New Zealand (Māori: Aotearoa [aɔˈtɛaɾɔa]) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island

New Zealand (Māori: Aotearoa [aɔˈtɛaɾɔa]) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island (Te Ika-a-Māui) and the South Island (Te Waipounamu)—and more than 700 smaller islands,[12] covering a total area of 268,021 square kilometres (103,500 sq mi). New Zealand is about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and 1,000 kilometres (600 mi) south of the islands of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga. The country's varied topography and sharp mountain peaks, including the Southern Alps, owe much to tectonic uplift and volcanic eruptions. New Zealand's capital city is Wellington, and its most populous city is Auckland. Owing to their remoteness, the islands of New Zealand were the last large habitable lands to be settled by humans. Between about 1280 and 1350, Polynesians began to settle in the islands and then developed a distinctive Māori culture. In 1642, the Dutch explorer, Abel Tasman, became the first European to sight New Zealand. In 1840, representatives of the United Kingdom and Māori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, which declared British sovereignty over the islands. In 1841, New Zealand became a colony within the British Empire, and in 1907 it became a dominion; it gained full statutory independence in 1947, and the British monarch remained the head of state. Today, the majority of New Zealand's population of 5 million is of European descent; the indigenous Māori are the largest minority, followed by Asians and Pacific Islanders. Reflecting this, New Zealand's culture is mainly derived from Māori and early British settlers, with recent broadening arising from increased immigration. The official languages are English, Māori, and New Zealand Sign Language, with English being dominant. A developed country, New Zealand ranks highly in international comparisons, particularly in education, protection of civil liberties, government transparency, and economic freedom. It underwent major economic changes during the 1980s, which transformed it from a protectionist to a liberalised free-trade economy. The service sector dominates the national economy, followed by the industrial sector, and agriculture; international tourism is a significant source of revenue. Nationally, legislative authority is vested in an elected, unicameral Parliament, while executive political power is exercised by the Cabinet, led by the prime minister, currently Jacinda Ardern. Queen Elizabeth II is the country's monarch and is represented by a governor-general, currently Dame Patsy Reddy. In addition, New Zealand is organised into 11 regional councils and 67 territorial authorities for local government purposes. The Realm of New Zealand also includes Tokelau (a dependent territory); the Cook Islands and Niue (self-governing states in free association with New Zealand); and the Ross Dependency, which is New Zealand's territorial claim in Antarctica. New Zealand is a member of the United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, ANZUS, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, ASEAN Plus Six, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, the Pacific Community and the Pacific Islands Forum. Contents 1    Etymology 2    History 3    Government and politics 3.1    Foreign relations and military 3.2    Local government and external territories 4    Geography and environment 4.1    Climate 4.2    Biodiversity 5    Economy 5.1    Trade 5.2    Infrastructure 5.3    Science and technology 6    Demography 6.1    Ethnicity and immigration 6.2    Language 6.3    Religion 6.4    Education 7    Culture 7.1    Art 7.2    Literature 7.3    Media and entertainment 7.4    Sport 7.5    Cuisine 8    See also 9    Footnotes 10    Citations 11    References 12    Further reading 13    External links Etymology Further information: New Zealand place names Brown square paper with Dutch writing and a thick red, curved line Detail from a 1657 map showing the western coastline of "Nova Zeelandia". (In this map, north is at the bottom.) The first European visitor to New Zealand, Dutch explorer Abel Tasman, named the islands Staten Land, believing they were part of the Staten Landt that Jacob Le Maire had sighted off the southern end of South America.[13][14] Hendrik Brouwer proved that the South American land was a small island in 1643, and Dutch cartographers subsequently renamed Tasman's discovery Nova Zeelandia, from Latin, after the Dutch province of Zeeland.[13][15] This name was later anglicised to "New Zealand".[16][17] This was written as Nu Tireni in the Māori language. In 1834 a document written in Māori and entitled "He Wakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni" was translated into English and became the Declaration of the Independence of New Zealand. It was prepared by Te W(h)akaminenga o Nga Rangatiratanga o Nga Hapu o Nu Tireni, the United Tribes of New Zealand, and a copy was sent to King William IV who had already acknowledged the flag of the United Tribes of New Zealand, and who recognised the Declaration in a letter from Lord Glenelg.[18][19] Aotearoa (pronounced [aɔˈtɛaɾɔa] in Māori and /ˌaʊtɛəˈroʊ.ə/ in English; often translated as "land of the long white cloud")[20] is the current Māori name for New Zealand. It is unknown whether Māori had a name for the whole country before the arrival of Europeans, with Aotearoa originally referring to just the North Island.[21] Māori had several traditional names for the two main islands, including Te Ika-a-Māui (the fish of Māui) for the North Island and Te Waipounamu (the waters of greenstone) or Te Waka o Aoraki (the canoe of Aoraki) for the South Island.[22] Early European maps labelled the islands North (North Island), Middle (South Island) and South (Stewart Island / Rakiura).