Dunedin

Dunedin (Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city (in population terms) in the South Island of New Zealand, and the only city of the Otago Region. While Hamilton, Napier-Hastings and Tauranga have eclipsed the city in population in recent years, it is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until superseded by Auckland on the creation of the Auckland Council in November 2010. Dunedin was the largest city in New Zealand by population until about 1900.

The Dunedin urban area lies on the central-eastern coast of Otago, surrounding the head of Otago Harbour. The harbour and hills around Dunedin are the remnants of an extinct volcano. The city suburbs extend out into the surrounding valleys and hills, onto the isthmus of the Otago Peninsula, and along the shores of the Otago Harbour and the Pacific Ocean.

The city's largest industry is tertiary education – Dunedin is home to the University of Otago, New Zealand's first university (1869), and the Otago Polytechnic. Students account for a large proportion of the population: 21.6 percent of the city's population was aged between 15 and 24 at the 2006 census, compared to the New Zealand average of 14.2 percent.

Māori settlements
Archaeological evidence shows the first human (Māori) occupation of New Zealand occurred between AD 1250–1300, with population concentrated along the southeast coast. A camp site at Kaikai's Beach, near Otago Heads, has been dated from about that time. There are numerous archaic (moa hunter) sites in what is now Dunedin, several of them large and permanently occupied, particularly in the 14th century. The population contracted but expanded again with the evolution of the Classic culture which saw the building of several pā, fortified settlements, notably Pukekura at (Taiaroa Head), about 1650. There was a settlement in what is now central Dunedin (Ōtepoti) occupied as late as about 1785 but abandoned by 1826.

Maori tradition tells first of a people called Kahui Tipua living in the area, then Te Rapuwai, semi-legendary but considered to be historical. The next arrivals were Waitaha followed by Kāti Mamoe late in the 16th century and then Kai Tahu (Ngai Tahu in modern standard Māori) who arrived in the mid 17th century. These migration waves have often been represented as 'invasions' in European accounts but modern scholarship has cast doubt on that. They were probably migrations like those of the European which incidentally resulted in bloodshed.

The sealer John Boultbee recorded in the 1820s that the 'Kaika Otargo' (settlements around and near Otago Harbour) were the oldest and largest in the south.

European settlement
Lieutenant James Cook stood off what is now the coast of Dunedin between 25 February 1770 and 5 March 1770, naming Cape Saunders on the Otago Peninsula and Saddle Hill. He reported penguins and seals in the vicinity, which led sealers to visit from the beginning of the 19th century. The early years of sealing saw a feud between sealers and local Maori, from 1810–1823, the "Sealers' War" sparked by an incident on Otago Harbour, but William Tucker became the first European to settle in the area in 1815. Permanent European occupation dates from 1831 when the Weller brothers founded their whaling station at Otago, modern Otakou, on the Otago Harbour. Epidemics badly reduced the Maori population. By the late 1830s, the harbour was an international whaling port. Johnny Jones established a farming settlement and a mission station, the South Island's first, at Waikouaiti in 1840.

In 1844, the Deborah, captained by Thomas Wing and carrying, among others his wife Lucy and a representative of the New Zealand Company, Frederick Tuckett, came south to determine the location of a free church settlement. After inspecting several areas around the eastern coast of the south island, Tuckett selected the site which would become known as Dunedin. Tuckett turned down the site, which would become Christchurch, as he felt the ground around the Avon river was swampy.

The Lay Association of the Free Church of Scotland founded Dunedin at the head of Otago Harbour in 1848 as the principal town of its special settlement. The name comes from Dùn Èideann, the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Charles Kettle the city's surveyor, instructed to emulate the characteristics of Edinburgh, produced a striking, "Romantic" design. The result was both grand and quirky streets as the builders struggled and sometimes failed to construct his bold vision across the challenging landscape. Captain William Cargill, a veteran of the Napoleonic Wars, was the secular leader. The Reverend Thomas Burns, a nephew of the poet Robert Burns, was the spiritual guide.

Gold rush era
In 1852, Dunedin became the capital of the Otago Province, the whole of New Zealand from the Waitaki south. In 1861 the discovery of gold at Gabriel's Gully, to the southwest, led to a rapid influx of people and saw Dunedin become New Zealand's first city by growth of population in 1865. The new arrivals included many Irish, but also Italians, French, Germans, Jews and Chinese. The Dunedin Southern Cemetery was established in 1858, the Dunedin Northern Cemetery in 1872.

