Kakanui

According to Ngai Tahu the name is a corruption of . ==Geography==

Kakanui is split into two halves by the Kakanui River. Kakanui is located approximately south of Oamaru. The soil around Kakanui is fertile and supports the growing of several crops. Kakanui is part of the Otepopo district, which includes Herbert, Maheno, and Hampden. ==History==

Kakanui was purchased as part of the Canterbury block. Walter Mantell visited Kakanui on 7 November 1848 and recorded 12 Maori living at Cats Eye Point. Mantell recorded of land to be set aside as a native reserve, but in 1853 the Crown disestablished the reserve and extended the Moeraki reserve by 75 acres in exchange. The first settler in the area was Charles Eberhard Suisted. Suisted had a run that extended from the Waianakarua River to the Awamoa River. In 1861 Suisted's land was surveyed and subdivided into hundreds. In 1905 Kakanui had a post office, a Presbyterian church, hotel, school, meatworks, and fellmongery. In the 1920s holiday homes started to crop up and Kakanui continues to be a popular holiday retreat. ==Demographics==

Kakanui has 24% of its residents working in agriculture and fisheries compared to 43% in neighbouring Maheno, with a large proportion of retirees and holiday homes. Kakanui had 100 residents in 1870, 11 years later this had grown to 500. It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2. It is part of the larger Maheno statistical area. Kakanui had a population of 402 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 63 people (18.6%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 27 people (7.2%) since the 2006 census. There were 177 households, comprising 198 males and 204 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.97 males per female, with 72 people (17.9%) aged under 15 years, 33 (8.2%) aged 15 to 29, 186 (46.3%) aged 30 to 64, and 102 (25.4%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 92.5% European/Pākehā, 9.0% Māori, 2.2% Pasifika, 1.5% Asian, and 3.0% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 59.0% had no religion, 29.9% were Christian, 0.7% were Buddhist and 3.0% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 72 (21.8%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 66 (20.0%) people had no formal qualifications. 33 people (10.0%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 141 (42.7%) people were employed full-time, 54 (16.4%) were part-time, and 6 (1.8%) were unemployed. ==Further reading==