Every nation has its own inimitable stories to tell. New Zealand is a beautiful country with various things to see.
From huge mountains to large bays, New Zealand has it all. So if you plan a trip to New Zealand, you should definitely know these interesting facts about the country. And if you are not going there anytime soon, these facts are still quirky and really fun to know anyway.
There are some rare and really interesting facts about the country. So, grab a cup of tea, and let’s dive straight into the world of New Zealand!
New Zealand is one of the less populated countries:
The population of New Zealand is quite less compared to its size. It has a population of just about 5 million. Thus, it is among the least populated countries in the entire world.
In fact, the North Island of the country actually has more population than the South Island.
It is quite surprising that out of the entire population of New Zealand only 5% of it is human.
Rest of the population mostly comprises birds and animals. This also makes New Zealand the highest animal to human ratio in the world.
In fact, Sheep are found in plenty in New Zealand with the population that would make it 9 sheep per person, again making it the highest ratio in the world.
The Golf Country:
New Zealand is known for its sporting culture ranging from the extreme Adventure Sport like Bungee Jumping to a gentleman’s sport like Golf.
There are more than 400 Golf Courses in New Zealand and that too serving such a small population of 50 lakhs.
Well, that is more Golf Courses per capita as compares to anywhere else in the World.
The Maori people:
Maoris are the inherent people of New Zealand.
As of the present day, the Maori people comprise 15% of the total population of New Zealand. These people mostly live in the Rotorua region.
They came to New Zealand more than 1000 years ago.
The Maori people gave the country a unique name. Aotearoa is the Maori name for New Zealand. It refers to the land of the long white cloud.
The capital of New Zealand:
The capital of New Zealand is Wellington.
It is the southernmost capital in the entire world. Some other important cities of New Zealand are Auckland, Tauranga, Hamilton, Christchurch, etc.
One of its major cities, Auckland, is situated on a huge volcanic field. Although these volcanoes are not active, the field has around 53 volcanoes.
The origin of the name Kiwis:
Most of us know that the natives of New Zealand are called Kiwis.
But this name definitely did not come from the fruit of the same name.
The flightless bird Kiwi belongs from New Zealand. It also acts as the unofficial symbol of the country. This is where the name Kiwis came from.
The longest name of a place in the world is from New Zealand:
The country has a place that has the longest name in the world. The hill’s name is ‘Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu.’
There are forty syllables in this word, and the hill is 300 meters high.
The first person to climb Mt. Everest and to discover protons both belonged from New Zealand:
Kiwis were the first people in the entire world to be able to conquer Mt. Everest.
The original person to ever hike Mt. Everest was Sir Edmund Hillary. He climbed Mt. Everest in 1953.
Baron Ernest Rutherford was the first person to discover protons in the year 1919.
Both of them also appeared on the $5 and $100 notes of New Zealand.
New Zealand has the clearest waters in the world:
The country of New Zealand is famous for its picturesque sceneries and crystal-clear waters.
The Blue Lake has the record for having the clearest waters in the world.
The lake is in the Nelson Lakes National Park in New Zealand. It has a perceptibility range of up to 80 meters. The Blue lake has another name, ‘Rotomairewhenua.’ It means the ‘lake of peaceful lands.’
It was one of the first major countries to allow women to vote:
New Zealand was one of the first countries to have universal adult suffrage. Since the year 1893, all adults can vote in New Zealand irrespective of their gender.
This was such a great move towards gender equality, and New Zealand was the first to do it.
Commercial Bungee Jumping was first invented in New Zealand:
Bungee Jumping is a popular commercial sport. Most people do it nowadays for fun and adventure.
But not several of us know that it was first invented in New Zealand.
The name of one of its creators is A.J Hackett. A 43-meter leap from the Kawarau Bridge in Queenstown was the first commercial bungee jump. It happened in the year 1988.
The largest lake and glacier of New Zealand:
Tasman Glacier is the major glacier in New Zealand. It is in the Southern Alps. The prime and biggest lake in New Zealand is Lake Taupo.