Dunedin and the region industrialised and consolidated and the Main South Line connected the city with Christchurch in 1878 and Invercargill in 1879. Otago Boys' High School was founded in 1863. The University of Otago, the oldest university in New Zealand, in 1869. Otago Girls' High School was established in 1871. Between 1881 and 1957, Dunedin was home to cable trams, being both one of the first and last such systems in the world. Early in the 1880s the inauguration of the frozen meat industry, with the first shipment leaving from Port Chalmers in 1882, saw the beginning of a later great national industry.

After ten years of gold rushes the economy slowed but Julius Vogel's immigration and development scheme brought thousands more especially to Dunedin and Otago before recession set in again in the 1880s. In these first and second times of prosperity many institutions and businesses were established, New Zealand's first daily newspaper, art school, medical school and public art gallery the Dunedin Public Art Gallery among them. There was also a remarkable architectural flowering producing many substantial and ornamental buildings. R.A. Lawson's First Church of Otago and Knox Church are notable examples, as are buildings by Maxwell Bury and F.W. Petre. The other visual arts also flourished under the leadership of W. M. Hodgkins. The city's landscape and burgeoning townscape were vividly portrayed by George O'Brien 1821–1888. From the mid 1890s the economy revived. Institutions such as the Toitū Otago Settlers Museum and the Hocken Collections – the first of their kind in New Zealand – were founded. More notable buildings such as the Railway Station and Olveston were erected. New energy in the visual arts represented by G.P. Nerli culminated in the career of Frances Hodgkins.

Early Modern era
By 1900, Dunedin was no longer the country's biggest city. Influence and activity moved north to the other centres ("the drift north"), a trend which continued for much of the following century. Despite this, the university continued to expand, and a student quarter became established. At the same time people started to notice Dunedin's mellowing, the ageing of its grand old buildings, with writers like E.H. McCormick pointing out its atmospheric charm. In the 1930s and early 1940s a new generation of artists such as M.T. (Toss) Woollaston, Doris Lusk, Anne Hamblett, Colin McCahon and Patrick Hayman once again represented the best of the country's talent. The Second World War saw the dispersal of these painters, but not before McCahon had met a very youthful poet, James K. Baxter, in a central city studio.

Numerous large companies had been established in Dunedin, many of which became national leaders. Late among them was Fletcher Construction, founded by Sir James Fletcher in the early 20th century. Kempthorne Prosser, established in 1879 in Stafford Street, was the largest fertiliser and drug manufacturer in the country for over 100 years. G. Methven, a metalworking and tap manufacturer based in South Dunedin, was also a leading firm, as was H. E. Shacklock, an iron founder and appliance manufacturer later taken over by the Auckland concern Fisher and Paykel. The Mosgiel Woollens was another Victorian Dunedin foundation. Hallensteins was the colloquial name of a menswear manufacturer and national retail chain while the DIC and Arthur Barnett were department stores, the former a nationwide concern. Coulls, Somerville Wilkie – later part of the Whitcoulls group – had its origins in Dunedin in the 19th century. There were also the National Mortgage and Agency Company, Wright Stephensons Limited, the Union Steamship Company and the National Insurance Company and the Standard Insurance Company among many others, which survived into the 20th century.

Post War developments


After World War II prosperity and population growth revived, although Dunedin trailed as the fourth 'main centre'. A generation reacting against Victorianism started demolishing its buildings and many were lost, notably William Mason's Stock Exchange in 1969. (Dunedin Stock Exchange building) Although the university continued to expand, the city's population contracted, notably from 1976 to 1981. This was, however, a culturally vibrant time with the university's new privately endowed arts fellowships bringing such luminaries as James K Baxter, Ralph Hotere, Janet Frame, and Hone Tuwhare to the city. During the 1980s Dunedin's popular music scene blossomed, with many acts, such as The Chills, The Clean, The Verlaines, and Straitjacket Fits, gaining national and international recognition. The term "The Dunedin Sound" was coined to describe the 1960s-influenced, guitar-led music which flourished at the time. Bands and musicians are still playing and recording in many styles.

By 1990, population decline had steadied and slow growth has occurred since and Dunedin re-invented itself as a 'heritage city' with its main streets refurbished in Victorian style. R.A. Lawson's Municipal Chambers (Dunedin Town Hall) in the Octagon were handsomely restored. The city was also recognised as a centre of excellence in tertiary education and research. The university's and polytechnic's growth accelerated. Dunedin has continued to refurbish itself, embarking on redevelopments of the art gallery railway station and the Toitū Otago Settlers Museum.

The city has a population of.

Dunedin has flourishing niche industries including engineering, software engineering, bio-technology and fashion. Port Chalmers on the Otago Harbour provides Dunedin with deep-water facilities. It is served by the Port Chalmers Branch, a branch line railway which diverges from the Main South Line and runs from Christchurch by way of Dunedin to Invercargill. Dunedin is also home to MTF, the nationwide vehicle finance company.

