The original inhabitants of New Zealand were Polynesians and it is believed that they settled there around 1000 B.C. the descendants of the first settlers came to be known as Maoris who have an evident culture that is exclusive to them. Another similar group known as the Moriori settled on the Chatham Islands on the eastern part of New Zealand. These original settlers exploited the vast resources on the large Island.
The Europeans who first reached New Zealand was a crew led by a Dutch explorer known as Abel Tasman. The crew anchored on the Northern part of South Island in 1642. The explorer christened the place Murderers bay. The crew left hurriedly after a serious clash with the local Maoris. Tasman sketched the area and it appeared on the initial maps of New Zealand. He called the place Staten land however; Dutch cartographers altered the name to Nova Zealander. Naval Captain James Cook later changed it to New Zealand
North Island New Zealand
From the 1790’s the New Zealand was visited by the French British as well as American trading and fishing ships. The crews exchanged western goods with food supplies and other goods. New Zealand today is a cosmopolitan country and still has close links with its former colonizers Great Britain.