<P> Sometime between 1250 and 1300 CE, Polynesians settled in the islands that later were named New Zealand and developed a distinctive Māori culture . In 1642, Dutch explorer Abel Tasman became the first European to sight New Zealand . In 1840, representatives of Britain and Māori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, which declared British sovereignty over the islands . In 1841, New Zealand became a colony within the British Empire and in 1907 it became a Dominion . Today, the majority of New Zealand's population of 4.7 million is of European descent; the indigenous Māori are the largest minority, followed by Asians and Pacific Islanders . Reflecting this, New Zealand's culture is mainly derived from Māori and early British settlers, with recent broadening arising from increased immigration . The official languages are English, Māori and New Zealand Sign Language, with English predominant . </P> <P> New Zealand is a developed country and ranks highly in international comparisons of national performance, such as health, education, economic freedom and quality of life . Since the 1980s, New Zealand has transformed from an agrarian, regulated economy to a market economy . Nationally, legislative authority is vested in an elected, unicameral Parliament, while executive political power is exercised by the Cabinet, led by the Prime Minister, who is currently Bill English . Queen Elizabeth II is the country's head of state and is represented by a governor - general, currently Dame Patsy Reddy . In addition, New Zealand is organised into 11 regional councils and 67 territorial authorities for local government purposes . The Realm of New Zealand also includes Tokelau (a dependent territory); the Cook Islands and Niue (self - governing states in free association with New Zealand); and the Ross Dependency, which is New Zealand's territorial claim in Antarctica . New Zealand is a member of the United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, ANZUS, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Pacific Islands Forum, and Asia - Pacific Economic Cooperation . </P> <P> Dutch explorer Abel Tasman sighted New Zealand in 1642 and called it Staten Landt, supposing it was connected to a landmass of the same name at the southern tip of South America . In 1645, Dutch cartographers renamed the land Nova Zeelandia after the Dutch province of Zeeland . British explorer James Cook subsequently anglicised the name to New Zealand . </P> <P> Aotearoa (often translated as "land of the long white cloud") is the current Māori name for New Zealand . It is unknown whether Māori had a name for the whole country before the arrival of Europeans, with Aotearoa originally referring to just the North Island . Māori had several traditional names for the two main islands, including Te Ika - a-Māui (the fish of Māui) for the North Island and Te Waipounamu (the waters of greenstone) or Te Waka o Aoraki (the canoe of Aoraki) for the South Island . Early European maps labelled the islands North (North Island), Middle (South Island) and South (Stewart Island / Rakiura). In 1830, maps began to use North and South to distinguish the two largest islands and by 1907, this was the accepted norm . The New Zealand Geographic Board discovered in 2009 that the names of the North Island and South Island had never been formalised, and names and alternative names were formalised in 2013 . This set the names as North Island or Te Ika - a-Māui, and South Island or Te Waipounamu . For each island, either its English or Māori name can be used, or both can be used together . </P>

What is the origin of the name new zealand
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