Talk:Orewa

2013 Population
The population blocks of Orewa and Orewa West are 8,520 and 87 (respectively), per the current 2013 census data (http://archive.stats.govt.nz/StatsMaps/Home/Maps/2013-census-population-dwelling-map.aspx).

This should be reflected in the population stats (which may have been adjusted since last updated), until the 2018 data is available. Roche-Kerr (talk) 20:45, 30 December 2018 (UTC) Signature added by User:Akld guy


 * The pop was updated in the article to 8,523 in January 2017, so it's been more or less correct for nearly two years. From my point of view, not worth going to the trouble of searching the StatsNZ site to correct an error of a few dozen, with the release of the 2018 census figure imminent. I see you're an editor with experience, so you might like to update it yourself. Akld guy (talk) 01:29, 31 December 2018 (UTC)

Orewa or Ōrewa
The documented name of the town is Orewa (no macron). (https://gazetteer.linz.govt.nz/place/34086) But this is not an official name. Ōrewa Beach, Ōrewa Hill and Ōrewa River (with macrons) on the other hand are official names. No doubt at some time the macron will be added to Orewa Town and the name will become official but it hasn't happened yet. OrewaTel (talk) 04:36, 21 August 2021 (UTC)
 * The whole usage of macrons is spurious. Articles should reflect the current actual spelling (no matter how "right" or "wrong" it is). DerbyCountyinNZ  (Talk Contribs) 00:08, 22 August 2021 (UTC)

In particular, its very nice of council to start renaming things, but as a resident, nobody has actually been told this (the first time I'd ever seen Orewa spelt Ōrewa was in this article), nor did anyone seem to bother asking us what our town was called. Until someone can explain what the Ō is actually for, beyond that it's in current vogue, the town is called Orewa, as are its respective features. This is a typical example of people deciding to change the name of something without bothering to consult anyone from there... :-P User:Roche-Kerr


 * The situation is more complicated. Using standard Māori orthography Orewa should be pronounced awe-rə-wa with the emphasis on the first syllable. The macron on the 'o' is redundant as it simply makes the vowel slightly longer. However most people pronounce the name as Oh-Ree-wə. Since the initial vowel is said in a non-Māori manner, a macron over the 'O' would be completely meaningless. Naturally, this is unlikely to be documented. That is just how folks say the name. Any documentation would have the 'correct' pronunciation even though few locals use it. (Please see my username.)
 * Even though locals talk about Ohreewa Beach and Ohreewa River, when they were officially given names LINZ adopted standard orthography. The same applies to Ōrewa Hill (the hilltop row of shops just South of the river) even though the name is very seldom used. (I never heard it said when I lived there.) The town itself has never been officially named and so it keeps its original spelling and presumably it will continue to be pronounced in the same old way. I hope this has clarified matters. By the way, it was LINZ who changed the name. It wasn't the Council OrewaTel (talk) 09:40, 23 August 2021 (UTC)


 * Very well explained, sir. Makes sense :) Roche-Kerr (talk) 23:02, 23 August 2021 (UTC)


 * Although a recent heroic edit (reverted) changed every instance of 'Orewa' to 'Ōrewa', the official name according to LINZ is still 'Orewa'. The time is not right to make this change. OrewaTel (talk) 10:24, 26 October 2022 (UTC)