Waikouaiti
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Waikouaiti is a small town in East Otago, New Zealand, within the city limits of Dunedin. It is located 40 kilometres north of Dunedin city centre. Its population is about 700.
Waikouaiti is the site of the first major European settlement in Otago, and dates from the late 1830s when whaler Johnny Jones established a station in the area. He later brought settlers from Sydney, Australia to farm the district, several years before the foundation of the Otago Settlement in 1848. Prior to the arrival of Europeans, the area was frequented by Maori, who had a pa at nearby Karitane.
The town lies close to the coast and the mouth of the Waikouaiti River. The nearby settlement of Hawksbury was long connected with a mental health institution, Cherry Farm.
The name Waikouaiti is Maori, and may come from phrases meaning "small bitter waters" (wai-kawa-iti) or "braided streamlets" (wai-koua-iti).