New Zealand

New Zealand
Krasimira Krasteva XIa

1 3 5
The land The people The economy
2 4 6
The history The geography The culture

The land
New Zealand is an island

country in the southwestern
Pacific Ocean. It consists of
two main landmasses - the
North Island and the South
Island - and over 700 smaller
islands. It is the sixth-largest
island country by area,
covering 268,021 square
kilometers. New Zealand's
capital city is Wellington, and
its most populous city is
New Zealand
Auckland.
James Cook’s map
The history
 New Zealand is one of the last major landmasses settled by humans.
Evidence of deforestation and mitochondrial DNA variability within Māori
populations suggest that Eastern Polynesians first settled the New Zealand
archipelago between 1250 and 1300.
 In a hostile 1642 encounter between Māori and Dutch explorer Abel
Tasman's crew, four of Tasman's crew members were killed, and at least
one Māori was hit by canister shot. Europeans did not revisit New Zealand
until 1769, when British explorer James Cook mapped almost the entire
coastline.
 Following Cook, New Zealand was visited by numerous European and North
American whaling, sealing, and trading ships. They traded European food,
metal tools, weapons, and other goods for timber, Māori food, artefacts,
and water. The introduction of the potato and the musket transformed A meeting of European and
Māori agriculture and warfare. Māori inhabitants
 The British Government appointed James Busby as British Resident to New
Zealand in 1832. In 1840, the first British colony appeared in Wellington.
 The arrival of European colonists led to the period of the New Zealand Wars,
which lasted from 1845 to 1872 and ended with the defeat of the native
population and peace.
 In 1907, at the request of the New Zealand Parliament, King Edward VII
proclaimed New Zealand a Dominion within the British Empire, reflecting its
self-governing status.
The people
 The population in 2018 was 4,699,755. As of January 2023,
the total population has risen to an estimated 5,137,610.
 Auckland, with over 1.4 million residents, is by far the
largest city.
 The median age of the population was 37.4 years.
 71.8% of New Zealand residents identified ethnically as
European, and 16.5% as Māori. Other major ethnic
groups include Asian (15.3%) and Pacific peoples (9.0%).
 English is the predominant language in New Zealand,
spoken by 95.4% of the population.
 Samoan is the most widely spoken non-official language
(2.2%), followed by "Northern Chinese" (2.0%), Hindi
(1.5%), and French(1.2%).
 New Zealand Sign Language was reported to be
understood by 22,986 people (0.5%); it became one of
New Zealand's official languages in 2006
The geography
 New Zealand is made up of two main islands
and more than 700 smaller islands.
 The South Island is the largest landmass and
it is divided along its length by the Southern
Alps. There are 18 peaks over 3,000 meters.
 The North Island is less mountainous but is
marked by volcanism.
 New Zealand's climate is predominantly
temperate maritime, with mean annual
temperatures ranging from 10 °C in the
south to 16 °C in the north. The general snow
season is early June until early October,
though cold snaps can occur outside this
season.
The economy
New Zealand has an advanced market economy, ranked 14th
in the 2019 Human Development Index and fourth in the 2022
Index of Economic Freedom. It is a high-income economy with
a nominal gross domestic product (GDP) per capita of
US$36,254.
Historically, extractive industries have contributed strongly to
New Zealand's economy, focusing at different times on
sealing, whaling, flax, gold, kauri gum, and native timber.
New Zealand's main trading partners, as at June 2018, are
China, Australia, the European Union, the United States, and
Japan.
The establishment of universities in the 19th century fostered
scientific discoveries by notable New Zealanders including
Ernest Rutherford for splitting the atom, William Pickering for
rocket science, Maurice Wilkins for helping discover DNA,
Beatrice Tinsley for galaxy formation, Archibald McIndoe for
plastic surgery, and Alan MacDiarmid for conducting polymers.
The flag of New Zealand.
A Boeing 787–9 Dreamliner of Milford Sound is one of New

Air New Zealand, the flag Zealand's most famous
carrier of New Zealand tourist destinations.
Waterfront along Auckland, a Wool has historically been one

major hub of economic activity of New Zealand's major exports.
The culture
Early Māori adapted the tropically based east Polynesian culture in line with the
challenges associated with a larger and more diverse environment, eventually
developing their own distinctive culture. Social organization was largely communal with
families, subtribes and tribes ruled by a chief, whose position was subject to the
community's approval. The British and Irish immigrants brought aspects of their own
culture to New Zealand and also influenced Māori culture, particularly with the
introduction of Christianity. More recently, American, Australian, Asian and other
European cultures have exerted influence.
The culture
Māori decorated the white wood of buildings,
canoes and cenotaphs using red and black paint and
painted pictures of birds, reptiles and other designs on
cave walls. Māori tattoos consisting of colored soot mixed
with gum were cut into the flesh with a bone chisel. Since
European arrival paintings and photographs have been
dominated by landscapes, originally not as works of art
but as factual portrayals of New Zealand.
Māori quickly adopted writing as a means of sharing
ideas, and many of their oral stories and poems were
converted to the written form. Most early English
literature was obtained from Britain, and it was not until
the 1950s when local publishing outlets increased that
New Zealand literature started to become widely known.
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New Zealand

Krasimira Krasteva XIa

The land The people The economy

The history The geography The culture

New Zealand is an island

A Boeing 787–9 Dreamliner of Milford Sound is one of New

Waterfront along Auckland, a Wool has historically been one

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