taree is a town on the mid north coast, new south wales, australia. taree was colonized in 1831 by william wynter. the name taree is derived from "tareebit", a word from the native language biripi word which means "tree by the river", or more specifically, the sandpaper fig ("ficus coronata"). according to the australian census, the estimated population in the locality in the year 2016 is 16,197 people.