New Zealand

New Zealand

Facts

Facts

Official language: English, Maori, and New Zealand Sign Language Capital city: Wellington Currency: New Zealand dollar Head ofstate: Queen Elizabeth II, but she's represented by governor Patsy Reddy Population: 4 510 327 Type of the country: kingdom (monarchy)

Symbols

It's inspired by Australian flag, which was inspired by Britich flag. The stripes in the top left corner are Union Jack, and these four stars symbolize the Southern Cross

The first quarter of the shield shows four stars that represent the Southern Cross, then the rest of symbols in quarters symbolize different industries.

The anthem of New Zealand is God Defend New Zealand, as well as God Save the Queen. Music to God Defend New Zealand was created by John Joseph Woods.

Geography

New Zealand is located on the south east of Australia. This country isn't big, the surface is only 268 680 km²

Geography

The country comprises two main islands, the North and South islands, and a number of small islands, some of them hundreds of miles from the main group. As you can see from the colors on the image, there are mainly mountains on the island. New Zealand is a country of contrasts, active volcanoes, beautiful lakes, verdant valleys, long sandy beaches, and the spectacular snowcapped peaks of the Southern Alps. The hottest months are January and February, the coldest ones are July and August. Average temperature in February is about 20°C, in July it's 11°C.

Beautiful places

Highest mountain - Mount Cook (3 724m)

Most active volcano - White Island

Deepest lake - lake Hauroko (463m)

Cities

As it is shown in the picture, most of the cities are located on the coasts. There aren't almost any towns in the center of both the islands, that's because there are mountains. Althought Wellington is the capital city, Auckland is the biggest one. In Wellington live about 1,285,000 less people than in Auckland!

Animals and plants found only in New Zealand!

Unique animals

Kiwi - New Zealand's national bird. Standing up to 18 inches high, the kiwi is a majestic yet flightless bird, whose closest relative is the elephant bird of Madagascar (photo 1) Maui dolphin and Hector's dolphin - the smallest dolphin in the world, they aren't longer than 1,5m (photo 2) Yellow-eyed penguin - the largest penguin on the mainland. It is a tall, thickset bird that can give a loud cry (photo 3) Tuatara - last survivor of a reptile species that flourished 200 million years ago. But don’t get visions of velociraptors from Jurassic Park: the tuatara is about two feet long. (photo 4) -N -,bw (

Iconic plants

Silver fern - medium-sized tree fern that is considered as a symbol of New Zealand. (photo 1) Kōwhai - (which means yellow in Maori language) - one of the most well-known plant in New Zealand. (photo 2) Cabbage tree - (cabbage palm) grows throughout the country and can reach a height of 20 meters. (photo 3) Manuka - flowering plant that is green all the year. It can grow up to 15 meters. (photo 4) -

History

Beginning

The first people who arrived in New Zealand were ancestors of the Māori. The first settlers probably arrived from Polynesia between 1200 and 1300 AD. The first European to arrive in New Zealand was the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman in 1642. The name New Zealand comes from the Dutch ‘Nieuw Zeeland’, the name first given by a Dutch mapmaker. Many years later (127) another Europeans visited New Zealand. This time it was Captain James Cook who arrived there in 1769. After that, the country started being visited regularly by many sailors.In 1830 the country became Brittish colony.

Ending of the 19th century and beginnig of the 20th century

Māori came under increasing pressure from European settlers to sell their land for settlement. This led to conflict and, in the 1860s, war broke out in the North Island.A lot of Māori land was taken or bought by the government during or after 20 years of war.Meanwhile, in the South Island settlements things were going very well. In the late 1890s, their turned down the chance to join the Australian Federation. Instead, New Zealand became an independent Dominion in 1907.

World war I

Thousands of New Zealanders served and died overseas in the First World War.The 1915 landing at Gallipoli in Turkey is regarded as a coming of age for this country. It established the tradition of ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) and a pride in New Zealand’s military achievement and its special relationship with Australia.

World war II

New Zealand troops fought overseas again in the Second World War in support of the United Kingdom. However, the fall of Singapore shook New Zealanders’ confidence that Britain could guarantee the country’s security.With most of their forces effectively stranded in Egypt and the Middle East, it was the United States that protected New Zealand against Japan during the war in the Pacific.

Timeline

1200-1300

1915

1830

1642

1907

1939 - 1945

First European in New Zealand - Abel Tasman

First people in New Zealand - Maori

New Zealand became Britisch colony

New Zealand became an independent

World war I and signing ANZAC

World War II

Culture

Ethnic groups

New Zealand has started becoming more multicultural country after 1980, that's when many people decided to settle there. According to data from 2013, 25% of people living in New Zealand were born abroad, 15% are Māori,over 12% are Asian, and over 7% are from Pacific Island nations. Hindi is the fourth most common language in New Zealand, after English, Māori and Samoan.

