Wellington

This article is about the capital of New Zealand. For the British statesman after whom the city was named, see Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. For other uses, see Wellington (disambiguation).

Wellington
Te Whanganui-a-Tara (Māori)
Capital city
Wellington Central and Lambton Harbour
Wellington Central and Lambton Harbour
New Zealand Parliament
New Zealand Parliament Buildings
Old Government Buildings
Old Government Buildings
Civic Square
Civic Square
Te Papa
Te Papa
National War Memorial, Dominion Museum, Government House
National War Memorial, Dominion Museum, Government House
Wellington Cable Car
Wellington Cable Car
Flag of Wellington
Flag
Coat of arms of Wellington
Coat of arms
Nickname(s): 
Windy Wellington, Wellywood
Motto(s): 
Suprema a Situ[2]
English: Supreme by position
Wellington is located in New Zealand
Wellington
Wellington
Location in New Zealand
Coordinates: 41°17′20″S 174°46′38″E / 41.28889°S 174.77722°E / -41.28889; 174.77722
CountryNew Zealand
RegionWellington
Wards
  • Takapū/Northern
  • Wharangi/Onslow-Western
  • Paekawakawa/Southern
  • Pukehīnau/Lambton
  • Motukairangi/Eastern
  • Te Whanganui-a-Tara (Māori)
[1]
Community boards
Settled by Europeans1839
Named forArthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
ElectoratesMana
Ōhāriu
Rongotai
Te Tai Hauāuru (Māori)
Te Tai Tonga (Māori)
Wellington Central[5]
Government
 • MayorTory Whanau
 • Deputy MayorLaurie Foon[6]
 • MPs
 • Territorial authorityWellington City Council
Area
[7][8][a]
 • Territorial
289.91 km2 (111.93 sq mi)
 • Urban
112.71 km2 (43.52 sq mi)
 • Rural
177.20 km2 (68.42 sq mi)
 • Metro
303.00 km2 (116.99 sq mi)
Highest elevation
495 m (1,624 ft)
Lowest elevation
0 m (0 ft)
Population
 (June 2024)[9]
 • Urban
214,200
 • Urban density1,900/km2 (4,900/sq mi)
 • Metro
440,700
 • Metro density1,500/km2 (3,800/sq mi)
 • Demonym
Wellingtonian
GDP
[10]
 • MetroNZ$ 44.987 billion (2021)
 • Per capitaNZ$82,772 (2021)
Time zoneUTC+12 (NZST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+13 (NZDT)
Postcode(s)
5016, 5028, 6011, 6012, 6021, 6022, 6023, 6035, 6037, 6972[11]
Area code04
Local iwiNgāti Toa Rangatira, Ngāti Raukawa, Te Āti Awa
Websitewellington.govt.nz
wellingtonnz.com

Wellington[b] is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand,[c] and is the administrative centre of the Wellington Region. It is the world's southernmost capital of a sovereign state.[14] Wellington features a temperate maritime climate, and is the world's windiest city by average wind speed.[15]

Māori oral tradition tells that Kupe discovered and explored the region in about the 10th century. The area was initially settled by Māori iwi such as Rangitāne and Muaūpoko. The disruptions of the Musket Wars led to them being overwhelmed by northern iwi such as Te Āti Awa by the early 19th century.[16]

Wellington's current form was originally designed by Captain William Mein Smith, the first Surveyor General for Edward Wakefield's New Zealand Company, in 1840.[17] Smith's plan included a series of interconnected grid plans, expanding along valleys and lower hill slopes.[18] The Wellington urban area, which only includes urbanised areas within Wellington City, has a population of 214,200 as of June 2024.[9] The wider Wellington metropolitan area, including the cities of Lower Hutt, Porirua and Upper Hutt, has a population of 440,700 as of June 2024.[9] The city has served as New Zealand's capital since 1865, a status that is not defined in legislation, but established by convention; the New Zealand Government and Parliament, the Supreme Court and most of the public service are based in the city.[19]

Wellington's economy is primarily service-based, with an emphasis on finance, business services, government, and the film industry. It is the centre of New Zealand's film and special effects industries, and increasingly a hub for information technology and innovation,[20] with two public research universities. Wellington is one of New Zealand's chief seaports and serves both domestic and international shipping. The city is chiefly served by Wellington International Airport in Rongotai, the country's third-busiest airport. Wellington's transport network includes train and bus lines which reach as far as the Kāpiti Coast and the Wairarapa, and ferries connect the city to the South Island.

