The picture on the left is the Maori tribe representing the Maori culture. The Maori are believed to be the indigenous people of New Zealand, immigrating to New Zealand from Polynesia. The Maori have a thorough culture, rich with culture and tradition. Traditionally, the Maori were skilled artisans, known for their intricate weaving and carving, as well as accomplished hunters, fishers, gardeners, and warriors. The picture in the middle is a carving of a head. These pay respect to the past and every piece carved tells a story. The shape of the heads, position of the body, as well as the surface patterns work together to to record and remember events. The last picture is two Maori people using the hongi, which is the traditional greeting of New Zealand. The tradition of the hongi recalls the Maori legend of the creation of the first earthly woman, Hineahuone. She was formed from clay by the creator god, Tane, who then breathed life into her nostrils. Today, the Maori culture is still practiced in New Zealand by over 15% of the population. For example, some people still perform the karakia, which is a prayer. In 2004 there were over 500,000 Maori people, mostly living in cities. There were schools using the Maori language, a Maori television station and 20 radio stations, 16 Maori members of Parliament, and many creative projects in film, music and art. All of these pictures represent folk culture because of the morals and traditions that it set up for New Zealand, which people still use and practice today.
Pop Culture
The picture on the far left is New Zealand's national rugby team. They represent New Zealand in the men's rugby union, which is the regarded as the country's national sport. The team was founded in 1892. They have reached the highest level of rugby representation achievable in the country and are the most succesful international rugby team of all time. With a winning percentage of 76.4 over 526 Tests they are noted as one of the most prolific teams across any sport. The picture in the middle is an event that is historical to New Zealand. The Barfoot and Thompson Auckland Cup race is a 3200 meter race that was first ran in 1874. The Auckland Cup itself is a work of art because Queen Victoria herself commissioned her Crown Jeweller to make in 1889. Auckland hosts a Christmas race, a Boxing Day race, a Herald Summer race, a Herald New Year's race, an Interislander Summer Festival, a Bloodstock Karka Million Twilight race, a Twilight summer night, a League 4 Life Summer Fundraiser, a Macular Degeneration Avondale and Guineas Raceday, a Vodafone Derby Day, an Auckland Cup Day, an Autumn Raceday, a Manco Easter Raceday, an Ellerslie's Irish Raceday, an Ellerslie Business Partners Raceday, and the Queen's Birthday Weekend Race Day featuring the Ellerslie Awards all at the same track. The Festival of Color is a six day celebration of the arts. The event has top class theatre, music, dance, and visual arts from local, national, and international performers. These attractions bring in people and money every year for New Zealand, which helps their economy. All three of these events and teams represent New Zealand and what they are as a whole, which is why they represent pop culture.
Housing/Architecture
New Zealand has a very modern architectural style. They take architecture very seriously in New Zealand, in fact, the New Zealand Institute of Architects Incorporated even host an annual Architecture Awards every year. The architectural design of New Zealand did not begin to become modern until architect Ian Athfield and Roger Walker put a personal touch on their designs to give what architectural historian, Russell Walden described as a 'healthy and personalized kick in the pants'. Early buildings by both architects attracted names like 'Disneyland' and 'Noddy Houses'. Their designs were immediately distinctive, dispensing with the open planning of post-war modern homes, reintroducing multiple small spaces and then giving architectural expression not simply to different functional zones, such as public and private, but seemingly to every room, space, or volume. The 1980s saw New Zealand architects embrace postmodern architecture, with its historical references, decorations, metaphors, and overall glamour and glitz, which were intended to be sophisticated, but to modernist eyes appear superficial. While New Zealand's main cities all have apartments dating back to the 1920s, the 1990s saw increased appartment building in central business districts. The success of these stimulated new, purpose-built apartment buildings in the city centers. In the early 2000s there was a shift towards slicker houses with clean lines, large areas of glass, and minimalist detailing, a kind of neo-modernism. Both of these pictures represent the modernism of New Zealand's architectural style.
Clothing
Clothing is one of the most immediate ways of communicating identity. European clothing is the dominant mode in New Zealand, as in many other parts of the world. The pictures above represent the average outfit of a New Zealander. These pieces of clothing are from NZA (New Zealand Auckland), which is like the 'American Eagle' of the United States. NZA New Zealand Auckland embodies the adventure and lifestyle offered by the unique New Zealand environment and brings to you the ultimate in heritage fine clothing. NZA New Zealand Auckland has many stores across the world including ones in Belgium, France, Spain, Germany, and Italy. They also have stores coming to Qatar, Russia, Japan, and South Korea. New Zealanders wear modern Western-style clothing, so they prefer to dress casually. Men in white-collar jobs even wear shorts, jeans, knee socks, white shirts, and ties to work. New Zealand does not have a specific national dress. Customary Maori clothing is the only form of dress that is distinctive to New Zealand. Even though most people dress casually the Maori people still make up over 15% of the population. Maoris generally dress like other New Zealanders, but still wear their traditional costumes for special occasions. The most distinctive feature of these costumes is the striped, fringed skirt woven from flax that is worn by both men and women. Women wear them over brightly colored dresses. Over their dresses, the women may also wear long white capes decorated with black fringes.
