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New Zealand's Maori name is Aotearoa. It is part of Oceania, but not part of Australia!  It's believed Maori arrived in New Zealand around one thousand years ago, from Hawaiiki. Dutch explorer Abel Tasman caught sight of the South Island in 1642. Though whalers were here earlier, it wasn't till the late 1830s/early 1840s that huge amounts of English, Irish and Scottish settlers left their homelands for good and made the three or four month journey to the bottom of the world. England's Queen Elizabeth holds the title of Queen of New Zealand, and is represented by a Governor General. Declaring independence in 1947, New Zealand remains part of the Commonwealth but as an independent country. In 1893, New Zealand was the first country in the world to grant women the right to vote. New Zealanders drive on the left. The three main islands are the imaginatively-named North Island, South Island, and Stewart Island at the southernmost end. The North Island is smaller than the South Island and has the largest city of Auckland, and the capital, Wellington which is more or less central to the whole country. Being further away from the cold South Pole, the North Island is warmer than the South Island and the far north enjoys a sub-tropical climate. Three quarters of the population live in the North Island. The centre of the island is primarily a volcanic landscape with vast forests, volcanic peaks, and picturesque lakes. The eastern side of the island is covered with vineyards. The South Island is more rugged and has glaciers, the Southern Alps and a wonderful goldrush heritage. The West Coast has a coalmining history. New Zealand's outlying islands are the Chathams, Kermadec, Norfolk, and sub-Antarctic Islands. Wellington, known affectionately as "Welly" by Wellingtonians and "Windy Wellington" by non-Wellingtonians. A beautiful, quirky city, with narrow and winding steep streets. And yes, I'm a Wellingtonian! MAIN CITIES Wellington, Dunedin, Christchurch, Auckland (the largest). POPULATION A bit over four million. OFFICIAL LANGUAGES English & Maori. ETHNIC GROUPS Pakeha - Kiwis of British/European descent (bulk of population) Maori - Kiwis of Polynesian descent Pacific Islander Asian SIZE 269,000 square kilometres. CLIMATE Not really hot and not really cold, though some summer days can be scorchers and some winter days well below freezing. Not excessively dry and not excessively wet, though some places are wetter (South Island's West Coast) and some drier (North Island's East Coast) than others. Temperatures are read in Celsius. North Island's average temperature is about 15 degrees, and 10 degrees for the South Island. It rarely goes higher than 35 degrees or under -10. Snow usually falls only in the mountains though it has been known to fall at lower altitudes. The coldest wind is a southerly, direct from the South Pole. Seasons are the opposite of the northern hemisphere (i.e. NZ winter = Canadian summer). CURRENCY Changed from pounds, shillings and pence to decimal currency in 1967. New Zealand dollar = one hundred cents. Coins: 10 cent, 20 cent, 50 cent, $1, $2. Notes: $5, $10, $20, $50, $100. WEIGHTS/MEASUREMENTS Once imperial inches, feet, yards, miles etc; now decimal millimetres, centimetres, metres, kilometres etc. |
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Where did you say New Zealand is? |