1911 New Zealand census

National census of New Zealand in 1911

Fifteenth census of the
Dominion of New Zealand

* * *

| <- 1906 | 2 April 1911; 113 years ago (1911-04-02) | 1916 ->

|
|

* * *

General information
Country| New Zealand
Authority| Statistics New Zealand
Website| stats.govt.nz (1911)
Results
Total population| 1,058,313[1] ( 13.03%)
Most populous ​district| Auckland (264,520)
Least populous ​district| Westland (15,714)

The 1911 New Zealand census was New Zealand's fifteenth national census.[2] The day used for the census was Sunday, 2 April 1911.[2][3]

The total population of the Dominion of New Zealand was counted as 1,058,313 – an overall increase of 122,004 people or 13.03% over the 1906 census figure.[1] The Māori census counted a total of 49,844, of whom 26,475 were males and 23,369 females, another 2,877 in the general census which made up 5 percent of the total night population.[3] The total enumerated in the European (general) census was 1,008,468 of whom 531,910 were Males and 476,558 Females. The Māori census was held in March, while the general census was held in April.[2][3]

The Census and Statistics Act 1910 created the Office of the Government Statistician within the Registrar General's Office. The Act (as in the 1911 census report) reiterated the penalties for those who refuse to fill out their census schedules and collectors who disclose the content of individual census schedules.[4]

## Population and dwellings

[edit]

The principal natural divisions in New Zealand are the North, South, and Stewart Islands. The "Distribution of European populations" of the various provincial districts are as follows:[5]

Region | Males | Females | Total population

|
|
|

Auckland | 141,700 | 122,820 | 264,520
Taranaki | 27,785 | 23,784 | 51,560
Hawke's Bay | 25,769 | 22,777 | 48,546
Wellington | 104,945 | 94,149 | 199,094
Totals, North Island | 300,199 | 263,530 | 563,729
Marlborough | 8,745 | 7,240 | 15,985
Nelson | 26,958 | 21,505 | 48,463
Westland | 8,719 | 6,995 | 15,714
Canterbury | 88,391 | 84,794 | 173,185
Otago
Otago portion | 66,995 | 65,407 | 132,402
Southland portion | 31,735 | 36,993 | 58,728
Totals, South Island | 231,323 | 212,797 | 444,120
Stewart Island | 220 | 137 | 357
Chatham Islands | 166 | 92 | 258
Kermadec Islands | 2 | 2 | 4
Dominion of New Zealand | 531,910 | 476,558 | 1,008,468
Source:[6] Total (including Chinese and "Half-castes")

The Maori population of the Dominion (not included above), according to the result of a separate census taken in April 1911, amounted to 49,844. Of these, 46,632 persons were found to be in the North Island, 2,681 persons in the South Island, 63 at Stewart Island, and 219 Maoris  [sic] and Morioris  [sic] at the Chatham Islands. There were 249 Maori wives of European husbands enumerated in the European census.

The total population of the Dominion (including Maoris and residents of the Cook and other Pacific Islands) in April 1911, was: Persons, 1,070,910; males, 564,834; females, 506,076; of these, 2,630 were Chinese—2,542 males, 88 females. The population of the Cook and other Pacific Islands now included within the boundaries of the Dominion was 12,598 persons, of whom 180 were whites or half-castes living as whites. There were also 513 Natives of these islands absent on ships or at the guano islands.

### Māori census

[edit]

The census of the Māori population—that is, full-blooded Maoris, with all half-castes living as members of Native tribes—was taken under the supervision of the officers of the Native Department in April 1911.

Area  | Males  | Females  | Population

|
|
|

North Island | 24,935 | 21,697 | 46,632
Middle Island | 1,886 | 1,295 | 2,681
Stewart Island | 42 | 21 | 63
Chatham Islands
Māori | 105 | 99 | 204
Moriori | 7 | 8 | 15
Māori wives living with European husbands | - | 249 | 249
Totals, New Zealand | 26,475 | 23,369 | 49,844

Source:[3]

Notes: (excludes half-Māori counted in the separate European census) The pure-blood Moriori are practically extinct, and those now claiming to be Morioris are half-caste Moriori-Maoris.

Besides the half-castes (living as Members of Maori Tribes) included in the above table, there were 2,877 half-castes (males, 1,475; females, 1,402) living with and enumerated as Europeans in the other census.

## Birthplace

[edit]

The figures show that of the total population of specified birthplace had New Zealand-born at 69.74% and 30.26% were born-overseas.

Birthplaces  | Population
| Percentage  | Population increase or decrease

|
|
|

New Zealand | 702,779 |  69.74% | +15.92%
Totals, overseas-born | 305,689 | 30.26% | –
England | 133,811 | 13.28% | +14.80%
Scotland | 51,709 | 5.13% | +8.25%
Ireland | 40,958 | 4.06% | −3.53%
Wales | 2,206 | 0.22% | +2.89%
Australia, Tasmania, and Fiji | 50,693 | 5.03% | –
Other British Possessions | 4,570 | 0.46% | –
Total British | 986,726 | 97.92% | –
Germany | 4,015 | 0.40% | −3.80%
Denmark and Possessions | 2,262 | 0.22% | −0.65%
Other European countries | 55 | – | +19.56%
United States of America | 1,400 | 0.13% | +21.10%
China | 2,611 | 0.25% | +0.34%
At sea | 1,392 | 0.14% | +11.80%
Birthplaces not stated | 779 | – | +65.04%
Total for specified birthplaces | 1,007,689 | – | +13.46%
New Zealand | 1,008,468 | 100.00% |  13.49%
Source:[3]

## Religious denominations

[edit]

Christians accounted for 95% of the population. Other religions accounted for 1.16%, people with no denomination were counted at 0.9% and people having no religion accounted 0.55%. People who did not state their religion accounted for 3.59% of the population.

