Wanganui, << `WAHNG` guh NOO ee >> (pop. 45,309), is a district on the southwest coast of the North Island of New Zealand at the mouth of the Wanganui River. Wanganui is the market center for a large farming area. The first European settlement was made in 1841 by the New Zealand Company, which saw potential for transportation on the 197-mile-long (317-kilometer-long) Wanganui River.
