Aotearoa

Aotearoa is the Māori name for the country of New Zealand. According to legend, it means “land of the long white cloud”. Presumably this is what its first human discoverers saw as they navigated their way from eastern Polynesia west across the Pacific Ocean seven or eight hundred years ago, around 1250. Europeans didn’t show up until 400 years later in 1642, when a Dutchman named Abel Tasman made his way from what is now Indonesia to southern Australia, and then to these lush islands…..

A first and enduring national symbol for Aotearoa/New Zealand is the silver fern, a plant that I originally mistook for a palm tree, growing in profusion seemingly everywhere.

The silver fern is the emblem of New Zealand’s national rugby team, the All Blacks, and is also featured on souvenir items……

People from New Zealand call themselves kiwis, after a nocturnal flightless bird endemic to the country.

Very cute…. And unfortunately endangered – falling victim to predators introduced by humans over the years, such as stoats (a kind of small weasel), dogs and cats. Wildlife conservation efforts are under way and working in some areas.

Another kind of kiwi – the fruit!

First introduced to New Zealand from China shortly after 1900, they were called Chinese gooseberries. Once commercial cultivation became successful, however, the name was officially changed in 1959 to kiwifruit.

Kiwis – people, birds and fruit…….. we look forward to getting to know more about them all!

An historic note – New Zealand became a colony of the British Empire in 1840 pursuant to a treaty with the Māori leadership. In 1907 it became a self-governing dominion of the United Kingdom and now remains a part of the Commonwealth. The flag includes the Union Jack and a depiction of the Southern Cross constellation, a brilliant feature of the night sky in this hemisphere.

Introduction over….. will post again shortly with reports from Auckland and the Northland region.