Auckland isthmus

The Auckland isthmus, also known as the Tāmaki isthmus, is a narrow stretch of land on the North Island of New Zealand in the Auckland Region, and the location of the central suburbs of the city of Auckland, including the CBD. The isthmus is located between two rias (drowned river valleys): the Waitematā Harbour to the north, which opens to the Hauraki Gulf / Tīkapa Moana and Pacific Ocean, and the Manukau Harbour to the south, which opens to the Tasman Sea. The isthmus is the most southern section of the Northland Peninsula. The Auckland isthmus is bound on the eastern side by the Tāmaki River and by the Whau River on the west; two tidal estuaries of the Waitematā Harbour. These were used as portages by early Māori migration canoes and Tāmaki Māori to cross the isthmus (the Tāmaki River crossing known as Te Tō Waka, and the Whau River as Te Tōangawaka). Through early European settler history, canals were variously considered at either portage, however by the 1910s these projects were abandoned. The isthmus was the centre of the Waiohua confederation of iwi in the 17th and early 18th centuries, who centred life around elaborate fortified pā of Maungawhau / Mount Eden and Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill. After the defeat of paramount chief Kiwi Tāmaki circa 1740, the isthmus became the rohe of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei. In 1840, European settlers established the town of Auckland on the Waitematā Harbour, followed shortly after by the fencible towns of Onehunga, Ōtāhuhu and Panmure. The city developed outwards from the Port of Auckland, and by the mid-20th century the isthmus was almost completely urbanised. Originally organised as a variety of fractured land boards, boroughs and cities, the entire isthmus was amalgamated into a single local authority called Auckland City during the 1989 New Zealand local government reforms, which lasted until the 2010 unification of all local government in the Auckland Region to create the Auckland Council.

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Related concepts (2)

Auckland

Auckland (ˈɔːklənd ; Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region—the area governed by Auckland Council—which includes outlying rural areas and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf, and which has a total population of .

Auckland Region

Auckland (Tāmaki Makaurau) is one of the sixteen regions of New Zealand, which takes its name from the eponymous urban area. The region encompasses the Auckland Metropolitan Area, smaller towns, rural areas, and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf. Containing percent of the nation's residents, it has by far the largest population and economy of any region of New Zealand, but the second-smallest land area. On 1 November 2010, the Auckland region became a unitary authority administered by the Auckland Council, replacing the previous regional council and seven local councils.