The cityscape glitters with gems of Victorian and Edwardian architecture – the legacy of the city's gold-rush affluence. Many, including First Church, Otago Boys' High School and Larnach Castle were designed by one of New Zealand's most eminent architects R A Lawson. Other prominent buildings include Olveston and the Dunedin Railway Station. Other unusual or memorable buildings or constructions are Baldwin Street, claimed to be the world's steepest street; the Captain Cook tavern; Cadbury Chocolate Factory (Cadbury World); and the local Speight's brewery.

Dunedin is also a centre for ecotourism. The world's only mainland Royal Albatross colony and several penguin and seal colonies lie within the city boundaries on the Otago Peninsula. To the south, on the western side of Lake Waihola, are the Sinclair Wetlands.

The thriving tertiary student population has led to a vibrant youth culture (students are referred to as 'Scarfies' by people who are not students), consisting of the previously mentioned music scene, and more recently a burgeoning boutique fashion industry. A strong visual arts community also exists in Dunedin, notably in Port Chalmers and the other settlements which dot the coast of the Otago Harbour, and also in communities such as Waitati. Sport is catered for in Dunedin by the floodlit rugby and cricket venue of Forsyth Barr Stadium, the new Caledonian Ground soccer and athletics stadium near the University at Logan Park, the large Edgar Centre indoor sports centre, the University Oval cricket ground, the Dunedin Ice Stadium, and numerous golf courses and parks. There are also the Forbury Park horseracing circuit in the south of the city and several others within a few kilometres. St Clair Beach is a well-known surfing venue, and the harbour basin is popular with windsurfers and kitesurfers. Dunedin has four public swimming pools: Moana Pool, Port Chalmers Pool, Mosgiel, and St Clair Salt Water Pool.

Geography
Dunedin City has a land area of 3314.8 km2, slightly smaller than the American state of Rhode Island or the English county of Cambridgeshire, and a little smaller than Cornwall. It was the largest city in land area in New Zealand until the formation of the 5600 km2 Auckland Council on 1 November 2010. The Dunedin City Council boundaries since 1989 have extended to Middlemarch in the west, Waikouaiti in the north, the Pacific Ocean in the east and south-east, and the Waipori/Taieri River and the township of Henley in the south-west.

Dunedin is the farthest city in the world from London at 19100 km (90 km more than Invercargill, and 100 km more than Christchurch), and from Berlin at 18200 km. Its antipodes are some 300 km north of the Spanish city of A Coruña.

Inner city
The heart of the city lies on the relatively flat land to the west of the head of the Otago Harbour. Here is The Octagon – once a gully, filled in the mid nineteenth century to create the present plaza. The initial settlement of the city took place to the south on the other side of Bell Hill, a large outcrop which had to be reduced in order to provide easy access between the two parts of the settlement. The central city stretches away from this point in a largely northeast-southwest direction, with the main streets of George Street and Princes Street meeting at The Octagon. Here they are joined by Stuart Street, which runs orthogonally to them, from the Dunedin Railway Station in the southeast, and steeply up to the suburb of Roslyn in the northwest. Many of the city's notable old buildings are located in the southern part of this area and on the inner ring of lower hills which surround the central city (most of these hills, such as Maori Hill, Pine Hill, and Maryhill, rise to some 200 m above the plain).

Dunedin is home to Baldwin Street, which, according to the Guinness Book of Records, is the steepest street in the world. Its gradient is 1 in 2.9. The long since abandoned Maryhill Cablecar route had a similar gradient close to its Mornington depot.

Beyond the inner range of hills lie Dunedin's outer suburbs, notably to the northwest, beyond Roslyn. This direction contains Taieri Road and Three Mile Hill, which between them formed the original road route to the Taieri Plains. The modern State Highway 1 follows a different route, passing through Caversham in the west and out past Saddle Hill. Lying between Saddle Hill and Caversham are the outer suburbs of Green Island and Abbotsford. Between Green Island and Roslyn lies the steep-sided valley of the Kaikorai Stream, which is today a residential and light industrial area. Suburban settlements – mostly regarded as separate townships – also lie along both edges of the Otago Harbour. Notable among these are Portobello and Macandrew Bay, on the Otago Peninsula coast, and Port Chalmers on the opposite side of the harbour. Port Chalmers provides Dunedin's main deep-water port, including the city's container port.

The Dunedin skyline is dominated by a ring of (traditionally seven) hills which form the remnants of a volcanic crater. Notable among them are Mount Cargill (700 m), Flagstaff (680 m), Saddle Hill (480 m), Signal Hill (390 m), and Harbour Cone (320 m).

