Aotearoa

New Zealanders claim they’re the first on the globe each morning to see the sun rise, and located just opposite zero degrees on the Greenwich Meridian dateline, they may be right.  New Zealand is called “Aotearoa” by its first human inhabitants, the Maoris.  This translates into “the land of the long white cloud”.

When the Maoris first arrived in New Zealand, they first saw only a layer of clouds above the islands, before they saw any land at all.  The cloud is an indication of New Zealand’s climate, or location on the globe, both of which have a part to play in the country’s culture, history, and modern character.