Punaʻauia

Punaʻauia
Punaʻauia, in the southern suburbs of Papeʻete
Location of the commune (in red) within the Windward Islands
Location of Punaʻauia
Coordinates: 17°38′S 149°36′W / 17.63°S 149.60°W / -17.63; -149.60
CountryFrance
Overseas collectivityFrench Polynesia
SubdivisionWindward Islands
Government
  Mayor (20202026) Simplicio Lissant
Area
1
75.9 km2 (29.3 sq mi)
Population
 (2022)
28,781
  Density380/km2 (980/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC−10:00
INSEE/Postal code
98738 /98718
Elevation0–2,241 m (0–7,352 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Punaʻauia is a commune in the suburbs of Papeʻete in French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. Punaʻauia is located on the island of Tahiti, in the administrative subdivision of the Windward Islands, themselves part of the Society Islands. In the late 1890s, the French painter Paul Gauguin lived in Punaʻauia. Here he painted his masterpiece Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going?. The commune borders Faʻaʻā on the north and Pāʻea on the south.