Hinterland
Dunedin's hinterland encompasses a variety of different landforms. To the southwest lie the Taieri Plains, the broad, fertile lowland floodplains of the Taieri River and its major tributary the Waipori. These are moderately heavily settled, and contain the towns of Mosgiel, East Taieri, and Allanton. They are separated from the coast by a range of low hills rising to some 300 m. Inland from the Taieri Plain is rough hill country. Close to the plain, much of this is forested, notably around Berwick and Lake Mahinerangi, and also around the Silverpeaks Range which lies northwest of the Dunedin urban area. Beyond this, the land becomes drier and opens out into grass and tussock-covered land. A high, broad valley, the Strath-Taieri lies in Dunedin's far northwest, containing the town of Middlemarch, one of the area's few concentrations of population.

To the north of the city's urban area is undulating hill country containing several small, mainly coastal, settlements, including Waitati, Warrington, Seacliff and Waikouaiti. State Highway 1 winds steeply through a series of hills here, notably The Kilmog. These hills can be considered a coastal extension of the Silverpeaks Range.

To the east, Dunedin City includes the entirety of the Otago Peninsula, a long finger of land that formed the southeastern rim of the Dunedin Volcano. The peninsula is lightly settled, almost entirely along the harbour coast, and much of it is maintained as a natural habitat by the Otago Peninsula Trust. The peninsula contains several fine beaches, and is home to a considerable number of rare species, such as penguins, seals, and shags. Most importantly, it contains the world's only mainland breeding colony of Royal Albatross, at Taiaroa Head on the peninsula's northeastern point.

List of suburbs
Inner suburbs

(clockwise from the city centre, starting at due north) Woodhaugh; Glenleith; Leith Valley; Dalmore; Liberton; Pine Hill; Normanby; Mt Mera; North East Valley; Opoho; Dunedin North; Ravensbourne; Highcliff; Shiel Hill; Challis; Waverley; Vauxhall; Ocean Grove (Tomahawk); Tainui; Andersons Bay; Musselburgh; South Dunedin; St Kilda; St Clair; Corstorphine; Kew; Forbury; Caversham; Concord; Maryhill; Kenmure; Mornington; Kaikorai Valley; City Rise; Belleknowes; Roslyn, Otago; Kaikorai; Wakari; Maori Hill.

Outer suburbs

(clockwise from the city centre, starting at due north) Burkes; Saint Leonards; Deborah Bay; Careys Bay; Port Chalmers; Sawyers Bay; Roseneath; Broad Bay; Company Bay; Macandrew Bay; Portobello; Burnside; Green Island; Waldronville; Brighton; Westwood; Brighton; Saddle Hill; Sunnyvale; Fairfield; Mosgiel; Abbotsford; Bradford; Brockville; Halfway Bush; Helensburgh.

Towns within city limits
(clockwise from the city centre, starting at due north) Waitati; Waikouaiti; Karitane; Seacliff; Warrington; Purakanui; Long Beach; Aramoana; Otakou; Taieri Mouth; Henley; Allanton; East Taieri; Momona; Outram; West Taieri; Waipori; Middlemarch; Hyde.

Since local council reorganisation in the late 1980s, these are suburbs, but are not commonly regarded as such.

Climate
The climate of Dunedin in general is temperate; however the city is recognised as having a large number of microclimates and the weather conditions often vary between suburbs mostly due to the city's topographical layout. It is also greatly modified by its proximity to the ocean. This leads to warm summers and relatively mild winters. Winter can occasionally be frosty but sunny, and significant snowfall is uncommon (perhaps every two or three years), except in the inland hill suburbs such as Halfway Bush and Wakari, which tend to receive a few days of snowfall each year. Spring can feature "four seasons in a day" weather, but from November to April it is generally settled and mild. Temperatures during summer can reach over 30 C

Dunedin has relatively low rainfall in comparison to many of New Zealand's cities, with only some 750 mm recorded per year. Despite this fact it is sometimes misguidedly regarded as a damp city, probably due to its rainfall occurring in drizzle or light rain (heavy rain is relatively rare). Dunedin is one of the cloudiest major centres in the country, recording approximately 1650 hours of bright sunshine per annum. Prevailing wind in the city is mainly a sometimes cool southwesterly and during late spring will alternate with northeasterlies. Warmer, dry northwest winds are also characteristic Foehn winds from the northwest. The circle of hills surrounding the inner city shelters the inner city from much of the prevailing weather, while hills just to the west of the city can often push inclement weather around to the west of the city.

