Portal:New Zealand

New Zealand
*Aotearoa* (Māori)
New Zealand Aotearoa (Māori)
	Flag Coat of arms
	Location of New Zealand, including outlying islands, its territorial claim in the Antarctic, and Tokelau
ISO 3166 code	NZ

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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 over 700 smaller islands. 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. 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.

A developed country, it was the first to introduce a minimum wage, and the first to give women the right to vote. It ranks very highly in international measures of quality of life, human rights, and it has low levels of perceived corruption. It retains visible levels of inequality, having structural disparities between its Māori and European populations. New Zealand 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 also a significant source of revenue. (Full article...)

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KiwiRail DL9020 on MetroPort train MP4 at Papakura, Auckland on 29 August 2011.

Rail transport in New Zealand is an integral part of New Zealand's transport network, with a nationwide network of 4,375.5 km (2,718.8 mi) of track linking most major cities in the North and South Islands, connected by inter-island rail and road ferries. Rail transport in New Zealand has a particular focus on bulk freight exports and imports, with 19 million net tonnes moved by rail annually, accounting for more than half of rail revenue.

Rail transport played an important role in the opening up and development of the hinterland outside of New Zealand's predominantly dispersed and coastal settlements. Starting with the Ferrymead Railway in 1863, most public railway lines were short, built by provincial governments and connected major centres to their nearest seaport (such as Christchurch and its port at Lyttelton Harbour). From the 1870s, the focus shifted to building a nationwide network linking major centres, especially during the Vogel Era of railway construction following the abolition of the provinces. Narrow gauge of 3ft 6in (1,067mm) was adopted nationally. Bush tramways or light industrial railways sprang up connecting to the national network as it expanded. Railways became centrally controlled as a government department under the names New Zealand Government Railways or New Zealand Railways Department (NZR), and land transport was heavily regulated from 1931 onwards. NZR eventually expanded into other transport modes, especially with the Railways Road Services, inter-island ferries and Rail Air service. NZR also had an extensive network of workshops. By 1981, NZR employed 22,000 staff. (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from various New Zealand-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Tekoteko from the gable of a wharenui, Te Arawa (20th century) (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 2Men of the Māori Battalion, New Zealand Expeditionary Force, after disembarking at Gourock in Scotland in June 1940 (from History of New Zealand)
Image 3Water pollution sign on the Waimakariri River (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 4Percentages of people reporting affiliation with Christianity at the 2001, 2006 and 2013 censuses; there has been a steady decrease over twelve years. (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 5Cook Island dancers at Auckland's Pasifika Festival, 2010 (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 6The Original All Blacks during the "haka", 1905 (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 7The 1935 Labour Cabinet. Michael Joseph Savage is seated in the front row, centre. (from History of New Zealand)
Image 8Poet Selina Tusitala Marsh, 2019 (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 9Tribute to the Suffragettes memorial in Christchurch adjacent to Our City. The figures shown from left to right are Amey Daldy, Kate Sheppard, Ada Wells and Harriet Morison (from History of New Zealand)
Image 10An aerial view of the Auckland urban area, showing its location on the Hauraki Gulf / Tīkapa Moana (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 11Scottish Highland family migrating to New Zealand, 1844, by William Allsworth. Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington. (from History of New Zealand)
Image 12Michael Joseph Savage, Labour Prime Minister 1935–1940. This portrait was hung on the walls of many supporters. (from History of New Zealand)
Image 13Art deco in Napier (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 14The first Government House in Auckland, as painted by Edward Ashworth in 1842 or 1843. Auckland was the second capital of New Zealand. (from History of New Zealand)
Image 15Vigil in Wellington for the victims of the Christchurch mosques attacks (from History of New Zealand)
Image 16New Zealand is antipodal to points of the North Atlantic, the Iberian Peninsula and Morocco.
Image 17The Waikato River flowing out of Lake Taupō (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 18Roger Douglas, the architect of New Zealand's 1980s neo-liberal reform programme (from History of New Zealand)
Image 19Residents of Dunedin celebrate the news of the Armistice of 11 November 1918. (from History of New Zealand)
Image 20A beach barbecue – an established part of New Zealand culture (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 21The scalloped bays indenting Lake Taupō's northern and western coasts are typical of large volcanic caldera margins. The caldera they surround was formed during the huge Oruanui eruption. (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 22Hinepare of Ngāti Kahungunu, is wearing a traditional korowai cloak adorned with a black fringe border. The two huia feathers in her hair, indicate a chiefly lineage. She also wears a pounamu hei-tiki and earring, as well as a shark tooth (mako) earring. The moko-kauae (chin-tattoo) is often based on one's role in the iwi. (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 23Pavlova, a popular New Zealand dessert, garnished with cream and strawberries. (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 24New Zealand Division in 1916 (from History of New Zealand)
Image 25Elizabeth II and Muldoon's Cabinet, taken during the Queen's 1981 visit to New Zealand (from History of New Zealand)
Image 26The Forty-Fours viewed from the north; the leftmost islet is the easternmost point of New Zealand. (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 27George V with his prime ministers at the 1926 Imperial Conference. Standing (left to right): Monroe (Newfoundland), Coates (New Zealand), Bruce (Australia),Hertzog (Union of South Africa),Cosgrave (Irish Free State). Seated: Baldwin (UK), King George V, King (Canada). (from History of New Zealand)
Image 28The Māori are most likely descended from people who emigrated from Taiwan to Melanesia and then travelled east through to the Society Islands. After a pause of 70 to 265 years, a new wave of exploration led to the discovery and settlement of New Zealand.
Image 29A meeting of European and Māori inhabitants of Hawke's Bay Province. Engraving, 1863.
Image 30Fiordland is dominated by steep, glacier-carved valleys. (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 31Children's and young adult author Margaret Mahy, July 2011 (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 32European settlers developed an identity that was influenced by their rustic lifestyle. In this scene from 1909, men at their camp site display a catch of rabbits and fish. (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 33A Māori ancestor (tekoteko) depicted in a wood carving at the Tamatekapua Meeting House in Ohinemutu (c. 1880) (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 34Rural landscape close to Mt Ruapehu (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 35Knox Church, a Presbyterian church, in Dunedin. The city was founded by Scottish Presbyterian settlers. (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 36Aoraki / Mount Cook, as seen from Hooker Valley (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 37Central Plateau in winter (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 38Prime Ministers John Key and Helen Clark (from History of New Zealand)
Image 39The Mission House at Kerikeri is New Zealand's oldest surviving building, having been completed in 1822 (from History of New Zealand)
Image 40Zealandia rejecting Australian Constitution in 1900 (from History of New Zealand)
Image 41"First Scottish Colony for New Zealand" – 1839 poster advertising emigration from Scotland to New Zealand. Collection of Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow, Scotland. (from History of New Zealand)
Image 42HMS North Star destroying Pomare's Pā during the Northern/Flagstaff War, 1845, Painting by John Williams. (from History of New Zealand)
Image 43Scorching Bay, Wellington, in summer (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 44Māori whānau (extended family) from Rotorua in the 1880s. Many aspects of Western life and culture, including European clothing and architecture, became incorporated into Māori society during the 19th century. (from History of New Zealand)
Image 45Kapa haka is performed at a School Strike for Climate in Christchurch 2019. (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 46A 1943 poster produced during the war. The poster reads: "When war broke out ... industries were unprepared for munitions production. To-day New Zealand is not only manufacturing many kinds of munitions for her own defence but is making a valuable contribution to the defence of the other areas in the Pacific..." (from History of New Zealand)
Image 47A modern wharenui (meeting house of a marae) exhibited at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 48The kiwi has become a New Zealand icon. (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 49One of the few extant copies of the Treaty of Waitangi (from History of New Zealand)
Image 50Putting down a hāngī (earth oven) (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 51Richard Seddon, Liberal Prime Minister from 1893 to his death in 1906 (from History of New Zealand)
Image 52Strong winds in the Cook Strait produce high waves which erode the shore, as shown in this image (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 53Topography of Zealandia, the submerged continent, and the two tectonic plates (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 54Lorde as part of the 2014 Lollapalooza lineup (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 55An annotated relief map (from Geography of New Zealand)

