Geography and Climate
New Zealand is located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean about 1,200 miles southeast of its neighbor Australia, across the Tasman Sea. The country is divided into two main islands, the North Island and the South Island, separated by the Cook Strait. A number of smaller islands surrounding New Zealand are also part of this island nation. The country is about the size of Colorado, which makes it the seventy-sixth largest country in the world.
Only 250 miles at its widest point, New Zealand stretches 990 miles from its northern tip to its southern boundary and has over 9,000 miles of scenic coastline. The South Island is the larger of the two main islands and is divided along its length by the Southern Alps. It is a land of steep mountains and deep fiords, including 18 mountain peaks that reach up to 12,316 feet. The North Island has fewer mountains but is known for its volcanic activity. The Taupo volcanic zone is home to the country’s largest lake, which is in the caldera of one of the world’s most active super volcanoes.
New Zealand’s climate is primarily maritime, but it varies from warm subtropical in the far north to a cool temperate climate in the far south, with often-severe alpine conditions in the mountainous areas of the country. The mountain chains that extend the length of New Zealand divide the country into different climate regions. Mean annual temperatures range from 50 F in the south to 61 F in the north of the country. The coldest month is usually July and the warmest is January or February, although variations between summer and winter temperatures generally are small.
Inland temperatures see a greater variation due to the influence of the mountain ranges. The western coast of the South Island is the wettest part of the country and the area east of the central mountain ranges is the driest. Most areas of New Zealand receive rain throughout most of the year with a dry period during the summer. The northern and central areas receive more rainfall during the winter than summer. However, in the south, winter is the season of least rainfall.
New Zealand is 19 hours ahead of the U.S. Pacific Standard Time zone. It observes daylight saving time, which begins the end of September and ends the beginning of April.
The island nation’s geographic location places it in a very active earthquake zone. The 2011 6.3 magnitude earthquake in Christchurch was the country’s worst natural disaster in terms of loss of life since 1931. The country has also experienced typhoons (hurricanes) and has a number of active volcanoes.
People and Culture
New Zealand is a small country with a population just over 4.4 million, making it the one hundred and twenty-fifth largest nation in the world. Its annual population growth rate is under 1 percent. The North Island holds 75 percent of the country’s population and urban areas are home to 85 percent of the country.
English and Maori are the country’s two official languages. Nine out of 10 residents speak English, while just over 3 percent speak the traditional Maori language. European remains the largest of the major ethnic groups in New Zealand, representing about two-thirds of the population. The Maori ethnic group and the Pacific people ethnic group each represent nearly 15 percent of New Zealand.
Auckland on the North Island is the country’s largest city with a metro area population of over 1.5 million. Also on the North Island, Wellington is New Zealand’s capital and has a metro area population nearing 400,000. The South Island is home to the country’s third largest city, Christchurch, with a population of nearly 350,000.
The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand around 800 A.D. In 1840, Maori chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria while retaining territorial rights. In that same year, the British began the first organized colonial settlement. The majority of immigrants who migrated to the Islands were from England, Scotland and Wales, many whom were given incentives to make the three-month journey. Migrants and convicts banished to Australia also moved to New Zealand when gold was discovered in 1857. A series of land wars between 1843 and 1872 ended with the defeat of the native Maori people.
The British colony of New Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907 and supported the United Kingdom militarily in World War I and World War II. It achieved full internal and external autonomy by the Statute of Westminster Adoption Act of 1947. New Zealand has a parliamentary system of government closely patterned on that of the United Kingdom and is a fully independent member of the Commonwealth.
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