Population
Manawatū: an average region?
In 2001 Manawatū (including Palmerston North) had a population of just on 100,000. The 2001 census revealed an extraordinarily ‘ordinary’ Manawatū. On most indicators – age distribution, median income, income distribution, family type, household size, household spending – it conformed exactly to the New Zealand average. This was particularly marked for Manawatū district (rural areas plus Feilding).
The only variations were in ethnicity (notably European, with small Pacific and Asian populations) and slower population growth. When Palmerston North was taken into account, the proportion of Pacific peoples remained relatively low, but that of Asians was closer to the national average.
Palmerston North, like the entire Manawatū district, did not grow between 1996 and 2001, while New Zealand as a whole did.
Horowhenua
Horowhenua includes Levin, Foxton and Shannon. Compared to the nation as a whole, the people were older and there were more Māori: one-fifth claimed Māori identity in 2001. More of the population were out of work than in Manawatū or New Zealand as a whole. People were earning significantly less than the average wage, and had less disposable income.
Population change
In 1879, around 2,000 people were living in Manawatū and Horowhenua. About half were Māori, but by 1881 there was a growing non-Māori population – just under 9,000. By 1921 this had swelled to just over 46,000. Fewer than 1,500 were Māori.
Between 1921 and 1961 the population almost doubled, to nearly 88,000. Only about one-quarter lived in rural areas. The Māori population had picked up, but the numbers were small and unevenly distributed. There were larger groups in Horowhenua and Palmerston North than in rural Manawatū.
Between 1961 and 2001 the population grew to 129,000, but this mostly happened before 1976. In 1996–2001, numbers stayed the same.