Inland, beyond the heart of the city and into Inland Otago the climate is sub-continental: winters are quite cold and dry, summers hot and dry. Thick freezing ground fogs are common in winter in the upper reaches of the Taieri River's course around Middlemarch, and in summer the temperature occasionally reaches 30 C.

Demographics
Compared to New Zealand as a whole, Dunedin's demographics tend to show traits of the New Zealand education sector, largely caused by the city's high tertiary student population. These traits include a higher female population compared to males, a lower-than-average median age, a high proportion of people under 25 years, a higher proportion of people of European and Asian ethnicity and a lower proportion of Maori and Pacific Island ethnicities, higher unemployment, lower median income, and a higher proportion of those with school and post-school qualifications.

At the 2006 census, Dunedin City had a residential population of 118,683, an increase of 4,341, or 3.8 percent, since the 2001 census. There were 45,072 occupied dwellings, 3,615 unoccupied dwellings, and 240 dwellings under construction.

Of the residential population, 56,931 (48.0%) were male compared to 48.8% nationally, and 61,752 (52.0%) were female, compared to 51.2% nationally. The city had a median age of 35.0 years, 0.9 years below the national median age of 35.9 years. People aged 65 and over made up 13.4% of the population, compared to 12.3% nationally, and people under 15 years made up 16.8%, compared to 21.5% nationally. Due to the large tertiary education sector, people aged between 15 and 24 made up approximately 21.6% of the city's residential population.

Dunedin's ethnicity is made up of (national figures in brackets): 78.7% European (67.6%), 6.4% Maori (14.7%), 5.3% Asian (9.2%), 2.2% Pacific Islanders (6.9%), 0.7% Middle Eastern/Latin American/African (0.9%), 13.6% 'New Zealanders' (11.1%), and 0.04% Other (0.04%).

Dunedin had an unemployment rate of 6.1% of people 15 years and over, compared to 5.1% nationally. The median annual income of all people 15 years and over was $19,400, compared to $24,400 nationally. Of those, 51.2% earned under $20,000, compared to 43.2% nationally, while 13.4% earned over $50,000, compared to 18.0% nationally.

Local
The Dunedin City Council (DCC) governs the Dunedin City territorial authority. It is made up of an elected mayor, a deputy mayor/councillor, and 13 additional councillors. They are elected under the Single Transferable Vote system in triennial elections, with the most recent election held on 9 October 2010, and the next due on 12 October 2013.

As of 9 October 2010, the current council members are:-

Coat of Arms
The City of Dunedin has a Coat of Arms emblazoned; Argent above a Fess Dancette Vert, a Castle Triple-Towered Sable on a Rock issuing from the Fess, Masoned Argent, with Windows, Vanes and Portcullis Gules. In the base a Three-Masted Lymphad with Sail Furled Azure, Flagged of Scotland, a Ram's Head Affrontee Horned Or between Two Garbs of the last. Coronet: A Mural Crown. Supporters: On the dexter a Scotsman Habited with Philabeg and Plaid of the Clan Cameron, supporting in His Exterior Hand a Cromach; on the Sinister a Maori Chief Attired in Korowai, Two Huia Feathers in his hair, an Aurei and a Hei Matau and in His Exterior hand a Taiaha. All Proper. Motto: Maiorum Institutis Utendo. Translation of the Blazon. Firstly the shield is described. "Argent" means silver or white so this is the base colour of the shield. A "Fess" is a horizontal strip across the middle of the shield but "Dancette" means the edges of the fess are deeply set in a saw-tooth fashion. "Vert" means green so the fess is coloured green. Above this fess is placed a Castle with three towers. Sable means black so the castle is coloured black in outline. The castle is sitting on a rock which itself is sitting on the fess. The castle is made of stone ("masoned’) and has some windows, a portcullis (castle entry point) and flags ("vanes") and all these objects are coloured red ("gules".) The object in the base of the shield is next described. It is a three masted sailing ship ("Lymphad") on which the sail is furled as it would be when in a harbour. "Azure" means the ship is blue and the flag on the mast is the flag of Scotland (St Andrew’s Cross.) Then the objects on the fess are mentioned. These are; a Ram’s head and "affrontee" means it is facing forward, while "horned" means it is displaying horns coloured gold ("Or"). The head is placed between two wheat sheaves ("garbs") and of the last means that these are also coloured gold.

