New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the Southwest Pacific Ocean. It lies

about 1,600 kilometres southeast of Australia, its nearest continental neighbour.
New Zealand belongs to the Polynesian group of islands. New Zealand is the most
geographically isolated country on Earth. The only landmass to the south is
Antarctica, and to the north are New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga.
The country itself consists of two main islands-the North Island and the
South Island - and several dozen much smaller islands. Most of the smaller islands
are hundreds of kilometres from the main ones.
Wellington is the capital of New Zealand, and Auckland is the largest city.
The country was once part of the British Empire. Today, it is an independent
member of the Commonwealth of Nations, an association of countries that
replaced the empire. It tends to be overshadowed by its 'big brother', Australia and
indeed many Americans are unaware that it is not part of Australia.
New Zealand's most common name in the indigenous Maori language 'a
Aotearoa which is usually translated as Land of the Long White Cloud although
has taken literally it is more like Long Cloud Piercer, from the way that its many
mountains often pierce the clouds.The scenery and especially beautiful and varied
natural backdrops have led in recent years to a strong growth in New Zealand's rok
a location for the international film industry. Perhaps the most famous films in
New Zealand include the Lord of the Rings trilogy. In 1990 there was a national
flag competition in New Zealand but none of the entries showed any Maori
acknowledgement or inspiration. The Te Kawa-riki, a prominent Maori activist
group in New Zealand consequently held their own Maori flag competition. Other
islands have much smaller populations, and cover much less land area. The most
significant of these islands are:
• Stewart Island (south of the South Island), the third largest island by land
area
 • Waiheke Island, an island in Auckland's Hauraki Gulf, and, with about
7,000 people (far more in summer), the third most populated island in New
Zealand
• Great Barrier Island, east of the Hauraki Gulf
• the Chatham Islands, an outlying group of islands with a population
about 750
The South Island is the largest land mass, and is divided along its length the
Southern Alps, the highest peak of which is Mount Cook, (in Maori, Ao at 3754
metres. There are 18 peaks of more than 3000 metres in the South Islar The North
Island is less mountainous than the South, but is marked by volcanisms. There are
more than 360 glaciers in the Southern Alps. The Tasman Glacier, the largest in
New Zealand, with a length of 18 miles and a width of almost one kilometre, flows
down the eastern slopes of Mt. Cook.
The North Island has seven small glaciers on the slopes of Mt. Ruapehu.The
tallest North Island Mountain, Mount Ruapehu (2797 metres), is an active cone
volcano.
Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. The Wellington urban area
has the country's second largest metropolitan population of 363,400.
Wellington stands alongside Sydney and Melbourne as a cultural centre of
Australasia, with a thriving arts scene, cafe culture and buzzing nightlife that locals
say rival those of cities many times its size.
Wellington is the southernmost national capital city in the world with a
latitude about 41 degrees south. It is more densely populated than most other
settlements in New Zealand, due to the small amount of building space available
between the harbour and the surrounding hills. Because of its location in the
roaring forties latitudes and its exposure to omnipresent wind coming through the
Cook Strait, the city is known to kiwis as "Windy Wellington".
 Auckland lies on and around an isthmus, less than two kilometres wide at its
narrowest point with two harbours in the Auckland urban area. Bridges span both
of the rivers connecting the harbours with the sea. The term "Jafa", an obscene
acronym, is a (mostly) joking term of abuse referring to Aucklanders. Aucklanders
and other New Zealanders have a mostly light-hearted "love-hate" relationship.
Stereotypically Aucklanders view many parts of the country as provincial and
unsophisticated, while the rest of the country sees Aucklanders as brash and
arrogant. Aucklanders have robbed the word of its sting by enthusiastically
embracing it as a nickname and in 1999 the Tourism Auckland organization
launched a "Jafa" advertising campaign. However, photograph taken in the 1990s
has been reprinted all over the country repeatedly. It shows a young boy at a rugby
match in Christchurch holding a sign reading simply "I hate Auckland". A
successful advertisement for a local kiwi beer, which appeared on billboards in
Wellington, featured the following sarcastic remark: "LET'S GO TO AUCKLAND
FOR THE HOLIDAYS. YEAH, RIGHT."
New Zealand is predominantly an English-speaking country. Virtually all
Maori speak English, and about one-third of them also speak Maori. The Maori
language is taught at a number of schools.
Since 14.7 % of the population is Maori, it is perhaps not surprising that the
Maori language is the country's second official language. The Maori Language All
of 1987 declared Maori to be an 'official' language.
New Zealand English is the dialect of English spoken in New Zealand.
Zealand English is close to Australian English in pronunciation. Possibly the
difference between New Zealand and British spelling is in the ending "-ise" Of
ize". New Zealanders use the "-ise" ending exclusively, whereas Britons use either
ending. American English exclusively uses the "-ize" ending. Australian English
(or Strine).
 The New Zealand Ministry of Education differs from that in most other
countries in that they have relatively little direct control on the education process.
As their official web-site states: The Ministry's influence on education outcomes is
indirect. We are not a provider of education and our purpose reflects this:
"Te Ihi, Te Mana, Te Matauranga - Empowering Education"
Education enables people to gain knowledge, skills, and attitudes so they can
participate fully, socially and economically, in the community. Our role is
facilita-tive rather than directive. We empower through our leadership,
management of the infrastructure, problem-solving ability, and assistance of those
at risk of undera-chievement. What we do influences the motivation and focus of
the sector."
Education in New Zealand is free and compulsory between the ages of six
and 15. In practice almost all children enter primary school at age five, while many
of them have already begun their education in preschools, all of which are
subsidized by the state. Education is administered by the Department of Education.
Elected education boards control all of the primary and secondary state schools.
There are also more than 100 private primary and secondary schools, most of them
Roman Catholic or run by other religious groups. They also receive state subsidies
and must meet certain standards of teaching and accommodation. State primary
schools are co-educational, but there are still many single-sex secondary schools.
Technical institutes, community colleges, and teachers' colleges form the
basis of higher education. There is an important agricultural college. Eight
Universities also exist but are often seen as less important than the other forms of
higher education. Entry to the universities requires a modest educational
achievement, which is often waived for people 21 years of age or older.