Religion

According to information from 2018, 49% of people in New Zealand don't believe in any religion, 37% are Christians, 3% says they're Hindus, over 1% of people believe in Islam,also 1% says that they're Buddhists, less than 1% believe in Sikhism, and 7% are undeclared.

Traditional food

Whitebait Fritters - collective term for immature fish, usually around one to two inches long. Think of them as a fishy omelette. It's conidered being a sin not to eat them when you're there!

Manuka honey -Highly-sought on the international markets, manuka honey is acclaimed for its medicinal purposes. v

Savoury pies -Pies with savoury fillings like mince and cheese, minced meat, steak and cheese, and even fish pies are the go-to lunch at any gas station or bakery!

Hokey Pokey ice cream - vanilla ice cream with small pieces of honeycomb toffee. New Zealanders prefer it over pretty much anything!

Jaffas -small sugar-coated chocolate balls with an orange flavour. People from New Zealand love them so much that once a year there is “Jaffa Race” in Dunedin where the candy is rolled down the steep street.

Paua -local name for a large sea snail. You can eat paua in a variety of ways from plain old raw to curries to paua fritters.

Famous people

Peter Jackson - film director, producer, and screenwriter

Neil Finn - musician, leader of the rock band Crowded House

Lorde - pop and alternative rock singer

Jonah Lomu - rugby player, he represents his country

Ernest Rutherford - nuclear physicist

Russell Crowe - actor

Language

New Zealanders speak very quickly and use a lot of slang. Even if English is your native language, this can be confusing. Do not be afraid to ask people to slow down, or to repeat or explain what they said. To get used to the New Zealand accent, the best way is of course listening to some radio broadcasts. You could also watch some New Zealand films and television programmes online.fjyhf

The haka

It's a traditional Maori war dance. It has been immortalised by New Zealand's rugby team All Blacks, but it's also celebrated by other local cultures. In the past, this pre-battle war dance was supposed to make their opponets scared.

Holidays and traditions

The hongi

It's a personal, customary greeting, usually saved up for special occasions. The pressing of noses and foreheads is how this physical greeting is exchanged. This symbolises the passing of the breath of life (‘te ha’ in Maori) from one person to another. A hongi is common practice when welcoming visitors onto Maori grounds, as well as within traditional ceremonies.

Te Matatini festival

First held in 1972, celebrates Maori culture, especially the traditional dance and song performances known as kapa haka. The festival is held over several days, each time in a different region of New Zealand, and culminates in the national kapa haka championship.

Gumboot day

Every year since 1985, people living in a small town Taihape celebrate Gumboot Day. It's a day when people have a lot of fun with their families an d friends. There is a gumboot throwing contest! Everybody trie to brake world record for the longest gumboot throw. This iconic festival is organised on the Tuesday after Easter. The city where the Gumboot Day is organised is i proud to call itself ‘the gumboot capital of the world‘!

Tourist attractions

Abel Tasman National Park

Whanganui National Park

Tongariro National Park

Nelson Lakes National Park

Matamata

The scenes from Lord of Rings and Hobbit were filmed in this town!

Larnach Castle

Interesting facts

Women's rights

New Zealand was the first country in the world to give women voting rights. It happened in 1893!

Sunrise

New Zealand is the first country to see the sunrise!

Volcanos

New Zealand is placed on Pacific Ring of Fire. There are 53 volcanos in this country!

Clear water

The Blue Lake, in the Nelson Lakes National Park, currently holds the record for having the clearest waters in the world!

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Cheese and butter

New Zealanders love cheese and butter. This country produces the equivalent of 100 kg of butter and 65 kg of cheese each year for every person in New Zealand!

Sources

https://theculturetrip.com/pacific/new-zealand/articles/11-awesome-native-animals-you-can-only-see-in-new-zealand/ https://media.newzealand.com/en/story-ideas/iconic-new-zealand-native-flora/ https://www.gorentals.co.nz/explore/blog/new-zealand-facts/ https://theculturetrip.com/pacific/new-zealand/articles/7-traditions-only-new-zealanders-understand/ https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/live-in-new-zealand/history-government/a-brief-history https://www.newzealand.com/int/national-parks/ https://nzpocketguide.com/new-zealand-food/

Thanks for watching!

Laura Łukasiewicz 8b SP14