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Captain James Cook's map of New Zealand, showing a mixture of Māori names and names Cook bestowed himselfMost New Zealand place names have a Māori or a British origin. Both groups used names to commemorate notable people, events, places from their homeland, and their ships, or to describe the surrounding area. It is unknown whether Māori had a name for the whole of New Zealand before the arrival of Europeans, but post-colonisation the name Aotearoa (commonly translated as 'long white cloud') has been used to refer to the whole country. Dutch cartographers named the islands Nova Zeelandia, the Latin translation of the Dutch Nieuw Zeeland (after the Dutch province of Zeeland). By the time of British exploration, the country's name was anglicised to New Zealand.
Many of the early Māori names were replaced by Europeans during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Government amendments in 1894 and the establishment of the New Zealand Geographic Board in the mid-1940s led to the encouragement of original Māori names, although differing spellings and anglicised pronunciations persisted. Many names now have alternative or dual English and Māori names or, in a few rare cases, dual Māori names or dual English names. Most names have never been made official, but if they are mentioned in authoritative publications they are considered recorded names. Colloquial names in New Zealand result from an ironic view of the place's entertainment value, or plays on advertising mottos, or are shortened versions of the full name. Some places tried to capitalise on the success of The Lord of the Rings films by linking themselves to the movies. (Full article...)
Image 8A 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 19The 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 24Men of the Māori Battalion, New Zealand Expeditionary Force, after disembarking at Gourock in Scotland in June 1940 (from History of New Zealand)
Image 33Māori 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 36Strong winds in the Cook Strait produce high waves which erode the shore, as shown in this image (from Geography of New Zealand)
Image 37Hinepare 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 pounamuhei-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 38Pavlova, a popular New Zealand dessert, garnished with cream and strawberries. (from Culture of New Zealand)
Image 42European 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 59The 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 62Percentages 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)
Hector's dolphins have a unique rounded dorsal fin.
Hector's Dolphin or White-headed Dolphin (Cephalorhynchus hectori) is the best-known of the four dolphins in the genusCephalorhynchus. At about 1.4 m in length and weighing 50kg, it is one of the smallest cetaceans. They have a rounded dorsal (upper) fin and have white undersides and grey sides. Hector's dolphins take short (90 second) dives to feed on small fish and crustaceans on the ocean floor.
Hector's dolphins are endemic to the coastal regions of New Zealand. There are two known main populations, one on each side of the South Island. The two populations are believed to be largely cut off from one another by deep water at Cook Strait and at the south-west tip of the South Island.
According to the WWF, thirty years ago there were over 26,000 Hector's dolphins (and a subspecies, Maui's dolphin). Today, due to human activity, there is a struggling population of around 7,270 Hector's dolphins - and Maui's are the rarest marine dolphins in the world with around 110 left. (Full article...)
Jean Batten's Percival Gull, G-ADPR, preserved at Auckland International Airport
Jane Gardner BattenCBEOSC (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...)
... that New Zealand activist Pania Newton gave up a legal career to become an activist and spokesperson for the preservation of her ancestral lands at Ihumātao?
... that a design for the New Zealand florin was criticized as looking like a violently defecating kiwi?
... that two rival designers independently submitted a map for the design of a 1940 New Zealand coin?
... that a bulldog from New Zealand was trained to locate wounded soldiers on the battlefields of the Western Front in World War I and guide them back to safety?
... that although it was a centennial project, the Canterbury Pioneer Women's Memorial in New Zealand was opened 90 years after the region's organised settlement began?
... that for television, James Mustapic set his mother up on a date with David Seymour, who will soon be the New Zealand deputy prime minister?
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