Often referred to as New Zealand's cultural capital, the culture of Wellington is a diverse and often youth-driven one which has wielded influence across Oceania.[21][22][23] One of the world's most liveable cities, the 2021 Global Livability Ranking tied Wellington with Tokyo as fourth in the world.[24] From 2017 to 2018, Deutsche Bank ranked it first in the world for both livability and non-pollution.[25][26] Cultural precincts such as Cuba Street and Newtown are renowned for creative innovation, "op shops", historic character, and food. Wellington is a leading financial centre in the Asia-Pacific region, being ranked 46th in the world by the Global Financial Centres Index for 2024. The global city has grown from a bustling Māori settlement, to a colonial outpost, and from there to an Australasian capital that has experienced a "remarkable creative resurgence".[27][28][29][30]

  1. ^ a b "Ward maps and boundaries". Wellington City Council. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
  2. ^ Thorns, David; Schrader, Ben (11 March 2010). "City history and people – Towns to cities". Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  3. ^ "Tawa Community Board". Wellington City Council. 8 December 2021. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  4. ^ "Mākara/Ōhāriu Community Board". Wellington City Council. 22 November 2021. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  5. ^ "2020 General Election electorates". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  6. ^ "Wellington Mayor chooses Laurie Foon as new deputy". Radio New Zealand. 21 October 2022.
  7. ^ "Urban Rural 2020 (generalised) – GIS | | GIS Map Data Datafinder Geospatial Statistics | Stats NZ Geographic Data Service". datafinder.stats.govt.nz. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  8. ^ "StatsNZ Geographic Boundary Viewer". statsnz.maps.arcgis.com. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  9. ^ a b c d e "Aotearoa Data Explorer". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 26 October 2024.
  10. ^ "Regional gross domestic product: Year ended March 2022". Statistics New Zealand. 24 March 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  11. ^ "Wellington City postcode map" (PDF). NZ Post. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  12. ^ "Yeah, Nah: Is Wellington (or Christchurch) NZ's second city?". New Zealand: Stuff. 2 September 2022.
  13. ^ "Functional urban areas – methodology and classification". Statistics New Zealand. 10 February 2021.
  14. ^ Guinness World Records 2009. London, United Kingdom: Guinness World Records Ltd. 2008. p. 277. ISBN 978-1-904994-36-7.
  15. ^ Karl Mathiesen (15 October 2015). "Where is the world's windiest city? Spoiler alert: it's not Chicago". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 12 July 2016. Retrieved 13 August 2016.
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Wellington's plan". teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
  18. ^ Schrader, Ben (26 March 2015) [11 March 2010]. "City planning – Early settlement planning". Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 23 September 2023. Wellington's plan was designed by New Zealand Company surveyor William Mein Smith in 1840. It comprised a series of interconnected grids which expanded along the town's valleys and up the lower slopes of hills.
  19. ^ Levine, Stephen (20 June 2012). "Capital city – Wellington, capital city". Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Archived from the original on 5 February 2019. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
  20. ^ Lim, Jason (29 November 2015). "Wellington Is Bigger on Tech And Innovation Than You Think". Forbes. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  21. ^ "Culture and creativity". wellingtonnz.com. Archived from the original on 8 August 2022. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  22. ^ "Arts and culture". 10yearplan.wellington.govt.nz. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  23. ^ Media, ShermansTravel. "Kiwi Culture in Wellington: New Zealand's Creative Capital | ShermansTravel". shermanstravel.com. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  24. ^ Choudhury, Saheli Roy (9 June 2021). "These are the world's most livable cities in 2021". CNBC. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  25. ^ "2014 Quality of Living Worldwide City Rankings – Mercer Survey". mercer.com. 19 February 2014. Archived from the original on 22 June 2013. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
  26. ^ "Wellington named most liveable city for second year running". New Zealand: Stuff. 25 May 2018. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  27. ^ George, Damian (19 September 2016). "Huffington Post lauds Wellington's 'remarkable' creative resurgence". New Zealand: Stuff. Archived from the original on 9 July 2019. Retrieved 9 July 2019.
  28. ^ "Wellington: New Zealand's creative capital". TNZ Media. Archived from the original on 9 July 2019. Retrieved 9 July 2019.
  29. ^ "Wellington is a Smart City of the future". iStart leading the way to smarter technology investment. Archived from the original on 9 July 2019. Retrieved 9 July 2019.
  30. ^ "The World According to GaWC 2020". GaWC – Research Network. Globalization and World Cities. Retrieved 31 August 2020.


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