1. New Zealand belongs to a large island group called Polynesia. The country is situated on two main islands – the North Island and the South Island – and several dozens of smaller islands. Most of the smaller islands are hundreds of kilometers from the main ones. Wellington is the capital of New Zealand and Auckland is the largest city. English is the official language and is spoken throughout the country. Many native people speak their own language, Maori, in addition to English. 2. The country once belonged to the British empire. Today it is an independent member of the Commonwealth of Nations, an association of Britain and a member of its former colonies. The British Monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, is the monarch of New Zealand. She appoints a governor general to represent her, but he has little power. Britain gave New Zealand a constitution in 1852, when it was a British colony but through the years the New Zealand legislature has changed almost all its provisions. Today the nation has no written constitution.
3. For many years, the economy of the country depended largely on agriculture. Today agriculture, manufacturing and service industries are all important to the economy. New Zealand’s economy depends on trade with many countries – Australia, Britain, Japan and United States.
4. New Zealand has a high standard of living. The government’s medical program provides excellent health care. Almost in every New Zealand home there are refrigerators, washing machines, and other modern electrical appliances. But air conditioning and central heating are rare because the weather rarely becomes extremely hot or extremely cold. In summer people prefer to keep windows open. In winter, fireplaces or electric heaters keep the homes warm.
5. About four fifths of New Zealand’s population live in urban areas but cities are uncrowded. Large cities have excellent restaurants, theatres, concert halls and other places of entertainment. City life tends to be rather quiet. However it is changing in larger cities where international tourism is developing rapidly. Nearly a fifth of people live in rural areas. Many farm families run their farms with little or no hired help.

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