The government has negotiated settlements of these grievances with many iwi, although Māori claims to the foreshore and seabed proved controversial in the 2000s. A Māori protest movement developed, which criticised Eurocentrism and worked for greater recognition of Māori culture and of the Treaty of Waitangi. New Zealand experienced increasing prosperity following the Second World War, and Māori began to leave their traditional rural life and move to the cities in search of work.
Since human arrival, almost half of the country’s vertebrate species have become extinct, including at least 51 birds, three frogs, three lizards, one freshwater fish, and one bat. More penguin species are found in New Zealand than in any other country, with 13 of the world’s 18 penguin species. The flora and fauna of New Zealand were originally thought to have originated from New Zealand’s fragmentation off from Gondwana; however, more recent evidence postulates species resulted from dispersal.
The number of overseas students receiving education in New Zealand expanded dramatically and the importance of “export education” to the national economy rivaled that of other more established industries. During the 1990s, tourism became the country’s leading earner of foreign exchange. Primary export industries are agriculture (sheep, cattle, dairy), horticulture (apples, kiwifruit), fishing, and forestry. New Zealand is dependent on trade—particularly in agricultural products—and has been affected by global economic slowdowns and slumps in commodity prices.
A 2017 human rights report by the United States Department of State noted that the New Zealand government generally respected the rights of individuals, but voiced concerns regarding the social status of the Māori population. New Zealand’s geographic isolation for 80 million years and betista casino login island biogeography has influenced evolution of the country’s species of animals, fungi and plants. Snowfall is common in the eastern and southern parts of the South Island and mountain areas across the country.
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The entry of Britain into the European Community in the early 1970s, however, forced New Zealand to expand its trade relations with other countries. Economically the country was dependent on the export of agricultural products, especially to Great Britain. The ascent of Mount Everest by New Zealander Sir Edmund Hillary with Sherpa Tenzing Norgay in 1953 was one of the defining moments of the 20th century.
The New Zealand Post Office had a monopoly over telecommunications in New Zealand until 1987 when Telecom New Zealand was formed, initially as a state-owned enterprise and then privatised in 1990. Railways run the length of the country, although most lines now carry freight rather than passengers. The state-owned enterprise KiwiRail now operates the railways, with the exception of commuter services in Auckland and Wellington, which are operated by Auckland One Rail and Transdev Wellington respectively. State-owned Transpower operates the high-voltage transmission grids in the North and South Islands, as well as the Inter-Island HVDC link connecting the two together.
- New Zealand conservationists have pioneered several methods to help threatened wildlife recover, including island sanctuaries, pest control, wildlife translocation, fostering, and ecological restoration of islands and other protected areas.
- New Zealand’s population increased at a rate of 1.9% per year in the seven years ended June 2020.
- Minority rights and race-related issues continue to play an important role in New Zealand politics.
- New Zealand is a party to the ANZUS security treaty between Australia, New Zealand, and the U.S.
- After the 1982 UNCLOS, the islands contributed significantly to New Zealand’s exclusive economic zone.
- The increase of this since the 1960s led to the formation of the Pasifika New Zealander pan-ethnic group, the fourth-largest ethnic grouping in the country.
Māori developed a varied musical tradition around songs and chants, including ceremonial performances, laments, and love songs. Although still largely influenced by global trends (modernism) and events (the Great Depression), writers in the 1930s began to develop stories increasingly focused on their experiences in New Zealand. 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. However, the local fashion industry has grown significantly since 2000, doubling exports and increasing from a handful to about 50 established labels, with some labels gaining international recognition. Standards have since relaxed and New Zealand fashion has received a reputation for being casual, practical and lacklustre.
New Zealand has an adult literacy rate of 99%, and over half of the population aged 15 to 29 hold a tertiary qualification. Hindus are the second largest religious minority, forming the 2.9% of population, followed by Muslims on 1.5%. Christians are the single largest religious group, forming 32.3% of the population, compared to 36.5% in 2018. 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. New Zealand achieved a record net migration gain of 135,500 people in the year ended October 2023. In the 2023 census, 28.8% of people counted were not born in New Zealand, up from 27.4% in the 2018 census.
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The 1923 and 1926 Imperial Conferences decided that New Zealand should be allowed to negotiate its own political treaties, and the first commercial treaty was ratified in 1928 with Japan. During the period of the New Zealand colony, Britain was responsible for external trade and foreign relations. The Ross Dependency is New Zealand’s territorial claim in Antarctica, where it operates the Scott Base research facility.
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- New Zealand has a strong presence among the Pacific Island countries, and enjoys strong diplomatic relations with Samoa, Fiji, and Tonga, and among smaller nations.
- New Zealand’s transport network comprises 94,000 kilometres (58,410 mi) of roads, including 199 kilometres (124 mi) of motorways, and 4,128 kilometres (2,565 mi) of railway lines.
- According to the 2024 Global Peace Index, New Zealand is the 4th most peaceful country in the world.
