Bluff
Motupōhue (Māori) | |
|---|---|
Town | |
 Bluff from Stewart Island ferry | |
 | |
| Coordinates: 46°36′S 168°20′E / 46.600°S 168.333°E | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Region | Southland Region |
| City | Invercargill |
| Electorates |
|
| Government | |
| • Regional council | Southland Regional Council |
| • Local authority | Invercargill City Council |
| • Community board | Bluff Community Board[1] |
| • Mayor of Invercargill | Nobby Clark |
| • MPs | |
| Area | |
| • Total | 10.14 km2 (3.92 sq mi) |
| Population (June 2023)[3] | |
| • Total | 1,840 |
| • Density | 180/km2 (470/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+12 (NZST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+13 (NZDT) |
| Postcode(s) | 9814 |
| Area code | 03 |
Bluff (Māori: Motupōhue), previously known as Campbelltown and often referred to as "The Bluff", is a town and seaport in the Southland region, on the southern coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It is the southernmost town in mainland New Zealand and, despite Slope Point and Stewart Island being further south, Bluff is colloquially used to refer to the southern extremity of the country (particularly in the phrase "from Cape Reinga to The Bluff").[4] According to the 2018 census, the resident population was 1,797, a decrease of 6 since 2013.[5]
The Bluff area was one of the earliest areas of New Zealand where a European presence became established. The first ship known to have entered the harbour was the Perseverance in 1813, in search of flax trading possibilities, with the first European settlers arriving in 1823 or 1824.
This is the foundation for the claim[6] that Bluff is the oldest permanent European settlement in the country. However, the missionary settlement at Kerikeri was both earlier and larger. The town was officially called Campbelltown in 1856, became a borough in 1878, and was renamed Bluff in 1917.[7]
- ^ "About Bluff | Invercargill City Council". icc.govt.nz. Invercargill City Council. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Areawas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Population estimate tables - NZ.Stat". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
- ^ Bennett, Joe (2005). A Land of Two-Halves. Simon and Schuster. p. 59. ISBN 9780743263573.
- ^ Population and dwellings (from the Statistics New Zealand website)
- ^ Bluff history – an overview Archived 14 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine (from the 'bluff.co.nz' website. Accessed 14 December 2008.)
- ^ BLUFF – Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Teara.govt.nz. Retrieved on 2 August 2013.