Kihikihi, a small town located in the Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand, serves as a satellite community of Te Awamutu, five kilometres to the north, and lies 35 kilometres south of Hamilton. The 2018 New Zealand census recorded a population of 2,319 people The main reason for the large increase since 2013 is the construction of a large number of new dwellings. The town's outer rim has merged with the expanding rim of Te Awamutu, rendering the boundary between the two towns difficult to perceive. Kihikihi is a Māori-language word meaning "cicada"; the name imitates the sound made by the insect. A large statue of a cicada stands at the northern entrance to the town. Kihikihi's multi-purpose sports domain hosts national and international equestrian events such as the FEI Eventing World Cup. The town is also home to the historic Kihikihi Polo Club, founded in 1892 by the Kay family.
Demographics
Kihikihi Central had a population of 2,319 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 297 people since the 2013 census, and an increase of 321 people since the 2006 census. There were 819 households. There were 1,158 males and 1,164 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.99 males per female. Of the total population, 489 people were aged up to 15 years, 468 were 15 to 29, 1,026 were 30 to 64, and 333 were 65 or older. Figures may not add up to the total due to rounding. Ethnicities were 75.9% European/Pākehā, 33.2% Māori, 2.8% Pacific peoples, 3.1% Asian, and 1.6% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 13.6, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people objected to giving their religion, 53.0% had no religion, 30.8% were Christian, and 6.2% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 201 people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 474 people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $29,400. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 966 people were employed full-time, 240 were part-time, and 87 were unemployed.
People
died in the Star Hotel and is buried in the Kihikihi Cemetery near the Kihikihi Primary school. He was one of the first to survey the routes of today's railways in both the North and South Islands. A reserve in Kihikhi commemorates the name of John Rochford. Rewi Maniapoto lived in Kihikihi, on the site of the Rewi Maniapoto Reserve and the memorial. Kihikihi stood at the core of the productive farm-lands that Maori developed in the 1850s with the help of CMS missionaries. The district supplied food to new settlers in Auckland for a brief period. The area became the heartland of anti-government Maori in 1863, during the New Zealand Wars.
Kihikihi School is a co-educational state primary school for Year 1 to 6 students, with a roll of as of Puahue School, another co-educational state primary school for Year 1 to 6 students, is located east of the township; it has a roll of .
