Levin, New Zealand

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Levin
Taitoko (Māori)
Town
Intersection of Queen and Oxford Streets
Levin
Coordinates: 40°37′19″S 175°17′12″E / 40.62194°S 175.28667°E / -40.62194; 175.28667Coordinates: 40°37′19″S 175°17′12″E / 40.62194°S 175.28667°E / -40.62194; 175.28667
Country New Zealand
Region Manawatu-Wanganui Region
Territorial authority Horowhenua District
Named for William Hort Levin
Population
 • Estimate (2012) 19, 550
Area code(s) 06

Levin (Maori: Taitoko) is a town in the Manawatu-Wanganui region of New Zealand, and is the largest town in the Horowhenua district. It is 90 kilometres north of Wellington, 50 kilometres south of Palmerston North, and two kilometres to the east of Lake Horowhenua.

The town is on State Highway 1, and on the North Island Main Trunk with a station used by the Capital Connection long distance commuter train between Wellington and Palmerston North and the Overlander long distance train between Wellington and Auckland.

According to the June 2013 estimate, the estimated resident population was 19,700. [1] Over 20% of inhabitants were listed as over the age of 65, a considerably higher percentage than the national average.[2] The town celebrated its centenary in 2006 and the bowls club celebrated theirs in 2007.

Levin is a service centre for the surrounding rural area, and a centre of light manufacturing.

The town was named after William Hort Levin, a director of the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company. The name is a variation of the Jewish clan Levi. It is a shibboleth – unlike the usual pronunciation of the surname, stress is placed on the second syllable of the word. The name thus rhymes with the word 'begin' (the same pronunciation is used by the US conservative author and talk-how host Mark Levin). However his geat grandson, Peter Levin, says that Levin would have pronounced his name as in Levene and this pronunciation was in common use for many years and always used by the family.[citation needed] The town's Maori name is Taitoko.

Notable people

Schools

References

  1. ↑ Statistics New Zealand Subnational Population Estimates
  2. ↑ "Levin age profile, NZ Stats"

Official Tourism website for Levin

The Overlander passenger train stops: (North Island Main Trunk Railway)
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