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How did New Zealand get discovered?
From that perspective, New Zealand was first spotted on December 13, 1642 by Dutch navigator Abel Tasman and explored by Captain James Cook in 1769. When Europeans first landed in New Zealand, several Māori were killed in skirmishes with Cook and his crew. The effects of this first encounter are felt to this day.
How did James Cook Discover New Zealand?
The English navigator Captain James Cook sighted New Zealand on 6 October 1769, and landed at Poverty Bay two days later. He drew detailed and accurate maps of the country, and wrote about the Māori people. His first encounter with Māori was not successful – a fight broke out in which some Māori were killed.
Who discovered New Zealand country?
The first European to arrive in New Zealand was the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman in 1642. The name New Zealand comes from the Dutch ‘Nieuw Zeeland’, the name first given to us by a Dutch mapmaker.
When did New Zealand get found?
September 26, 1907
New Zealand/Founded
Did the Chinese discover New Zealand First?
English explorer Captain James Cook reportedly “discovered” New Zealand’s East Coast on October 7, 1769, hundreds of years after it had been settled by Maori. But two visits early this year have convinced Cedric Bell that Chinese ships were visiting New Zealand 2000 years ago.
Who was the first white man to discover New Zealand?
explorer Abel Tasman
The dutch explorer Abel Tasman is officially recognised as the first European to ‘discover’ New Zealand in 1642. His men were the first Europeans to have a confirmed encounter with Māori.
Did the Vikings go to New Zealand?
When they reached New Zealand, some left their whaling and trading ships to search for gold. In the 1920s and 1930s Norwegian whalers, as fearless as their Viking ancestors, chased the giants of the southern ocean.
Who are the original natives of New Zealand?
Māori are the tangata whenua, the indigenous people, of New Zealand. They came here more than 1000 years ago from their mythical Polynesian homeland of Hawaiki. Today, one in seven New Zealanders identify as Māori.
Who saw New Zealand First?
Who was the New Zealand before the Māori?
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.