The sheerest street in the world is in New Zealand:
Baldwin Street in Dunedin is the steepest street in the world. There is an annual race that happens there every year. With the gradient of 38 degrees, it is the steepest and weirdest street to live on.
The name of the race is the Jafra race.
The car ownership rate of New Zealand is quite high:
The car ownership rate of New Zealand is among the highest rates in the world.
Half of the population of New Zealand own cars. Approximately 2.5 million cars are there in New Zealand.
One of the rarest dolphins in the world lives in New Zealand:
New Zealand has a huge population of whales and dolphins.
Hector’s Dolphin only exists in New Zealand. It is the smallest Dolphin in the world. And this is the only country where it can be found.
The shooting of Lord of the Rings happened in New Zealand:
Many films are shot in New Zealand because of to its beautiful scenery and locations.
The Lord of the Rings trilogy’s shooting happened in New Zealand.
The famous Mt. Doom in the Lord of the Rings is actually the iconic Mt. Ruapehu in New Zealand.
You would be quite surprised to know that New Zealand’s country is slightly placed on the Pacific Ring of Fire.
Some other famous films of New Zealand are The Piano, The Whale Rider, Once Were Warriors.
New Zealand has a variety of wildlife species:
Even though it is a small island country, a lot of different and rare species live here.
In fact, New Zealand has more than 21 unique birds and animal species.
One of these birds is also the national symbol of New Zealand. The name of the bird is Kiwi. It is a nocturnal and flightless bird.
Apart from this, New Zealand also has 6 species of penguins. It is also homegrown to various species of whales and dolphins. The sperm whales are only available in Kaikoura.
New Zealand is home to an enormous carnivorous snail.
There are No Snakes in New Zealand.
One-third of the country comprises national parks and marine areas.
The Giant Weta is the heaviest insect in the world. And it is from New Zealand. Kakapo is the only type of parrot in the world that cannot fly. And it is only found in this country.
The airport in Gisborne has train tracks in the middle of the runway:
Gisborne Airport is the only airport to have railway tracks.
The railway tracks are in the middle of the runway. And for the smooth functioning of both the systems, sometimes planes or trains are stopped.
Wizards are not just fantasy anymore:
Yes, you heard that, right!
New Zealand is the only country to have an official wizard.
The government of New Zealand appointed this wizard in the year 1990. Some of his duties are to protect the government and cast out evil spirits. He is famously known as ‘The Wizard.’
New Zealand has two national anthems:
Most of the countries in the world have one national anthem. But New Zealand interestingly has two national anthems.
They are –”God Defend New Zealand” and “God Save The Queen.”
The innovator of plastic surgical procedure was from New Zealand:
Harold Gillies was the pioneer of plastic surgery. He was from New Zealand.
The huge production of butter and cheese in New Zealand:
New Zealand is the only country to produce 65kgs of cheese and 100kg of butter for every person every year.
Closest to Antarctica:
Well, it may not look on a Flat World Map but if look at the Globe then New Zealand happens to be closest country to Antarctica after Chile and Argentina.
That is precisely the reason New Zealand average temperature ranges between 10 degrees to 16 degree Celsius and this is Cold.
Now that’s as weird and funny at the same time:
New Zealand had 53000 people in the 2001 census-the population count, who were following ‘Jedi’ as their Religion.
‘Jedi’ is the Quasi Religion Order of Jedi Knights from the Movie ‘Star Wars Universe’.
By 2006 census of New Zealand, the followers of the Religion had come down from 53000 to 20000 people.
Though it is not just New Zealand that had the ‘Jedi’ followers, Australia had 48000 people following it as per the 2011 census & Canada has 9000 people following the same as per its 2011 census.
What makes New Zealand Unique is the % of Jedi followers among the total Population which happens to be highest in the World.
Who would not want to go stay in New Zealand:
New Zealand has just 5million people living in the 75th biggest country by area among the 194 countries in the World with the least corruption in the World as per the Corruption Perception Index.