Further categorisation of religions  Religion | Persons  | Males  | Females  | %

|
|
|
|

Episcopalians |  |  |  |
– Church of England, and Episcopalians not otherwise defined  | 411,671  | 216,612  | 195,059  | 40.93
– Protestants (undefined)  | 2,171  | 1,332  | 839  | 0.22
Presbyterians | 234,662  | 122,307  | 112,355  | 23.34
Methodists |  |  |  |
– Methodist Church of Australasia | 63,959  | 31,419  | 32,540  | 6.36
– Primitive Methodists | 27,445  | 13,802  | 13,643  | 2.74
– Methodists (undefined)  | 3,209  | 1,645  | 1,564  | 0.32
– Others  | 214  | 123  | 91  | 0.02
Baptists | 20,042  | 9,599  | 10,443  | 2.00
Congregationalists | 8,756  | 4,231  | 4,525  | 0.88
Lutherans (German Protestants)  | 4,477  | 2,818  | 1,659  | 0.44
Unitarians | 1,316  | 707  | 609  | 0.13
Society of Friends | 412  | 246  | 166  | 0.04
Church of Christ (Christians, Christian Disciples, Disciples of Christ,

Disciples)

| 9,187  | 4,234  | 4,953  | 0.92
Brethren (Christian Brethren, Exclusive Brethren, Open Brethren,

Plymouth Brethren)

| 7,865  | 3,609  | 4,256  | 0.78
Believers in Christ  | 37  | 16  | 21  |
Evangelists (Evangelical Union, Evangelical Church, Evangelical Christians,

Evangelical Brethren)

| 25  | 21  | 4  |
Nonconformists | 57  | 41  | 16  |
Salvation Army | 9,707  | 4,681  | 5,026  | 0.96
Christadelphians | 1,028  | 486  | 542  | 0.10
Swedenborgians (New Church, New Jerusalem Church)  | 160  | 81  | 79  | 0.01
Seventh-day Adventists | 1,113  | 457  | 656  | 0.11
Students of Truth  | 6  | 2  | 4  |
Dissenters | 5  | 3  | 2  |
Christian Israelites, Israelites  | 19  | 12  | 7  |
Other Christians  | 922  | 466  | 456  | 0.08
Catholics |  |  |  |
– Roman Catholics | 139,191  | 72,419  | 66,722  | 13.84
– Catholics (undefined)  | 1,332  | 759  | 573  | 0.13
– Greek Church | 265  | 178  | 87  | 0.03
– Catholic Apostolic | 336  | 157  | 179  | 0.03
Other sects |  |  |  |
– Hebrews (Jews)  | 2,128  | 1,130  | 998  | 0.21
– Mormons (Latter-day Saints)  | 365  | 212  | 153  | 0.63
– Spiritualists | 1,197  | 593  | 604  | 0.11
– Buddhists, Confucians, etc  | 1,501  | 1,481  | 20  | 0.15
– Others  | 661  | 352  | 309  | 0.06
No denomination |  |  |  |
– Freethinkers | 4,238  | 3,417  | 821  | 0.42
– Agnostics | 618  | 511  | 107  | 0.06
– Deists, Theists | 32  | 24  | 8  |
– No denomination  | 4,241  | 2,691  | 1,550  | 0.42
– Doubtful  | 48  | 32  | 16  |
No religion |  |  |  |
– No religion | 5,414  | 4,004  | 1,410  | 0.54
– Atheists | 111  | 99  | 12  | 0.01
– Secularists | 4  | 4  |  |
– Object to state  | 35,905  | 23,310  | 12,595  | 3.58
– Unspecified  | 2,416  | 1,587  | 829  |
Total for New Zealand  | 1,008,468  | 531,910  | 476,558  | 100.0

## See also

[edit]

* New Zealand census
* 1916 New Zealand census
* 1911 Australian census

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Total and Māori populations 1858–2013 Archived 26 October 2016 at the Wayback Machine Censuses of Population and Dwellings
2. ^ a b c "Dates of New Zealand censuses since 1851". Stats.govt.nz. Archived from the original on 16 November 2015. Retrieved 16 January 2016.
3. ^ a b c d e "Results of a Census of the Dominion of New Zealand". Statistics New Zealand. 30 December 1912. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
4. ^ "A history of census-taking in New Zealand". Stats.govt.nz. Archived from the original on 13 November 2016. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
5. ^ New Zealand: Census 1911 (Page: 6)
6. ^ New Zealand: Census 1911

* v
* t
* e

New Zealand census

Separate European and Māori censuses|

* 1851†
* 1858
* 1861†
* 1864†
* 1867†
* 1871†
* 1874
* 1878
* 1881
* 1886
* 1891
* 1896
* 1901
* 1906
* 1911
* 1916
* 1921
* 1926
* 1931‡
* 1936
* 1941‡
* 1945

Combined censuses|

* 1951
* 1956
* 1961
* 1966
* 1971
* 1976
* 1981
* 1986
* 1991
* 1996
* 2001
* 2006
* 2011‡
* 2013
* 2018
* 2023

* Statistics New Zealand
* † indicates censuses in which Māori were not included
* ‡ indicates cancelled censuses

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template