New Zealand
Geography - People - Economy - Government - Communications - Transportation - Military - Transnational IssuesCountry name - conventional long form : none
Country name - conventional short form : New Zealand
Government type : parliamentary democracy
Capital - name : Wellington
Capital - time difference : UTC+12 (17 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
National holiday : Waitangi Day (Treaty of Waitangi established British sovereignty over New Zealand), 6 February (1840); ANZAC Day (commemorated as the anniversary of the landing of troops of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps during World War I at Gallipoli, Turkey), 25 April (1915)
Population : 4,173,460 (July 2008 est.)
Nationality - noun : New Zealander(s)
Nationality - adjective : New Zealand
Languages : English (official), Maori (official), Sign Language (official)
Currency (code) : New Zealand dollar (NZD)
Currency code : NZD
New Zealand is located Oceania, islands in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of Australia. The climate is temperate with sharp regional contrasts. The terrain is predominately mountainous with some large coastal plains.
Background
This entry usually highlights major historic events and current issues and may include a statement about one or two key future trends.Background : The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840, their 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. A series of land wars between 1843 and 1872 ended with the defeat of the native peoples. The British colony of New Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907 and supported the UK militarily in both World Wars. New Zealand's full participation in a number of defense alliances lapsed by the 1980s. In recent years, the government has sought to address longstanding Maori grievances.
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