Canterbury, New Zealand · Oceania
Opawa sits on the route in New Zealand.
Opawa is a town located in Canterbury, New Zealand. With a population of 1,330, it is an important destination in Oceania.
On a road trip, Opawa sits in New Zealand, where you drive on the left. It's in the Pacific/Auckland time zone. Below you'll find where to stay, things to do nearby, and everything you need to add Opawa to your route.
Opawa (; Māori: Ōpāwaho) is an inner residential suburb of Christchurch, New Zealand. It is located approximately 3.5 kilometres (2.2 miles) south-east of the city centre. Prior to European settlement, much of the area consisted of marshlands and mixed-use vegetation. By the 1850s, the area was sparsely populated byRead more
settlers and became a dairying locality, with many of the early settlers being farmers and people of English descent. Opawa had little development in its early years as it transitioned into a residential suburb.
An early sign of an emerging European community in the area was the arrival of Rev. William Willock, an early settler area who built a cottage titled "Opawaha Cottage", a reference to the Māori name of the area. Another early European settler, Joshua Strange Williams, abbreviated his property as "Opawa Farm". Opawa, eventually became the recognised name for the area. As Woolston emerged as an industrial hub nearby, Opawa was heavily urbanised. This transformed it into an upscale residential area with a population largely consisting of factory workers and businesspeople. Opawa and its neighbouring suburb of Hillsborough were also formerly home to multiple brickmaking and clay related-industries. Though the suburb is predominantly residential at present time, and lies mostly within a U-shaped bend of the Ōpāwaho / Heathcote River. Opawa was amalgamated in to the Greater-Christchurch city area in October 1916.
At a national level, the suburb is part of the Christchurch Central parliamentary electorate. Locally, it is part of the Heathcote Ward for local body elections. The suburb contains three primary schools and two kindergartens. The suburb hosts two local sports clubs; the Opawa Bowling Club and the Opawa Lawn Tennis Club. Additional sporting amenities are located in Hansen Park which accommodates two rugby fields, two football fields and the clubrooms of a local athletics club.
Its population largely consists of European New Zealanders, and contains numerous landmarks known for their connection with the early settlers in the area. Notable individuals associated with the suburb include politician William Pember Reeves, wartime women's labour administrator Noeline Baker, and Anthony Wilding, one of New Zealand's most successful tennis players.
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Opawa is located in Canterbury, New Zealand, Oceania. The coordinates are -43.5550 latitude, 172.6614 longitude.
Opawa has a population of approximately 1,330 people, making it a town in New Zealand.
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