Runanga
| Runanga | ||
| Geographical location | ||
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| Coordinates | 42 ° 24 ′ S , 171 ° 15 ′ E | |
| Region ISO | NZ-WTC | |
| Country |
 New Zealand
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| region | West coast | |
| District | Gray District | |
| Ward | Northern Ward | |
| Local foundation | 19th century | |
| Residents | 1 221 (2006) | |
| Photography of the place | ||
 The Runanga Miners' Hall (around 1910). |
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Runanga is a place near the west coast of New Zealand's South Island . It is eight kilometers northeast of Greymouth , north of the Gray River . Barrytown is 13 miles further north. The place is on New Zealand State Highway 6 and is connected to the rail network between Greymouth and Rapahoe . Until the closure in 1985 there was a branch to Renwanui .
The place name goes back to the Māori word for meeting point .
The hard coal mining is the largest employer in town. Runanga has a co-educational elementary school for school years 1 to 8.
The number of inhabitants decreased by 84 between 2001 and 2006.
A Martian crater is named after Runanga.
history
The origins of the place go back to European colonists in the 19th century when many settlers came to work in the local coal mining industry.
Between 1853 and 1876 Runanga was administered as part of Nelson Province .
Famous pepole
- Moses Ayrton (1878–1950), politician and Methodist priest
- Paul Caffyn (* 1946), geologist and sea kayaker
- George Henry Duggan (1912–2012), Catholic priest, philosopher, and author
- George Menzies (1930-2016), rugby player
- James O'Brien (1874–1947), Minister of Transport in the First Labor Administration
- Bob Semple (1873–1955), Minister of Public Works in the first Labor government and union leader
- Paddy Webb (1884–1950), Minister of Mining in the first Labor government
