Sarah WallockWhen I moved out here, I felt like I knew nothing about New Zealand. I kept reading blogs and guidebooks, and watching videos, but nothing stuck. I felt like I couldn’t understand the culture or determine if there even was one. So there’s this island near Australia and it’s really pretty. Britain colonized it in 1840, and before that, Polynesians migrated there. I have noticed a few points about the culture of New Zealand after living here. But interestingly, I’ve learned about New Zealander’s perceptions of the United States and American culture as well.
So let’s dive into the 13 things you might not know about New Zealand.
- There’s one highway across the entire country
- There are significant Polynesian, British, and Chinese influences
- The All Blacks Rugby team are a staple of New Zealand culture
- Appreciation for nature is a massive part of life
- Birds are a big deal
- Kiwi slang is sweet as
- It’s popular to travel by campervan
- People love American fast-food: McDonald’s (Macca’s), KFC, and Subway are the most popular
- American college sweatshirts and sports jerseys are a widespread fashion trend
- It’s normal to walk around barefoot (and legal)
- There are volunteer fire brigades which blast sirens all over the towns to notify the volunteers
- Natural disasters are common: earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, volcanic eruptions
- Summer barbies are where it’s at
1. There’s one highway across the entire country
Yeah, you got that right. One road, one lane, for the entire country. There is one road from Auckland to Wellington. There is one road from Picton to Invercargill. Welcome to New Zealand, where you’ll never have to switch lanes again!
2. There are significant Polynesian, British, and Chinese influences
I was definitely surprised by how vibrant the culture is in New Zealand. I’ve traveled all over the country and I am astonished by New Zealand’s diversity. I expected New Zealand to be relatively self-contained.
I think New Zealand is unique because they’ve found practices to encourage and honor their diversity through education, cultural exchanges, languages and liberal immigration policies. But like anywhere, there are issues here too with discrimination, inequality, lack of representation and equity.
Māori/Pacific Influence
The most obvious influence on New Zealand is that of Māori, the indigenous people. Polynesians came over 1,000 years ago and established Māori culture. In the 1980s, Māori culture “started to undergo a renaissance.” Māori influences are much more prominent in the North Island, but in the South Island the population is primarily descendants of British colonizers. In addition, 3/4 of NZ’s population live on the North Island.
British Influence
The British influence is massive. The way the government and society are structured mirrors the UK’s in many ways. Even the architecture is based off of colonial-era traditions.
Chinese Influence
From the time I arrived, I noticed how many Chinese New Zealanders have lived here for centuries. I had no idea about this significant cultural influence on New Zealand before arriving, so it took me by surprise.
New Zealand has a lot of unexpected cultural influences and it’s really interesting. In addition to the influences mentioned, there are significant communities of South Americans, Czechs and Americans throughout New Zealand. It has been so enriching and interesting to be surrounded by and learn about other cultures.
At home in California I ate tacos, enchiladas, burritos, and now I find myself eating pho, curry, or sushi. Additionally, living in New Zealand has even changed the way I view travel. I used to think about visiting Costa Rica, Mexico or Belize, but now I’ve seen how much Kiwis love visiting Australia, Japan and the Pacific Islands. My travel bucket list is developing and growing!
3. The All Blacks Rugby team are a staple of New Zealand culture
I am pretty unenthused about sports if I am being honest… But there’s something special about rugby in New Zealand. There’s something about the All Blacks that brings people together. I was lucky enough to see a few games on TV here at the bars before Covid hit. The streets are filled with people singing dressed in All Blacks jerseys and the few supporters of the opposing teams getting a mouthful. Usually, I associate animosity with American sports but here it’s all pretty peaceful.
4. Appreciation for nature is a massive part of life
For the same reason that many visitors come to New Zealand, Kiwis have developed a passion for the outdoors and delight in activities that make the most of the spectacular landscape.
New Zealand Tourism
I am constantly impressed with how connected Kiwis are to nature. It seems like it’s taught from such a young age that people are indebted to taking care of the planet. Many Māori proverbs have to do with nature and appreciating the land. This passion is found all over the country from farmers to Aucklanders, but nature is truly a national value.
5. Birds are a big deal
New Zealand’s national bird is a flightless native bird called the Kiwi. Many of the birds in New Zealand are native and can only be found here. The preservation efforts are so extreme to protect the unique bird species from going extinct. There is a national passion for the birds and it’s beautiful to see. It is a very conservation-minded country, with hunters prioritizing killer predators and even politicians placing importance on native bird conservation.
