Download Brief Fact File - NewZealand.com

Looking for New Zealand facts for your speech notes? Then look no further.
Where is New Zealand?



In the South Pacific.
Situated about half way between the Equator and the South Pole.
About 2 000 km (1 250 miles) east of Australia.
How big is New Zealand?




A bit bigger than the UK, a little smaller than Japan.
268 000 square kilometres (103 500 square miles).
Made up of two main islands (the North and South) and hundreds of smaller islands.
The North and South Islands are together 1 600km long (1 000 miles long). No place
in New Zealand is more than 170km (105 miles) from the sea.
Geological History



A young country geologically.
New Zealand broke from the Gondwana super continent around 80 million years ago.
On the boundary of the Australian and Pacific Plates.
When was New Zealand Discovered?





One of the last parts of the world to be discovered and settled.
Legend has it that the Polynesian navigator Kupe discovered the land about 1 000
years ago and his wife; Hine te Aparangi, named it Aotearoa – Land of the Long
White Cloud.
The Maori name for the North Island is Te Ika A Maui (The Fish of Maui) and for the
South Island Te Waipounamu (The place of Greenstone).
Dutch explorer Abel Tasman was the first European to visit in 1642. Dutch
mapmakers named the country Nieuw Zeeland after the Dutch province of Zeeland.
Captain James Cook mapped the coast in 1769 and claimed the country for England.
What is the land like?




Very diverse landscape.
15 000 kms (9 300 miles) of coastline.
An eruption formed Lake Taupo (606 sq kms or 235 sq miles) 1 800 years ago. The
North Island now has a mildly active volcanic interior, rolling hill country, temperate
forest and coastal mangroves in the north.
The South Island – the Southern Alps rise to around 2 800 m (9 200 ft) above sea
level and are the size of the Austrian, French and Swiss Alps combined. Other key
geographical features include glaciers and glacial formed fiords, lakes and rivers in
the south and grasslands and river plains in the east.


Tongariro National Park, gifted to the nation by the chief Te Heuheu Tukino IV in
1887 became the fourth national park designated in the world - after Yellowstone in
the Unites States (1872), Royal National Park in Australia (1879) and Banff National
Park in Canada (1885).
Tongariro National Park and the four national parks in the south west of the South
Island (Fiordland, Mt Aspiring, Mt Cook and Westland) are together recognised as the
Te Waipounamu World Heritage area by UNESCO. New Zealand’s sub-Antarctic
Islands also have World Heritage area status. Besides these three World Heritage
areas six more were proposed in New Zealand in January 2005.
What animals live there?







Unique plants and animals developed in isolation.
Tuatara, a lizard-like creature which is the closest living relative of the dinosaurs.
No native mammals except a bat - no snakes or dangerous animals.
Kea, the world’s only alpine parrot.
Kiwi, a flightless bird, New Zealand’s national symbol.
The rare Giant Weta, at up to 71 grams (2.5 ounces) is the world’s heaviest insect.
There are around 10 sheep for every person (4 million people and 40 million sheep in
2003).
Who lives there?







4 million people, nicknamed “Kiwis”.
New Zealand is one of the world’s least crowded countries. Population density is just
15 people per sq km (6 per sq mile). The UK has 240 people per sq km (93 per sq
mile) and Japan 330 people per sq km (127 per sq mile).
The English language is spoken. Maori is also an official language in resurgence.
A multi-cultural country. The population is 80% European, 15% Maori, 6.5% Pacific
Islander, 6.5% Asian (including Chinese, Indian and Korean people). These figures
add to more than 100% as some people identify with more than one group.
Around 80% of people live in the North Island and 20% in the South Island. Waiheke
Island near Auckland (8,000 people) is the most populated of New Zealand’s
secondary islands.
Around 30% of people live in Auckland. Auckland is the largest Polynesian city in the
world.
Most people live in cities, however 6% of the population live and work on farms.
What is Maori culture like?







Maori are a Polynesian people.
Most Maori live in cities while retaining an affiliation with their iwi (tribal) and hapu
(sub-tribal) areas which is often expressed through genealogy (whakapapa).
The marae (traditional community centre) is the focus of Maori cultural life.
Mana (a person’s inherited and earned prestige) is an important concept.
Wood carving (whakairo-hia), greenstone (pounamu) ornaments, reed panel weaving
(tukutuku) and tattooing (moko) are among art forms.
Maori culture is in resurgence with more young people learning Te Reo Maori, the
Maori language.
The New Zealand Government is negotiating with iwi on the return of land and
sharing fishing resources under a settlement process based on the Treaty of
Waitangi.
What is the weather like?


