Gisborne District

Gisborne District or the Gisborne Region (Māori: Te Tairāwhiti or Te Tai Rāwhiti) is a local government area of northeastern New Zealand. It is governed by Gisborne District Council, a unitary authority (with the combined powers of a district and regional council). It is named after its largest settlement, the city of Gisborne. The region is also commonly referred to as the East Coast.

The region is commonly divided into the East Cape and Poverty Bay. It is bounded by mountain ranges to the west, rugged country to the south, and faces east onto the Pacific Ocean.

The district is governed by Gisborne District Council, which is a unitary territorial authority, meaning that it performs the functions of a regional council as well as those of a territorial authority (a district or city). It is constituted as both the Gisborne District and the Gisborne Region. It replaced Gisborne City, Cook County, Waiapu County and Waikohu County in a major nationwide reform of local government on 1 November 1989.

Prior to the late 19th century, the area was known as Tūranga. However, as the Gisborne town site was laid out in 1870, the name changed to Gisborne, after the Colonial Secretary William Gisborne, and to avoid confusion with the town of Tauranga.

The region was formerly known as the East Coast, although the region is often divided into the East Coast proper (or East Cape), north of the city, and Poverty Bay, the area including and surrounding the city. The region is also sometimes referred to as the East Cape, although that also refers specifically to the promontory at the northeastern extremity. More recently, it has been called Eastland, although that can also include Ōpōtiki in the eastern Bay of Plenty to the northwest, and Wairoa to the south.

Its Māori name Te Tai Rāwhiti means the Coast of the Sunrise, reflecting the fact that it is the first part of the New Zealand mainland to see the sun rise. Gisborne District Council styles the name as Te Tairāwhiti.

The region is located in the northeastern corner of the North Island. It ranges from the Wharerata Hills in the south, which divide it from Wairoa District in Hawke's Bay, to Lottin Point in the north. The western boundary runs along the Raukumara Range, which separates it from Ōpōtiki District. In the southwest, its boundary runs along the western edge of Te Urewera.

It is sparsely inhabited and isolated, with small settlements mainly clinging to small bays along the eastern shore, including Tokomaru Bay and Tolaga Bay. Its population is 52,700 (June 2025). Three-quarters of the population – 38,100 (June 2025) – lives in the city of Gisborne. No other settlements have a population of over 1000; the largest are the towns of Tolaga Bay and Ruatoria, each with populations of over 800 in 2001.