[23] In 1830, mapmakers began to use "North" and "South" on their maps to distinguish the two largest islands, and by 1907 this was the accepted norm.[17] The New Zealand Geographic Board discovered in 2009 that the names of the North Island and South Island had never been formalised, and names and alternative names were formalised in 2013. This set the names as North Island or Te Ika-a-Māui, and South Island or Te Waipounamu.[24] For each island, either its English or Māori name can be used, or both can be used together.[24] History Main article: History of New Zealand One set of arrows point from Taiwan to Melanesia to Fiji/Samoa and then to the Marquesas Islands. The population then spread, some going south to New Zealand and others going north to Hawai'i. A second set start in southern Asia and end in Melanesia. The Māori people descend from Polynesians whose ancestors emigrated from Taiwan to Melanesia between 3000 and 1000 BCE and then travelled east, reaching the Society Islands c. 1000 CE. After a pause of 200 to 300 years, a new wave of exploration led to the discovery and settlement of New Zealand.[25][26][27] New Zealand is one of the last major landmasses settled by humans. Radiocarbon dating, evidence of deforestation[28] and mitochondrial DNA variability within Māori populations[29] suggest that Eastern Polynesians first settled the New Zealand archipelago between 1250 and 1300,[22][30] although newer archaeological and genetic research points to a date no earlier than about 1280, with at least the main settlement period between about 1320 and 1350,[31][32] consistent with evidence based on genealogical traditions.[33][34] This represented a culmination in a long series of voyages through the Pacific islands.[35] Over the centuries that followed, the Polynesian settlers developed a distinct culture now known as Māori. The population formed different iwi (tribes) and hapū (subtribes) which would sometimes cooperate, sometimes compete and sometimes fight against each other.[36] At some point, a group of Māori migrated to Rēkohu, now known as the Chatham Islands, where they developed their distinct Moriori culture.[37][38] The Moriori population was all but wiped out between 1835 and 1862, largely because of Taranaki Māori invasion and enslavement in the 1830s, although European diseases also contributed. In 1862 only 101 survived, and the last known full-blooded Moriori died in 1933.[39] An engraving of a sketched coastline on white background Map of the New Zealand coastline as Cook charted it on his first visit in 1769–70. The track of the Endeavour is also shown. In a hostile 1642 encounter,[40] four of Dutch explorer Abel Tasman's crew members were killed, and at least one Māori was hit by canister shot.[41] Europeans did not revisit New Zealand until 1769 when British explorer James Cook mapped almost the entire coastline.[40] 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.[42] The introduction of the potato and the musket transformed Māori agriculture and warfare. Potatoes provided a reliable food surplus, which enabled longer and more sustained military campaigns.[43] The resulting intertribal Musket Wars encompassed over 600 battles between 1801 and 1840, killing 30,000–40,000 Māori.[44] From the early 19th century, Christian missionaries began to settle New Zealand, eventually converting most of the Māori population.[45] The Māori population declined to around 40% of its pre-contact level during the 19th century; introduced diseases were the major factor.[46] A torn sheet of paper The Waitangi sheet from the Treaty of Waitangi In 1788 Captain Arthur Phillip assumed the position of Governor of the new British colony of New South Wales which according to his commission included New Zealand.[47] The British Government appointed James Busby as British Resident to New Zealand in 1832 following a petition from northern Māori.[48] In 1835, following an announcement of impending French settlement by Charles de Thierry, the nebulous United Tribes of New Zealand sent a Declaration of Independence to King William IV of the United Kingdom asking for protection.[48] Ongoing unrest, the proposed settlement of New Zealand by the New Zealand Company (which had already sent its first ship of surveyors to buy land from Māori) and the dubious legal standing of the Declaration of Independence prompted the Colonial Office to send Captain William Hobson to claim sovereignty for the United Kingdom and negotiate a treaty with the Māori.[49] The Treaty of Waitangi was first signed in the Bay of Islands on 6 February 1840.[50] In response to the New Zealand Company's attempts to establish an independent settlement in Wellington[51] and French settlers purchasing land in Akaroa,[52] Hobson declared British sovereignty over all of New Zealand on 21 May 1840, even though copies of the Treaty were still circulating throughout the country for Māori to sign.[53] With the signing of the Treaty and declaration of sovereignty, the number of immigrants, particularly from the United Kingdom, began to increase.[54] New Zealand, still part of the colony of New South Wales, became a separate Colony of New Zealand on 1 July 1841.[55] Armed conflict began between the Colonial government and Māori in 1843 with the Wairau Affray over land and disagreements over sovereignty. These conflicts, mainly in the North Island, saw thousands of imperial troops and the Royal Navy come to New Zealand and became known as the New Zealand Wars. Following these armed conflicts, large amounts of Māori land was confiscated by the government to meet settler demands.[56] Black and white engraving depicting a crowd of people A meeting of European and Māori inhabitants of Hawke's Bay Province. Engraving, 1863. The colony gained a representative government in 1852, and the first Parliament met in 1854.[57] In 1856 the colony effectively became self-governing, gaining responsibility over all domestic matters (exce