6. Kiwi slang is sweet as
Mate… my vocab has changed so much after almost 2 years here.
Here’s a quick run-down on some kiwi slang.
Mate: friend
Kiwi: person from New Zealand
Sweet as: something is cool or exaggerating the word “sweet.” Any word can be substituted for sweet. Easy as, gnarly as, crazy as, sweaty as… etc.
Bro: brother, friend.
Chur: something is cool, or agreeing with someone.
Yeah nah: polite way of saying no.
Nah: no.
Flat white: a coffee with foamed milk, while a latte is a coffee with warm milk.
There is British influence on language such as British phrases and colloquialisms. There is a significant Māori influence on place names on the North Island.
Tip: Māori words are pronounced by syllable. I made the mistake of saying words like Wanaka as “Wa-NAKA,” when I first arrived. But actually, it is pronounced one syllable at a time like “Wa-Na-Ka.”
7. It’s popular to travel by campervan
In the US, I wouldn’t say campervan travel is very popular with the Californians I grew up around. But in New Zealand, because the country is so vast and beautiful, traveling by car is an awesome way to see so many beautiful parts of it. Campervan rentals are popular amongst not only foreign backpackers, but kiwi couples, families and Australians. There are freedom camping sites across the whole country to support this type of tourism.
8. People love American fast-food: McDonald’s (Macca’s), KFC, and Subway are the most popular
American fast-food chains are all over the world. I noticed when I traveled through Vietnam that they were popular, but in New Zealand people love them. McDonald’s is affectionately called “Macca’s.” KFC always has a line out the door. Subway is the newest addition, but people go nuts for it.
9. American college sweatshirts and sports jerseys are a widespread fashion trend
In 2019, I saw a man walking around in a sweatshirt in Queenstown that said Santa Barbara, my hometown, on it. “What, oh my god you’re from Santa Barbara?” I stopped him on the street. “Sorry what are you talking about?” he said, confused. “Oh your shirt, it’s from a shop near where I live…” He had no idea what I was talking about. When the borders were open before Covid-19, gear from Harvard, Yale, and UCLA appeared all around the country. Hm it must be American families here visiting? Nope, it was just kiwis wearing American gear.
Many kiwis wear American college branded shirts and sports jerseys. I wouldn’t have enough fingers on my hands to count the number of these tops I see every week. It’s something becoming more and more popular. American college and sports shirts are a trend or fashion statement, but it’s funny to me because I have a literal connection to many of the schools they are branding themselves with or inadvertently promoting. I know wearing “Harvard” or some of the top universities in the world is an international fashion trend. But I’m not talking about the elite schools or teams, I’m talking about ANYTHING American college or sports looking.
Just this week I saw a boy in a dance class in Wellington wearing a “University of Illinois Champagne Urbana” sweatshirt. Now that’s random. I even saw a rack of jerseys at a mainstream NZ fashion outlet selling basketball jerseys that looked like my gym outfit from junior high school.
10. It’s normal to walk around barefoot (and legal)
Whether you’re in town for a drink, grabbing groceries or meeting a friend, it’s no big deal to go without shoes. It’s pretty much encouraged.
11. There are volunteer fire brigades which blast sirens all over the towns to notify the volunteers
Nick and I were driving through Matamata on the North Island and it was pouring rain. An apocalyptic siren started wailing and my heart starting racing! “What the hell is happening? Why is everyone acting normal? Is there a flood, fire, do we need to get to higher ground?” It was slightly traumatic and terrifying. Turns out, that siren is super normal.
Most of New Zealand operates on a volunteer firefighter system. If there’s any sort of emergency and they need the attention of the volunteers, a siren blasts through town. It can be for anything from a car crash to a fire to a natural disaster. Only 20% of New Zealand’s population are full-time firefighters and many of them work in the outdoors.
12. Natural disasters are common: earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, volcanic eruptions
Because New Zealand is an island and located on a fault line, there is a big risk of natural disasters occurring here. Just in the last two years, there’s been a volcanic eruption on an island, many earthquakes, a tsunami on the North Island and a massive flood in Queenstown.
13. Summer barbies are where it’s at
Barbie: kiwi slang for barbecue. Remember when you were 10 years-old and your school had a barbecue for your class? Yeah just like that, except way more chill and with drinks.
I was surprised by the love of barbecues when I came here, but truly almost every weekend of summer, people host barbies at their houses, at public places like beaches or parks and just chill out.
Thanks for taking a minute to read about the 13 things you might not know about New Zealand.
