By mouth{JT}
The ReVo family is a diverse group of people, coming from all corners of the globe to this space we clall our online home, and so I thought to kick off an occasional article about the countries we are from, with my contribution being, obviously –
New Zealand
A small country by any standard, New Zealand (NZ for short) is the closest country to the South Pole, and so is not, as most consider it, tropical. It has a mild climate, very rarely exceeding 35 degrees Celsius anywhere. A nation of two islands roughly joined together, it’s approximately the same size as the UK, but it has a much lower population – currently running at around 4 million. There is still a lot of rural land, and with it, dairy farming. The currency is the New Zealand dollar, and English is the main language spoken.
Because of its remoteness, it wasn’t visited by Europeans until quite late, around 1642. Full British colonization took place in 1841, with the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi between the Maori and the English.
The Maori are the indigenous people, and their culture and look is somewhat akin to the Hawaiians, which they believe to be a “sister” tribe. Today, the Maori people have a significant amount of say about their country, but it wasn’t always so. Their culture and language were almost eradicated until, starting in the 1970s, a concentrated effort brought it back from the brink of extinction. Among the interesting customs still in use are the full tattooing of the chin on women, which has made a comeback in recent times, and the Haka, a traditional warrior war dance – though it’s now used only at sporting events and in social situations to welcome guests or honour people.
New Zealanders take great pride in their country, particularly their sporting prowess on the field in rugby and cricket, with swimming and netball coming closely behind. This pride also extends to the fact that New Zealand is a very “green” country, conservation wise, and due to very strict import laws, has no fatally venomous creatures. Being a small country in the Pacific Ocean, you could be no more than a 10 minutes drive away from a major river or even the sea, and they would be some of the most beautiful waterways in the world.
New Zealand has many interesting geographical features, including active volcanoes, glaciers, rain forests, geysers, hot mud pools, and several impressive mountain ranges. Its remote location has allowed the evolution of quite a few animal species found nowhere else. The most famous is the Kiwi, its national bird, but there are also the paua, a delicious tasty shellfish; the tuatara, a small lizard unchanged since prehistoric times; several unique native birds; and a huge variety of flora. In the past, significant gold deposits have been found, which exploded into gold rush fevers. Greenstone, a type of jade which mostly all comes from a river in the South Island, is in great demand around the world for its colour and clarity. It is considered to be the property of the Maori in the area it comes from, and is viewed by them as having great spiritual power (mana).
New Zealand is seen as a great place to live by the surrounding smaller Pacific Islands, as it offers good welfare, health, and social help, and the immigration laws for those countries are more lax than for others. It is seen as a good place to invest in as well, and there is now many Asian immigrants that have come for that purpose.
New Zealanders of note include Edmund Hilary, who was the first to conquer Mount Everest; Ernest Rutherford, the first to split the atom; Nancy Wake, the most wanted woman by the Gestapo in World War II and the most highly decorated servicewoman by the Allies; Charles Upham, the most decorated soldier of World War II; and a slew of other firsts in the areas of culture, sports, and science. A lot is made of the “Kiwi Spirit” of these people – that is, you never, but never, give up; an attitude still found in most New Zealanders today.
Where in the World: Proudly brought to you by the letters N and Z and the number 4,000,000.