Food
'Meat and three veg' was the traditional standard fare for most New Zealanders, going back to their British roots. However, Kiwis' tastes are widening, and they have embraced new foods and flavors brought to the country by migrants. The first picture is New Zealand green-lipped mussels. Green-lipped mussels come from Perna Canalicula, which is an animal. This shellfish is economically important to New Zealand. It differs from other mussels species in that it has dark brown/green shells with green lips around the edges, and only has one adductor muscle. It is also the largest mussel species, reaching 240 mm in length. The middle picture is Pavlova, which is native to New Zealand. Pavlova is a meringue-based dessert named after the Russian ballerina, Anna Pavlova. It is a meringue dessert with a crisp crust and soft, light inside, usually topped with fruit and whipped cream. Australians and New Zealanders have debated for years on whether Pavlova originated in Australia or New Zealand, but there have been more records of Pavlova in cookbooks in New Zealand than Australia. The last picture is New Zealand Lolly Cake. A lolly cake or lolly log is a New Zealand confectionery that features lollies, which are candies and sweets, as a key ingredient. A typical New Zealand breakfast consists of cereal and some toast which is accompanied by a cup of coffee, tea, or a glass of milk or juice. Lunch is normally something simple and not too heavy since dinner is the main meal of the day. Dinner is the main meal of the day and is often eaten around 6 p.m. It normally contains meat and cooked vegetables, especially potatoes.
Entertainment
There are many things to do as entertainment in New Zealand. The first picture is the Elm Wildlife Tours. The Elm Wildlife Tours take place on the Otago Peninsula Dunedid that includes a private penguin, fur seal, and seal lion conservation areas along with many other tour options that all include different sights. The middle picture is the Active Adventures of New Zealand, for people who are more active. They offer trips ranging from 5 days to 14 days, which include hiking, biking, kayaking, cruising, winery's, caving, jetboating, rafting, snorkeling, and hot springs all at the North and South islands of New Zealand. They also offer extra activities like heli/glacier hiking, whale watching, diving, skiing, and snowboarding. The prices of these trips range from about $3,500 to $6,000. The last picture is A Red Carpet Tour, more specifically The Lord of the Rings tour. Since the Lord of the Rings was filmed in New Zealand, they offer tours of things that were actually in the movie and they have been very popular. They offer any tours from one day to 14 days. Depending on which tour you pick, you will get to travel to these places where they filmed the movie, Matamata, Rotorua, Piopio, Tongario, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch, Twizel, Cromwell, and Queenstown. These ideas are great if you want to see New Zealand and the environmental part of the country up close. These are just a few of the exoctic entertainment experiences that you can do or go on in New Zealand.
Religion
Christianity is the largest religion in New Zealand. The Church of England brought Christianity to New Zealand through the Church Missionary Society, and in the person chaplain and magistrate Samuel Marsden. Another Englishman, George Augustus Selwyn, appointed the bishop of New Zealand in 1841, prepared the constitution for an autonomous branch of the church in New Zealand. The proposed structure, which still largely endures, included dioceses and parishes, Maori churches, schools for Pakeha and Maori boys and girls, and theological colleges. From the beginnings of settlement, the Church of England was, numerically, the strongest denomination in the Pākehā population (about 43% of the non-Māori population were members in 1901). By drawing many of its clergy from England, the New Zealand arm of the church maintained close links with its English counterpart. It served as an important channel through which English moral and social values were transmitted. The Anglican Church did not, however, remain a cultural refuge for the English in the same way that the Catholic Church functioned for the Irish. This was partly because the English were so dominant, and partly because the Anglican Church included significant numbers from other places, especially Ireland. The English were diverse in their religious practice. From the outset of settlement a significant number belonged to the dissenting churches. Methodism arrived in New Zealand with the missionary Samuel Leigh in 1822. The denomination became numerically more significant in New Zealand (10.8% of non-Maori in 1901) than at home, partly because of its strong support among the Cornish and among some Midlands farm migrants, especially those from Lincolnshire. The first picture is the first Presbyterian Church in Dunedin and the second picture is the inside of Durham Street Methodist Church, Christchurch.
Music
New Zealand music is a vibrant expression of the culture of New Zealand. New Zealand's music is influenced by the indigenous Maori immigrants from the Pacific region. Blues, jazz and country music arrived from America in the 1920s and 1930s, while rock and roll made its entrance in 1955 and hip hop in 1985. New Zealand musicians and songwriters, including artists such as jazz pianist Mike Nock and popular singer Bic Runga, and groups such as Split Enz, The Muttonbirds and The Datsuns, have contributed to these global movements. The national importance of popular music was recognised by the establishment in 2000 of the government-funded New Zealand Music Industry Commission, which promotes New Zealand music. Maori singers and songwriters such as Howard Morrison, Prince Tui Teka, Dalvanius Prime, Moana Maniapoto and Hinewehi Mohi have developed a distinctive Maori-influenced style, and popular music has helped in the revival of the Maori language. The Maori Music Industry Coalition was launched to support this goal. Pacific rhythms and melodies have influenced new sounds such as poly-funk and Pacific blues, heard in the music of Ardijah, Che Fu, and Nesian Mystik. In 2004 the hip hop artist Scribe, of Samoan heritage, dominated the New Zealand Music Awards. The two pictures above are bands that have originated in New Zealand. The first picture is a band that was formed in Dunedin in 1986, Straitjacket Fits produced their debut EP, Life In One Chord, on the Flying Nun label in 1987. It was warmly received, spending 10 weeks in the top ten. The second picture is the 1980s band Sneaky Feelings was one of the groups promoted on the Flying Nun label, gaining a strong following in New Zealand and Europe. Their single ‘Husband house’ came out in 1985.