- In 2006, 265,974 people identified with the Pacific peoples ethnic group, representing 6.9 percent of the total New Zealand population. In 2001, there were 231,801 Pacific peoples, comprising 6.5 percent of the total population.
- Over 9 in 10 Pacific peoples (93.4 percent) living in New Zealand in 2006 lived in the North Island. Two-thirds (66.9 percent) of Pacific peoples lived in the Auckland Region.
- The Pacific ethnic group had the highest proportion of children (people aged 0 to 14 years) of all of the major ethnic groups, at 37.7 percent.
Seven Largest Pacific Peoples Ethnic Groups
2001–2006 Censuses |
| Ethnic group |
2001 count |
2006 count |
Percentage change
2001–2006 |
| Samoan |
115,017 |
131,103 |
14.0 |
| Cook Islands Maori |
52,569 |
58,008 |
10.3 |
| Tongan |
40,719 |
50,481 |
24.0 |
| Niuean |
20,148 |
22,476 |
11.6 |
| Fijian |
7,041 |
9,864 |
40.1 |
| Tokelauan |
6,204 |
6,819 |
9.9 |
| Tuvaluan |
1,965 |
2,628 |
33.7 |
Note: People can choose to identify with more than one ethnic group, therefore figures may not sum to totals.