Ngawaka Taurua (died 28 April 1888) was leader of Ngāti Hine, a sub-tribe (hapū) of Ngāti Ruanui, a New Zealand Māori tribe (iwi) in the area south of Mount Taranaki.[1]

Ngāwaka Taurua, about 1870

Taurua taught at Patea under the Wesleyan catechist William Hough in the 1840s. He would later petition the Wesleyan Church for a minister, and was ultimately responsible for the erection of three churches: Tūtahi, south of Whenuakura, in 1883; Te Takerei-o-Aotea, at Manutahi, in 1888; and Te Kapenga, at Hukatere, in 1889.[1]

In the 1886 by-election in the Western Maori electorate, Taurua came last out of five candidates.[2][3]

Taurua died 28 April 1888 and was buried at Hukatere.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Church, Ian. "Ngawaka Taurua". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  2. ^ "Wanganui Herald". Wanganui Herald. Vol. XXI, no. 6117. 11 January 1887. p. 2. Retrieved 16 March 2014.
  3. ^ "The Western Maori Election". The Evening Post. Vol. XXXII, no. 191. 30 December 1886. p. 2. Retrieved 16 March 2014.