.8, compared with 28.8% nationally.[51]
Religious affiliations were 60.0%Christian, 5.0%Hindu, 8.0%Islam, 1.9%Māori religious beliefs, 0.9%Buddhist, 0.1%New Age, and 0.7% other religions. People who answered that they hadno religion were 17.1%, and 6.7% of people did not answer the census question.[51]
Of those at least 15 years old, 1,830 (11.3%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 8,043 (49.8%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 6,276 (38.8%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $33,500, compared with $41,500 nationally. 639 people (4.0%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 7,818 (48.4%) people were employed full-time, 1,314 (8.1%) were part-time, and 900 (5.6%) were unemployed.[51]
| Name | Area (km2) | Population | Density (per km2) | Dwellings | Median age | Median income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auckland Airport | 23.05 | 528 | 23 | 156 | 30.7 years | $40,600[53] |
| Māngere North | 0.93 | 2,829 | 3,042 | 732 | 28.5 years | $35,800[54] |
| Māngere West | 0.73 | 3,495 | 4,788 | 708 | 27.7 years | $29,800[55] |
| Māngere Central | 1.45 | 3,564 | 2,458 | 813 | 28.3 years | $32,700[56] |
| Māngere South | 0.83 | 3,606 | 4,345 | 777 | 28.8 years | $31,500[57] |
| Māngere Mascot | 0.78 | 3,621 | 4,642 | 765 | 31.0 years | $30,900[58] |
| Māngere South East | 4.33 | 3,714 | 858 | 843 | 31.1 years | $38,200[59] |
| New Zealand | 38.1 years | $41,500 |
The first local government in the area was the Mangerei Highway Board, which formed in 1862.[5] It dissolved in 1919 and became administered directly by theManukau County Council.[60] In 1965, the area became a part of theManukau City,[5] In November 2010, all cities and districts of the Auckland Region were amalgamated into a single body, governed by theAuckland Council.[61]
Māngere is a part of theMāngere-Ōtāhuhu local board area. The residents of Māngere elect members of theMāngere-Ōtāhuhu Local Board, as well as two councillors from theManukau ward to sit on theAuckland Council.
TheMāngere Arts Centre Ngā Tohu o Uenuku is an Auckland Council owned and operated performing arts venue and gallery space.
TheMangere East Hawksrugby league club is based in Māngere at the Walter Massey Park.
TheManukau Rovers RFCrugby union club is also based in Māngere and competes in the Auckland Premier Competition.
TheMangere Unitedfootball club is also based in Māngere and competes in the Auckland Football and NZ Football National League Competitions.
Māngere has threemarae:[62][63]
Māngere College is a secondary school (years 9–13) with a roll of 732 students.[64]
Sir Douglas Bader Intermediate School is an intermediate school (years 7–8) with a roll of 260 students.[65]
Mangere Central School and Viscount School are full primary schools (years 1–8) with rolls of 477 and 499 students, respectively.[66][67]
Jean Batten School and Nga Iwi School are contributing primary schools (years 1–6) with rolls of 264 and 357 students, respectively.[68][69]
Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Māngere is a Māori-language area school (years 1–13) with a roll of 329 students.[70]
Al-Madinah School is an area school (years 1–13) and Zayed College for Girls is a secondary school (years 7–13) with rolls of 579 and 185 students, respectively.[71][72] They are state-integrated Islamic schools on adjacent sites.
All these schools except for Zayed College are coeducational. Rolls are as of October 2025.[73]
