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Anthem: "God Defend New Zealand" | |
Capital | Wellington 41°17′S 174°27′E / 41.283°S 174.450°E |
Largest city | Auckland2 |
Official languages | English (98%)3 Māori (4.2%)3 NZ Sign Language (0.6%)3 |
Ethnic groups | 78% European/Other4 14.6% Māori4 9.2% Asian4 6.9% Pacific peoples4 |
Demonym(s) | New Zealander, Kiwi (colloquial) |
Government | Parliamentary republic |
• Head of State of New Zealand Nga Kawana o Aotearoa | Anand Satyanand |
John Key | |
• Speaker | Dr Lockwood Smith |
Dame Sian Elias | |
Independence from the United Kingdom | |
25 May 18545 | |
• Dominion | 26 September 19075 |
11 December 1931 (adopted 25 November 1947) | |
• Republic declared (Republic Day) | 26 September 2015 |
Area | |
• Total | 268,021 km2 (103,483 sq mi) (74th) |
• Water (%) | 2.1 |
Population | |
• June 2010 estimate | 4,367,700 (123rd) |
• 2006 census | 4,027,9476 |
• Density | 16.1/km2 (41.7/sq mi) (201st) |
GDP (PPP) | 2010 estimate |
• Total | $115.412 billion |
• Per capita | $28,722 |
GDP (nominal) | 2010 estimate |
• Total | $135.723 billion |
• Per capita | $31,067 |
Gini (1997) | 36.2 medium inequality |
HDI (2010) | 0.908 Error: Invalid HDI value (3rd) |
Currency | New Zealand dollar (NZD) |
Time zone | UTC+12 (NZST7) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+13 (NZDT) |
(Sep to Apr) | |
Date format | dd/mm/yyyy |
Drives on | left |
Calling code | +64 |
ISO 3166 code | NZ |
Internet TLD | .nz8 |
2 Auckland is the largest urban area; Auckland City is the largest incorporated city. 3 Percentages add to more than 100% because some people speak more than one language. They exclude unusable responses and those who spoke no language (e.g. too young to talk).
7 The Chatham Islands have a separate time zone, 45 minutes ahead of the rest of New Zealand. 8 The territories of Niue, the Cook Islands and Tokelau have their own cctlds, .nu, .ck and .tk respectively. |
New Zealand, formally the Republic of New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island), and numerous smaller islands, most notably Stewart Island/Rakiura and the Chatham Islands. The indigenous Māori language name for New Zealand is Aotearoa, commonly translated as land of the long white cloud. The Realm of New Zealand also includes the Cook Islands and Niue (self-governing but in free association); Tokelau; and the Ross Dependency (New Zealand's territorial claim in Antarctica).
New Zealand is notable for its geographic isolation: it is situated about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) southeast of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and its closest neighbours to the north are New Caledonia, Fiji and Tonga. During its long isolation New Zealand developed a distinctive fauna dominated by birds, a number of which became extinct after the arrival of humans and the mammals they introduced.
The majority of New Zealand's population is of European descent; the indigenous Māori are the largest minority. Asians and non-Māori Polynesians are also significant minority groups, especially in urban areas. The most commonly spoken language is English.
New Zealand is a developed country that ranks highly in international comparisons on many topics, including lack of corruption, high educational attainment and economic freedom. Its cities also consistently rank among the world's most liveable.
The country's head of state is the Head of State of New Zealand, currently Anand Satyanand.