- Health New Zealand is charged with working alongside the Public Health Agency to manage the provision of healthcare services in New Zealand.
- New Zealand recorded the highest casualties per head of population of any combatant nation during World War I, when 100,000 served and 17,000 were killed.
The two main islands are named North and South islands in English, or Te-Ika-a-Maui and Te Wai Pounamu, respectively, in Maori. Discover vibrant cities like the largest city Auckland and capital city Wellington, where culture and entertainment thrive. New Zealand is about 1,000 miles (1,600 km) long (north-south) and about 280 miles (450 km) across at its widest point. New Zealand was the largest country in Polynesia when it was annexed by Great Britain in 1840. Participation in the world wars gave some New Zealand writers a new perspective on New Zealand culture and with the postwar expansion of universities local literature flourished.
The early European settlers divided New Zealand into provinces, which had a degree of autonomy. One example of structural inequality in New Zealand can be seen in the criminal justice system. The New Zealand Human Rights Commission has asserted that there is strong, consistent evidence that structural discrimination is a real and ongoing socioeconomic issue. But this is untrue of local council elections; a historically low 36% of eligible New Zealanders voted in the 2022 local elections, compared with an already low 42% turnout in 2019. New Zealand ranks highly for civic participation in the political process, with 82% voter turnout during recent general elections, compared to an OECD average of 69%. New Zealand’s judiciary, headed by the chief justice, includes the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, the High Court, and subordinate courts.
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Non-Māori Polynesian cultures are also apparent, with Pasifika, the world’s largest Polynesian festival, now an annual event in Auckland. Immigrants from India, China and the Philippines are the largest contributors to New Zealand’s population growth. New Zealand is a predominantly urban country, with 84.5% of the population living in urban areas and 51.4% in the seven cities with populations exceeding 100,000. In 1921, the country’s median centre of population was in the Tasman Sea west of Levin in Manawatū-Whanganui; by 2017, it had moved 280 km (170 mi) north to near Kawhia in Waikato.
New Zealand administers the South Pacific island group of Tokelau and claims a section of the Antarctic continent. The capital city is Wellington and the largest urban area Auckland; both are located on the North Island. New Zealand is a remote land—one of the last sizable territories suitable for habitation to be populated and settled—and lies more than 1,000 miles (1,600 km) southeast of Australia, its nearest neighbour.
The southern and southwestern parts of the South Island have a cooler and cloudier climate, with around 1,400–1,600 hours. Oceania is a wider region encompassing the Australian continent, New Zealand, and various island countries in the Pacific Ocean that are not included in the seven-continent model. The plateau also hosts the country’s largest lake, Lake Taupō, nestled in the caldera of one of the world’s most active supervolcanoes. Fiordland’s steep mountains and deep fiords record the extensive ice age glaciation of this southwestern corner of the South Island.
New Zealand became a dominion in 1907; it gained full statutory independence in 1947, retaining the monarch as head of state. In 1840, representatives of the United Kingdom and Māori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, which paved the way for Britain’s declaration of sovereignty later that year and the establishment of the Crown Colony of New Zealand in 1841. In 1769 the British explorer Captain James Cook became the first European to set foot on and map New Zealand.
It is the sixth-largest island country by area and lies east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and south of the islands of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga. Smaller islands include Stewart Island, which lies south of South Island; Waiheke and Great Barrier islands, near the north end of North Island; and the Chatham Islands, more than 800 km east of South Island. Despite New Zealand’s isolation, the country has been fully engaged in international affairs since the early 20th century, being an active member of a number of intergovernmental institutions, including the United Nations.
Queenstown is the ideal hub for your South Island adventure. Let New Zealand’s natural beauty inspire your next adventure! What current events are happening in New Zealand? How big is the New Zealand economy?
The All Blacks perform a traditional Maori war dance, or haka, before the start of international matches. The country’s national sporting colors are black and white, and the silver fern is a national emblem. The national rugby team, the All Blacks, has the best winning record of any national team in the world, including being the inaugural winner of the 1987 Rugby Union World Cup. The British brought the Protestant work ethic—the industrious newcomers astonished Maori people.
It is also called Aotearoa or the “Land of the Long White Cloud” in the language of the Maori (rhymes with “dowry”), the Polynesian people who settled the islands four centuries before the first Europeans arrived. New Zealand is an island country located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The country comprises two main islands—the North and the South Island—and a number of small islands, some of them hundreds of miles from the main group. New Zealand, island country in the South Pacific Ocean, the southwesternmost part of Polynesia. New Zealand’s population today is concentrated to the north of the country, with around 76.4% of the population living in the North Island and 23.6% in the South Island as of June 2025. New Zealand conservationists have pioneered several methods to help threatened wildlife recover, including island sanctuaries, pest control, wildlife translocation, fostering, and ecological restoration of islands and other protected areas.
Because of its far-flung outlying islands and long coastline, the country has extensive marine resources. Since 1937, the islands are uninhabited except for about six people at Raoul Island station. 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. 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.