Oban, New Zealand facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Oban
Pā nui o Hau (Māori)
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Town
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| Oban | |
Overlooking Oban and Halfmoon Bay
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| Country | New Zealand |
| Region | Southland |
| District | Southland District |
| Ward | Stewart Island/Rakiura Ward |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2.59 km2 (1.00 sq mi) |
| Population
(2018 Census)
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| • Total | 300 |
| • Density | 116/km2 (300/sq mi) |
Oban is the principal settlement on Stewart Island / Rakiura, the southernmost inhabited island of the New Zealand archipelago. Oban is located on Halfmoon Bay (sometimes used as an alternative name for the town), on Paterson Inlet. It has aircraft connections with Invercargill and a ferry service to Bluff.
The settlement was named after Oban in Scotland, (An t-Òban in Scottish Gaelic, meaning The Little Bay), due to the strong influence Scottish settlers had in the south of early colonial New Zealand.
The island has received a moderate boost of commerce and some millions in government funding since tourism increased markedly after the opening of the Rakiura National Park.
Contents
Climate
Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as oceanic (Cfb).
| Climate data for Oban (1975−2015, Rainfall 1917−2015) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 27.0 (80.6) |
28.5 (83.3) |
26.5 (79.7) |
29.0 (84.2) |
19.8 (67.6) |
17.5 (63.5) |
16.0 (60.8) |
17.1 (62.8) |
21.3 (70.3) |
23.9 (75.0) |
26.5 (79.7) |
27.2 (81.0) |
29.0 (84.2) |
| Average high °C (°F) | 17.2 (63.0) |
17.1 (62.8) |
15.9 (60.6) |
14.2 (57.6) |
12.0 (53.6) |
10.1 (50.2) |
9.9 (49.8) |
10.7 (51.3) |
12.2 (54.0) |
13.4 (56.1) |
14.6 (58.3) |
16.1 (61.0) |
13.6 (56.5) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 13.4 (56.1) |
13.3 (55.9) |
12.1 (53.8) |
10.6 (51.1) |
8.8 (47.8) |
6.7 (44.1) |
6.3 (43.3) |
7.0 (44.6) |
8.4 (47.1) |
9.5 (49.1) |
10.8 (51.4) |
12.4 (54.3) |
9.9 (49.8) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 9.6 (49.3) |
9.4 (48.9) |
8.3 (46.9) |
7.0 (44.6) |
5.5 (41.9) |
3.4 (38.1) |
2.7 (36.9) |
3.5 (38.3) |
4.5 (40.1) |
5.7 (42.3) |
7.0 (44.6) |
8.6 (47.5) |
6.2 (43.2) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 1.0 (33.8) |
1.2 (34.2) |
0.7 (33.3) |
−0.4 (31.3) |
−2 (28) |
−7.3 (18.9) |
−6 (21) |
−3 (27) |
−4.5 (23.9) |
−1.8 (28.8) |
−0.4 (31.3) |
0.6 (33.1) |
−7.3 (18.9) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 133.9 (5.27) |
109.8 (4.32) |
128.2 (5.05) |
132.1 (5.20) |
139.9 (5.51) |
136.9 (5.39) |
113.3 (4.46) |
106.2 (4.18) |
120.9 (4.76) |
134.1 (5.28) |
132.4 (5.21) |
116.4 (4.58) |
1,489.6 (58.65) |
| Average rainy days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 15.3 | 13.6 | 15.4 | 16.0 | 17.9 | 17.8 | 17.0 | 16.5 | 16.0 | 17.0 | 17.0 | 16.1 | 195.5 |
| Average relative humidity (%) (at 9am) | 84.3 | 87.4 | 87.4 | 89.4 | 91.1 | 90.9 | 91.3 | 89.9 | 85.0 | 84.3 | 81.6 | 82.6 | 85.8 |
| Source: CliFlo | |||||||||||||
Demographics
Oban is defined by Statistics New Zealand as a rural settlement and covers 2.59 km2 (1.00 sq mi). It is part of the wider Stewart Island statistical area.
| Historical population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
| 2006 | 291 | — |
| 2013 | 273 | −0.91% |
| 2018 | 300 | +1.90% |
Oban had a population of 300 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 27 people (9.9%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 9 people (3.1%) since the 2006 census. There were 165 households. There were 156 males and 144 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.08 males per female, with 33 people (11.0%) aged under 15 years, 51 (17.0%) aged 15 to 29, 144 (48.0%) aged 30 to 64, and 69 (23.0%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 92.0% European/Pākehā, 19.0% Māori, 1.0% Pacific peoples, 1.0% Asian, and 1.0% other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100% since people could identify with multiple ethnicities).
Although some people objected to giving their religion, 65.0% had no religion, 26.0% were Christian, 1.0% were Buddhist and 3.0% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 66 (24.7%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 45 (16.9%) people had no formal qualifications. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 150 (56.2%) people were employed full-time, 42 (15.7%) were part-time, and 3 (1.1%) were unemployed.
Education
Halfmoon Bay School / Te Kura o Rakiura caters for years 1 to 8 with a roll of 37 students as of April 2023. The school celebrated its centenary in 1974.
Images for kids
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Oban in 1977
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Oban, Stewart Island 2020
See also
In Spanish: Oban (Nueva Zelanda) para niños