A temperate climate. Not humid. Not the extremes of continental climates. Mean
temperature is around 15 C (60 F).
Southern Hemisphere seasons – December to February is summer.



Summer – warmest areas are the northern and eastern North Island; coolest areas
are in the south of the South Island. Maximum summer temperatures average 19-23
C (66-73 F).
Winter – warmest areas are in the north of the North Island; coolest are inland
Canterbury and Central Otago. Maximum winter temperatures average 10-14 C
(50-57 F).
In winter snow falls in mountainous areas and rarely in coastal cities only in the South
Island.
How is the country governed?





A democratic government elected every three years under the Mixed Member
Proportional (MMP) system.
Wellington is the capital city.
121 Members of Parliament – 69 represent regional electorates and 52 represent
political parties in 48th Parliament from October 2005.
A Labour led Government with Helen Clark as Prime Minister governs in coalition with
the Progressive Party. New Zealand First and United Future have agreed to support
the Government on confidence and supply issues (when Parliament votes on the
continuation of the Government or votes it money). The Labour Party and Green
Party have a co operation agreement.
Helen Clark is New Zealand’s first elected woman Prime Minister.
What is the economy like?




A relatively small economy based on international trade.
Tourism, agriculture and horticulture, forestry, fisheries and light manufacturing are
the main export sectors.
Annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is around US$92 billion. GDP per person
was around US$23 000 in 2004.
Most exports go to Australia, Japan, the United States, South Korea, Germany and
China.
What do Kiwis do for fun?





Gardening, walking and fishing are among the most popular recreational pastimes.
Rugby, netball and soccer are the most popular team sports.
The All Blacks are New Zealand’s national rugby union team. Much of the country
watches their games. The All Blacks are known for the haka (challenge) given to their
international competition before games begin.
One in five Aucklanders own a boat.
New Zealanders are into a wide range of adventure sports. Mountain biking is
becoming increasingly popular.
What’s New?






New Zealand enjoys a growing reputation for producing quality wines of the
Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling and Pinot Noir varieties.
A vibrant fashion industry, partly based on New Zealand’s fine wools, is developing.
New Zealand has a burgeoning film industry.
New Zealand director Andrew Adamson’s movie of C S Lewis’s children’s book The
Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe was released in December 2005.
Peter Jackson, director of Lord of the Rings, has a studio in Wellington. His latest film
to be released was King Kong in December 2005.
Team New Zealand is challenging for yachting’s Americas Cup in Valencia, Spain in
2007.
What can I do in New Zealand?
Here’s just a small selection of what’s on offer:











In Rotorua see the landscape come to life through natural geysers and boiling mud
pools.
South Westland – walk on glaciers that flow close to rain forests.
Fiordland – visit majestic Milford or Doubtful Sounds.
Experience Maori culture. Visit a marae, go on a guided bush walk or have a hangi
meal.
Visit artists and craftspeople at work in Nelson or the Coromandel.
Explore New Zealand’s 14 national parks and three maritime parks.
Cheer on a Super 14 rugby team
Be adventurous – try bungy jumping, caving, jet boating, skydiving or zorbing.
Go skiing or snowboarding in winter on some of New Zealand’s 17 commercial
skifields.
Get close to some of our majestic sea animals. Go whale watching in Kaikoura, visit
the Royal Albatross or penguin colony on Otago Peninsula or swim with the dolphins.
Visit Te Papa, New Zealand’s interactive national museum in Wellington.
Favourite or unique foods you can try in New Zealand include:












Marmite (a yeast extract toast spread)
Baked kumara (a sweet potato)
Kiwifruit
New apple varieties, like Pacific Rose
New Zealand lamb
Bluff oysters or West Coast whitebait patties (seasonal treats from the sea)
Lemon and Paeroa (L&P) (a soft drink also available as an ice cream)
ANZAC and Afghan biscuits
Hokey pokey ice cream (vanilla flavour with golden syrup toffee) or boysenberry ice
cream
Jaffas (orange coated chocolate balls popular at the movies).
Pavlova (a meringue, our national dessert)
Whittaker’s Peanut Slab chocolate block