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Omihi
Locality
Omihi Hall
Coordinates: 43°01′S 172°51′E / 43.017°S 172.850°E / -43.017; 172.850
Country	New Zealand
Region	Canterbury
Territorial authority	Hurunui District
Ward	East Ward
Electorates	Kaikōura Te Tai Tonga
Government
• Territorial Authority	Hurunui District Council
• Regional council	Environment Canterbury
• Mayor of Hurunui	Marie Black
• Kaikoura MP	Stuart Smith
• Te Tai Tonga MP	Tākuta Ferris
Time zone	UTC+12 (New Zealand Standard Time)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+13 (New Zealand Daylight Time)

Omihi or Ōmihi is a rural community in the Hurunui District of the Canterbury Region, on New Zealand's South Island. It is located 21km north-east of Amberley.

Translated from Māori, it means place of (Ō) greeting, wailing or lamentation (mihi).

European settlers began farming the area in the late 19th century.

The Omihi settlement includes a school and a community hall, which is used for a range of functions.

The settlement has a war memorial obelisk, featuring the names of ten local men who died in World War I and five local men who died in World War II.

Demographics

The Omihi statistical area, which also includes Waipara and Greta Valley, covers 717.90 km (277.18 sq mi). It had an estimated population of 1,320 as of June 2024, with a population density of 1.8 people per km.

Omihi had a population of 1,242 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 45 people (3.8%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 48 people (4.0%) since the 2006 census. There were 486 households, comprising 660 males and 579 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.14 males per female. The median age was 45.6 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 231 people (18.6%) aged under 15 years, 162 (13.0%) aged 15 to 29, 639 (51.4%) aged 30 to 64, and 207 (16.7%) aged 65 or older.

Ethnicities were 95.2% European/Pākehā, 8.9% Māori, 0.7% Pasifika, 1.0% Asian, and 1.9% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.

The percentage of people born overseas was 10.6, compared with 27.1% nationally.

Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 57.7% had no religion, 32.6% were Christian, 0.2% had Māori religious beliefs, 0.2% were Hindu, 0.2% were Buddhist and 1.0% had other religions.

Of those at least 15 years old, 162 (16.0%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 210 (20.8%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $31,000, compared with $31,800 nationally. 141 people (13.9%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 561 (55.5%) people were employed full-time, 189 (18.7%) were part-time, and 18 (1.8%) were unemployed.

Education

Omihi School is a co-educational state primary school for Year 1 to 8 students, with a roll of 45 as of August 2024.

The school was founded in 1900 with a roll of 31 and one classroom. The school was expanded between 1906 and 1911, and moved to a new position on the same site in 1948. It currently has two classrooms, an office block, a school house, a library and a swimming pool.

References

1. ^ "Omihi". nzhistory.govt.nz. Ministry for Culture and Heritage.
2. ^ "Omihi School Official School Website". omihi.school.nz.
3. "Omihi Community Hall". omihihall.co.nz. Omihi Community Hall.
4. Clark, Aaron (2005). "Omihi war memorial". nzhistory.govt.nz. Ministry for Culture and Heritage.
5. "ArcGIS Web Application". statsnz.maps.arcgis.com. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
6. "Aotearoa Data Explorer". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 26 October 2024.
7. ^ "Statistical area 1 dataset for 2018 Census". Statistics New Zealand. March 2020. Omihi (312700). 2018 Census place summary: Omihi
8. "Omihi School Ministry of Education School Profile". educationcounts.govt.nz. Ministry of Education.
9. "Omihi School Education Review Office Report". ero.govt.nz. Education Review Office.

• Populated places in the Canterbury Region
• Hurunui District