The dream vacation spot for everyone in New Zealand. With its excellent handling of the pandemic, this island nation in the South Pacific garnered much media attention in 2020 and 2021.
This is a trendy destination; in 2019, tourists in New Zealand spent more than 115 million dollars daily. Here are some New Zealand facts 🏝️.
Unveiling Captivating New Zealand Facts and Mysteries
There is more than one type of Kiwi
It’s likely that when you hear the word “kiwi,” you picture a small, green fruit 🥝. However, the term has three distinct meanings in total, one of which is fruit.
A person from New Zealand may be called a “Kiwi.” Many New Zealanders identify as Kiwis, but visitors may also refer to locals as Kiwis.
Another kind of flightless bird is a “kiwi.” They are widespread nationwide, and sizable land areas are designated as their habitats. The bird, not the fruit, gave rise to the nickname for New Zealanders.
National Reserves Make Up 30 Percent Of The Country
New Zealanders value natural landscapes 🌳. The tallest mountain in New Zealand, Mount Cook, and the nearby woods are protected areas. You can take a day trip but try to keep litter to a minimum. You can visit the fjord at Milford Sound if you want to take a water vacation 🏔️.
Australia’s network of conservation areas, known as the National Reserve System, preserves examples of our native wildlife, plants, and landscapes for future generations.
It is the country’s natural protection against our most significant environmental challenges and is based on a scientific framework.
New Zealand has a hill with the world’s longest name.
Along New Zealand’s southeast coast, “Taumata whakatangi hangakoauau o tamatea turi pukakapiki maunga horo nuku pokai whenua kitanatahu” is close to Poranghau 🏔️. The hill, a little over 1,000 feet tall, provides a lovely view of the surrounding area.
However, its 85-character name is what is most well-known about it. The word for the name is Maori. The summit where Tamatea, the individual with the big knees, the slider, the mountain climber,
According to the English translation, the land-swallower who travels about plays his flute 🎶 to his beloved. You can call the hill “Taumata” if you don’t feel like saying the whole thing.
Wellington is the southern capital of the world.
The coordinates of Wellington are 41.2924° S and 174.7787° E. Despite being ironically situated on North Island, this places 🏰 it as the nation’s capital of an independent country with the southernmost location.
Wellington has an average climate despite its geographic location. Summer highs can get into the 60s and 70s, and the average temperature never falls below freezing 🌡️.
Think about spending some time in Wellington; many beautiful places exist. There are many opportunities to discover fascinating facts about New Zealand in museums and libraries 📚.
There are five sheep for every resident in New Zealand.
One of New Zealand’s top industries is livestock. There were 37.8 million livestock in New Zealand in 2019 alone. 26.8 million sheep are included in that figure 🐑.
New Zealand had a population of less than five million at the time, translating to approximately five sheep per New Zealander. Other animals live in New Zealand besides sheep.
Numerous bats and birds, such as the Kiwi above, can be found in the nation. Because there are a lot of animals 🦇, only 5% of people live in New Zealand.
New Zealand Pioneered Women’s Suffrage
Women in New Zealand organized throughout the 19th century to get the vote. They circulated petitions to Parliament in the 1890s, asking lawmakers to give them the right to vote 🗳️.
The Electoral Act, which gave women the right to vote in parliamentary elections, was approved on September 19, 1893. With a lead over the US of over 20 years, New Zealand was the first country to do so.
Since then, women have had a significant impact on politics. The highest positions in the nation were all held by women at once in 2006 👩.
Dunedin has the world’s steepest residential street.
The population of Dunedin, a residential city, is over 100,000. Only a few of them reside on Baldwin Street, which has a slope of 19 degrees. It is tough to drive on the street because it extends for over 1,000 feet. However, both locals and visitors have braved the incline 📏.
One local raised tens of thousands of dollars for a nonprofit organization by riding his pogo stick up the street. Baldwin Street held the record for over a decade until it was given to Ffordd Pen Llech in Harlech, Wales.
The Jedi Worship Across the Country
A global email campaign was conducted in 2001. It urged people to indicate that their religion was “Jedi” or “Jediism” when asked about it on census forms.
More than 53,000 people claimed to be Jedis in New Zealand alone. According to that figure, Jediism was more widely practiced than Buddhism and Hinduism.
In 2018, it decreased to just over 20,000. Jediism 🙏 can mean different things depending on who you ask, but certain individuals have attempted to find their own churches.
New Zealand is home to Tolkien tourism.
Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings films 🎥 was entirely shot in New Zealand, save for one scene. Many book and movie lovers flock to the nation because of this.
Every year, 33 million dollars are made from movie-related tourism. Travelers can visit Hobbiton, where the filming locations for the Shire scenes are still there.
The government appointed the first Minister of the Rings 👑 because it recognized the significance of Tolkien tourism. Pete Hodgson, a member of Parliament, was tasked with organizing initiatives to promote tourism in New Zealand 🗺️.
There are three national languages.
The three official languages of New Zealand are English, Maori, and sign language. A majority of Maori adults, as well as nearly 150,000 New Zealanders overall, can communicate in Maori daily.
In recent years, the language has grown in popularity. Several bands have produced Maori-language songs that have received widespread radio play.
More than 20,000 people reside in New Zealand. It has many signs in common with American Sign Language and is remarkably comparable to British Sign Language 🗨️. After years of activism, it was recognized as a national language in 2006.
Antarctica is pretty close.
The third closest to Antarctica in the world is New Zealand. Its roots go deep into the continent 🏔️. One of the first people to set foot on New Zealand’s mainland was a New Zealander named Alexander Von Tunzelmann.
A small area of the continent is under the direct control of New Zealand. Numerous travel agencies that organize trips to Antarctica 🐧 are also based there.
To view penguins and glaciers, you can arrange flights or boat tours 🚁. Their Antarctic Centre lets you take a virtual cruise and offers information on explorers.
Volcanoes are everywhere. Facts about New Zealand volcanoes
Fifty different volcanoes surround Auckland alone. Others, however, are dispersed across the islands. Most volcanoes are now extinct, and those still active don’t pose a significant threat. Mount Rangitoto is located on an island over three miles wide. Volcanoes 🌋 in New Zealand can be found from the Bay of Islands to Otago.
Many of our volcanoes are extinct, so they are no longer active. Others are dormant, meaning they are inactive but could reactivate at any time.
The Blue Lake has the most transparent water in the world.
The Southern Alps’ Nelson Lake National Park is home to Blue Lake 💧. According to government studies, its water is the clearest of any new body of water in the world. You can see a few kilometers below when you look into the water. The Maori revere the lake as a holy place.
Their ancestors’ bones were once purified, and their spirits were let loose into the underworld. This means that although you can stand on the side and look down into the water, you cannot swim in it.
You can eat a lot of butter and cheese.
Twenty-two million metric tonnes of milk will be produced in New Zealand in 2021. Thanks to this, they will be able to produce 520,000 metric tonnes of butter and 360,000 metric tonnes of cheese 🧀.
Across the nation, various dairy products are available for sampling. Locally produced cheddar comes in multiple varieties, and you can also try brie and camembert.
We hope these entertaining New Zealand facts have given you a better understanding of the nation and its people. On several islands, you can visit natural preserves, volcanoes, and glaciers.
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