The "Mural Crown" is a crown made of masonry or bricks and this is placed above the shield. The Supporters are the persons on either side of the shield. On the dexter side which is the right side from the shield carrier’s view but the left side for a viewer, is a Scotsman. He is clothed ("habited") with a "Philabeg" which is a belted plaid consisting of two widths of material stitched together. The plaid or tartan is of the Cameron clan. In his "exterior hand" which is the one furtherest from the shield he holds a Cromach which is a shepherd’s crook. The other supporter is a Maori Chief dressed in a "Korowai" or waist cloak. He has two huia feathers in his hair, and also has an "Aurei" or greenstone ear pendant and a "Hei Matau" which is a greenstone neck pendant. In his Exterior hand is a "Taiaha" or spear. The "All Proper" means that everything pertaining to the supporters is depicted in their natural colours.

The Motto may be given in English as "By following in the steps of our forefathers." The compartment which is what the supporters stand on and to what the motto is attached is not normally part of the blazon but is left to the heraldic artist to decide.

National
Dunedin is covered by two general electorates: Dunedin North and Dunedin South, and one Maori electorate: Te Tai Tonga.

The city in general is a stronghold of the New Zealand Labour Party, having won the Dunedin-based electorate seats continuously since the 1978 election. As of the 2011 general election, both general electorates are held by the party, with David Clark representing Dunedin North and Clare Curran representing Dunedin South. The Maori electorate Te Tai Tonga, which covers the entire South Island and part of Wellington in the North Island, is currently also held by the Labour Party and represented by Rino Tirikatene.

In addition to electorate MPs, Dunedin is the home to two list MPs, both based in Dunedin North but representing both general electorates: Michael Woodhouse of the National Party, and Metiria Turei, co-leader of the Green Party.

Visual arts
Dunedin has a substantial public art gallery, the Dunedin Public Art Gallery, in the Octagon. The city contains numerous other galleries, including over a dozen dealer galleries (many of which are found south of the Octagon along Princes Street, Moray Place and Rattray Street. There are also several more experimental art spaces, notably the Blue Oyster Gallery in Moray Place.

Many notable artists have strong links with Dunedin, among them Ralph Hotere, Frances Hodgkins, Grahame Sydney, and Jeffrey Harris.

Theatre
Dunedin hosts the world's southernmost professional theatre company: The Fortune Theatre, as well as having a large theatre venue, the Regent Theatre in the Octagon. Smaller theatres in Dunedin include the Globe Theatre, the Mayfair Theatre, and the Playhouse Theatre.

Dance
Dunedin is a regular venue for touring ballet and dance companies, and also has multiple dance studios.

Choirs
Dunedin is home to many choirs. These include the following:
 * The 140-member City of Dunedin Choir is Dunedin's leading performer of large-scale choral works.
 * The Southern Consort of Voices is a smaller choir regularly performing Choral Works.
 * The Royal Dunedin Male Choir, conducted by Richard Madden, performs two concerts a year, and the Dunedin RSA Choir also regularly performs concerts.
 * The all-female Dunedin Harmony Singers are an important part of the Dunedin culture.
 * The Southern Children's Choir, based in Marama Hall in the university, is Dunedin's main children's choir. Most schools in Dunedin have choirs, many having more than one. Notable school choirs include the Sacred Heart School Choir, the Balmacewen Intermediate School Special Choir, the Barock Choir of Otago Boys' High School and Otago Girls' High School, and also the St. Hilda's Collegiate Madrigal Choir.
 * The Southern Youth Choir is a concert-based youth choir, as is the charitable Cothram Foirfe.
 * The University of Otago is home to three official choirs: the two chapel choirs (Knox and Selwyn), and the travelling Cantores choir.
 * Several Dunedin Churches and Cathedrals hold choirs. Among these are St. Joseph's Catholic Cathedral, home to two choirs: the Cathedral Choir and the Gabrieli Singers; Knox Church's large mixed gender choir for adults and children, the Knox Church Choir; St. John's Church, Roslyn's small mixed-gender parish choir; and St. Paul's Anglican Cathedral's mixed-gender adult choir.
 * The DunedinRed Cross Choir (of New Zealand Red Cross), conducted by Eleanor Moyle, is one of only three Red Cross choirs globally. Established in 1942, this choir performs regularly in Dunedin at various Rest Homes and holds an annual concert at the Kings and Queens Performing Arts Centre.

Instrumental classical and jazz ensembles
The Southern Sinfonia is a semi-professional orchestra based in Dunedin. Other instrumental ensembles include the Rare Byrds early music ensemble, the Collegiate Orchestra, and the Dunedin Youth Orchestra. Many schools also hold school orchestras and bands. There are also three brass bands in Dunedin: St. Kilda Brass, Kaikorai Brass,and Mosgiel Brass. The Otago Symphonic Band and City of Dunedin Pipe Band are also important Dunedin musical ensembles. Jazz bands include the City of Dunedin Jazz Orchestra, and the tricentenary 'Zimbe! Quintet'.