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...that the main threat to Pisonia brunoniana (pictured) in New Zealand is cutting by people trying to prevent small songbirds from getting trapped by its very sticky seeds?

... that the Kaipara Harbour was named after a hāngi on the Pouto Peninsula, at which the para fern (Ptisana salicina) was served?

... that the Agricultural emissions research levy is commonly described as a "fart tax"?

...that cricketer Dick Motz took one wicket in his last Test match in August 1969, becoming the first New Zealand bowler to take 100 Test wickets?

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Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand, and is commemorated by both countries on 25 April every year to honour members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) who fought at Gallipoli in Turkey during World War I. It now more broadly commemorates all those who died and served in military operations for their countries.

In 1915, Australian and New Zealand soldiers formed part of an Allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli Peninsula, under a plan by Winston Churchill to open the way to the Black Sea for the Allied navies and capture Istanbul, capital of the Ottoman Empire. The ANZAC force landed at Gallipoli on 25 April, meeting fierce resistance from the Turkish Army commanded by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. What had been planned as a bold strike to knock Turkey out of the war quickly became a stale-mate, and the campaign dragged on for eight months. At the end of 1915, the Allied forces were evacuated after both sides had suffered heavy casualties and endured great hardships. Over 8,000 Australian and 2,700 New Zealand soldiers died. News of the landing at Gallipoli made a profound impact on Australians and New Zealanders at home and 25 April quickly became the day on which they remembered the sacrifice of those who had died in war.

Though the Gallipoli campaign failed in its military objectives, the Australian and New Zealand troops' actions during the campaign bequeathed an intangible but powerful legacy. The "Anzac legend" became an important part of the national identity of both countries. (Full article...)

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Jane Gardner Batten CBE OSC (15 September 1909 – 22 November 1982), commonly known as Jean Batten, was a New Zealand aviator who made several record-breaking flights – including the first solo flight from England to New Zealand in 1936. (Full article...)

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... that after Alfred Fell moved his family to England for better education opportunities, his son Walter Fell and two of his brothers returned permanently to New Zealand?
... that New Zealand health executive Sharon Shea points to distrust in authority caused by "post-colonisation trauma" for low COVID-19 vaccination rates of Māori?
... that New Zealand association football coach Olli Harder has worked in the US, China, Norway and England?
... that technical standard NZS 3604 is used to design and construct about 93 per cent of New Zealand's light timber-framed buildings?
... that New Zealand's election mascot Orange Guy has a pet dog named Pup?
... that New Zealand editor and journalist Madeleine Chapman, known for fashion label exposés and snack food ranking lists, is a champion javelin thrower?
... that the Māori warrior on the New Zealand shilling was actually depicted wearing a dance uniform?
... that off-roading at Muriwai Beach in New Zealand may be damaging the habitat of the newly described korowai gecko?

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