What is the oldest city in New Zealand?
By this measure, Wellington is the oldest city. An advance party of New Zealand Company officials and surveyors arrived in September 1839 and made a highly dubious land purchase from local iwi (Tonk, 1990, p. 40).
What are some major events in New Zealand history?
12 Moments That Shaped New Zealand’s History
- 1840: The year the Treaty of Waitangi was signed.
- 1845-72: The New Zealand Wars.
- 1893: New Zealand gives women the right to vote.
- 1914: World War I and The Gallipoli Campaign.
- 1931: The Hawke’s Bay Earthquake.
- 1947: New Zealand gains independence from Britain.
- 1970s: The Dawn Raids.
When did humans first arrive in New Zealand?
The first people to arrive in New Zealand were ancestors of the Māori. The first settlers probably arrived from Polynesia between 1200 and 1300 AD. They discovered New Zealand as they explored the Pacific, navigating by the ocean currents, winds and stars.
How far back does NZ history go?
British explorer James Cook, who reached New Zealand in October 1769 on the first of his three voyages, was the first European to circumnavigate and map New Zealand. From the late 18th century, the country was regularly visited by explorers and other sailors, missionaries, traders and adventurers.
What happened on this day in history in NZ?
1840-02-06 The Treaty of Waitangi is signed between 40 Māori Chiefs (later signed by 500) and representatives of the British crown in Waitangi, New Zealand. The treaty was designed to share sovereignty between the two groups.
Who are the original New Zealand natives?
Māori were the first inhabitants of Aotearoa New Zealand, guided by Kupe the great navigator. Learn more about the arrival of Māori.
Where did the Māori people originally come from?
Māori originated with settlers from East Polynesia, who arrived in New Zealand in several waves of canoe voyages between roughly 1320 and 1350.
Did Vikings go to New Zealand?
Much of Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland is coastline, so the first Scandinavian visitors were often great sailors. When they reached New Zealand, some left their whaling and trading ships to search for gold.
What was New Zealand first called?
Aotearoa was used for the name of New Zealand in the 1878 translation of “God Defend New Zealand”, by Judge Thomas Henry Smith of the Native Land Court—this translation is widely used today when the anthem is sung in Māori.
Who were the first humans in NZ?
Māori were the first to arrive in New Zealand, journeying in canoes from Hawaiki about 1,000 years ago. A Dutchman, Abel Tasman, was the first European to sight the country but it was the British who made New Zealand part of their empire.
Are Māori aboriginals?
Maori vs Aboriginal The indigenous tribes of people living in Australia are referred to as aboriginal, their Trans Tasman counterparts, the indigenous or native population of New Zealand is labeled as Maori.
Did Māori originate China?
According to DNA analysis undertaken by Victoria University of Wellington zoologist Dr Geoff Chambers and Dr Adele Whyte (Ngāti Kahungunu), Māori migrated from mainland China to Taiwan, the Pacific Islands and eventually to Aotearoa.