Popular music
Dunedin lends its name to the Dunedin Sound, a form of indie rock music which was created in the city in the 1980s. At that time, Dunedin was a fertile ground for bands, many of whom recorded on the Flying Nun Records label, based in Christchurch. Among the bands with strong Dunedin connections at this time were The Chills, The Clean, The Verlaines, The Bats, Sneaky Feelings, and Straitjacket Fits, all of which had significant followings throughout New Zealand and on the college radio circuit in the United States and Europe.

Major teams

 * The Highlanders – Super Rugby rugby union team (represents Otago, Southland and North Otago Rugby Unions)
 * Otago Rugby Football Union – ITM Cup rugby union team
 * Otago Volts and Otago Sparks – men's and women's cricket teams
 * Southern Steel – ANZ Championship netball team (represents Otago & Southland Netball- Based in Invercargill)
 * Otago United – association football team in the New Zealand Football Championship
 * Otago Nuggets – National Basketball League team
 * Dunedin Thunder- New Zealand Ice Hockey League team

Major grounds and stadiums

 * Caledonian Ground
 * Carisbrook
 * Dunedin Ice Stadium
 * The Edgar Centre
 * Forbury Park Raceway
 * Forsyth Barr Stadium at University Plaza
 * Logan Park
 * Moana Pool
 * Tonga Park
 * University Oval Notable for being the southernmost venue on the planet that hosts Test Cricket

Media
The major daily newspaper is the Otago Daily Times, which is also the country's oldest daily newspaper and part of the Allied Press group. Weekly and bi-weekly community newspapers include The Star, Taieri Herald, D-Scene, *INK (successor to the now defunct f*INK) (entertainment), and student magazines Critic (University of Otago) and Gyro (Otago Polytechnic).

The city is served by all major national radio and television stations. The city's main terrestrial television (analogue and digital) and FM radio transmitter sits atop Mount Cargill, north of the city, while the city's main AM transmitter is located at Highcliff, east of the city centre on the Otago Peninsula. Local radio stations include Radio Dunedin, community station Toroa Radio (formerly Hills AM), and the university's radio station, Radio One. The city has one local television station, Channel 9, part of Allied Press.

The city is home to several prominent media-related production companies, notably Natural History New Zealand and Taylormade Media. Dunedin was the location of one of the four television broadcasting installations established in the sixties by the NZBC, operating under the name DNTV2.

The city was once home to the head offices of Radio Otago – now called RadioWorks (part of Mediaworks) and based in Auckland. It was also formerly the home to several now-defunct newspapers, prominent among which were the Otago Witness and the Evening Star.

Transport
The Dunedin urban area is served by two State Highways, with an additional two State Highways and one tourist route serving other parts of the district. The main State Highway in Dunedin is State Highway 1, which runs in a north to south-west direction through the middle of the city, connecting Dunedin with Invercargill to the south and Timaru and Christchurch to the north. Between The Oval and Mosgiel, State Highway 1 follows the eleven-kilometre Dunedin Southern Motorway. Other State Highways in the city are: State Highway 86 connecting SH 1 at Allanton with Dunedin International Airport, State Highway 87 connecting SH 1 at Kinmont with SH 85 at Kyeburn via Middlemarch, serving the Dunedin city hinterland, and State Highway 88 connecting central Dunedin to the citys port facilities at Port Chalmers. Dunedin is the northeastern terminus of the Southern Scenic Route, a tourist highway connecting Dunedin to Te Anau via The Catlins, Invercargill and Fiordland.



Buses in Dunedin are organised by the Otago Regional Council under the GoBus brand. A total of 64 buses operate on 17 weekday routes and 13 weeknight/weekend/holiday routes across the city. Buses are run by two operators, Ritchies Transport with two routes and private Invercargill-based operator Passenger Transport with the remainders. Dunedin City Council-owned operator Citibus was a major player until 2011 when Passenger Transport(New Zealand) purchased Citibus from Dunedin City Holdings. In addition, Mosgiel Coach Services operate a loop service in Mosgiel on weekdays, and a Concord - Kaikorai -City Centre - University service.

Dunedin Railway Station, located east of the Octagon, is the city's main railway station. Once the nation's busiest, decline in rail over the years saw the withdrawal of most services. Suburban services ceased in 1982, and the last regular commercial passenger train to serve Dunedin, The Southerner, was cancelled in February 2002. The Taieri Gorge Railway currently operates tourist-orientated services from the station, the most prominent of which is the Taieri Gorge Limited, a popular and famous train operated daily along the former Otago Central Railway through the scenic Taieri Gorge. Taieri Gorge Railway also operates to Palmerston once weekly. The station is also sometimes visited by excursions organised by other heritage railway societies, and by trains chartered by cruise ships docking at Port Chalmers.

