New Zealand Culture

New Zealand’s culture is a well blended mix of home grown culture and then the migrant’s culture intertwined. The earliest settlers developed the Maori culture, the British settlers in the 19th century brought their culture which had a big impact on the indigenous residents. T he most recognisable part of the indigenous culture is the Haka, which has been brought to international audiences watching rugby!

New Zealand has 3 official languages, New Zealand English, Te Reo Maori and New Zealand Sign Language. English is the most commonly used language although there have been efforts to integrate Te Reo Moari.

Before the Europeans settled, the Maori culture had 2 main forms of arts, carving and weaving. They used these forms to make historic documents to record their stories and legends. The western settlers brought landscape painting and this was adapted into wall painting for 19th century meeting houses. Early in the 20th century, the traditional Maori arts enjoyed a revival and new meeting houses were built with the traditional Maori carvings. Stage and screen dramas suffer due to the lack of popular interest in the new Zealand culture. Probably the most famous director to come from New Zealand is the Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson.

Music in New Zealand is very similar to music in other western countries. Hip hop is popular amonst the younger generations, but it isn’t as violent or sexist as it is in other countries. Classical music has a smaller following but New Zealand did produce Kir Te Kanawa, one of the most famous international opera singers of our time.

Maori cuisine comes from Polynesian cuisine but has been changed slightly to take into account the cooler climate. They use a lot of kumard (sweet potato), fernroot and bird and fish meat . When the settlers arrived in the 19th century they tried to copy the foods from their homelands. New Zealanders are particularly fond of their sweet foods especially cakes, muffins and scones. With the influx of migrants from many different cultures, the cuisine is varied. Different ethnic restaurants give you the chance to sample each taste.

The sports scene in New Zealand is very similar to its British heritage. The main sports are rugby, cricket and netball, with rugby union being the national sport. Before each international match, the New Zealand rugby union team, The All Blacks, perform their tradition dance of the Haka.

Cricket receives a high profile during the summer months and the New Zealand team regularly takes part in test matches.

Most New Zealand’s national teams wear black and white (or silver) and have the silver fern as their emblem.

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