Dunedin International Airport is located 30 km southwest of the city, on the Taieri Plains at Momona. The airport operates a single terminal and 1900 m runway, and is the third-busiest airport in the South Island, after Christchurch and Queenstown. It is primarily used for domestic flights, with regular flights to and from Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington, Rotorua, Palmerston North, and seasonal flights to and from Queenstown, Wanaka, and Fiordland, but it also has international flights arriving from and departing to Brisbane year round and seasonally to Sydney and Melbourne. In recent years, a decline in International passengers can be attributed to less international flights operating direct to the airport. Ferries operated between Port Chalmers and Portobello in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Occasional calls have been made to revive them, and a non-profit organisation, Otago ferries Inc., has been set up to examine the logistics of restoring one of the original ferries and again using it for this route.

In 1866, plans were made for a bridge across the Otago Harbour between Port Chalmers and Portobello, but this grand scheme for an 1140-metre structure never eventuated. Plans were also mooted during the 1870s for a canal between the Pacific coast at Tomahawk and Andersons Bay, close to the head of the harbour. This scheme also never came to fruition.

Annual events

 * January – Whare Flat Folk Festival ends
 * January – Southern Festival of Speed classic car road-race
 * February – New Zealand Masters Games (Biennial event)
 * February – Otago University Students' Association & Otago Polytechnic Orientation Weeks
 * February – Dunedin Summer Festival
 * March – Fringe Festival
 * March – Id Dunedin Fashion Show (to be run in early April in 2010)
 * May – Capping week (University of Otago) including the Capping Show run by the Otago University Students' Association
 * May – Otago Rally
 * May – Regent Theatre 24-hour book sale (reputedly the southern hemisphere's largest regularly held second-hand book sale)
 * June - Dunedin Midwinter Carnival
 * July – New Zealand International Science Festival (every second year)
 * July – Taste Otago Dunedin Food and Wine Festival
 * July – Cadbury Chocolate Carnival
 * July- Dunedin International Film Festival
 * August/September The German play at Otago University
 * September - Moro Marathon
 * October – Otago Festival of the Arts – every second year (even numbered years)
 * October – Rhododendron Week
 * December – Samstock Music Festival
 * December – Santa Parade
 * December – Whare Flat Folk Festival begins
 * December – New Year's Eve Party Octagon

Past events

 * 1865 – New Zealand Exhibition (1865)
 * 1889 – New Zealand and South Seas Exhibition (1889)
 * 1898 – Otago Jubilee Industrial Exhibition (1898)
 * 1925 – New Zealand and South Seas International Exhibition (1925)

Main sights

 * Dunedin Railway Station
 * Dunedin Town Hall
 * Larnach Castle
 * Cargill's Castle
 * Cadbury World
 * Olveston
 * Speight's Brewery
 * University of Otago Registry Building
 * University of Otago Clocktower complex
 * Regent Theatre
 * Fortune Theatre
 * Allied Press Building
 * Dunedin Public Hospital
 * The Octagon

Museums, art galleries, and libraries

 * Otago Museum
 * Toitū Otago Settlers Museum
 * Dunedin Public Art Gallery
 * Dunedin Public Libraries
 * Hocken Library

Churches

 * All Saints Church
 * Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
 * First Church
 * Hanover Street Baptist Church
 * Kaikorai Presbyterian Church
 * Knox Church
 * St. Joseph's Cathedral
 * St. Paul's Cathedral
 * Trinity Wesleyan Church – now the Fortune Theatre

Parks and gardens

 * Botanical Gardens
 * Dunedin Chinese Garden

Tertiary

 * University of Otago
 * Otago Polytechnic
 * Aoraki Polytechnic (Dunedin campus)
 * Dunedin College of Education
 * Dunedin College of Education

Secondary

 * Bayfield High School
 * Otago Boys' High School
 * Otago Girls' High School
 * Columba College
 * St. Hilda's Collegiate School
 * John McGlashan College
 * Kavanagh College
 * Logan Park High School
 * Kaikorai Valley College
 * King's High School
 * Queen's High School
 * Taieri College

Twin towns – Sister cities
Dunedin is twinned with several cities throughout the world. These include:
 * 🇬🇧 Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom (1974)
 * 🇯🇵 Otaru, Shiribeshi Subprefecture, Hokkaido
 * 🇺🇸 Portsmouth, Virginia
 * 🇨🇳 Shanghai (1994)