New Zealanders

the basic population of New Zealand, numbering more than 2.6 million persons (1973, estimate) and including the Maoris (more than 230,000) and the Anglo-New Zealanders, called pakeha (about 2.4 million). The Maoris are Polynesians and the Anglo-New Zealanders are for the most part descendants of the English, Scotch, and Irish settlers who began arriving in New Zealand in the late 18th century. New Zealanders speak English (the Maoris also use their native language), and they are Christians, predominantly Anglicans, Presbyterians, and Catholics. The political, economic, and social inequality between the pakeha and the Maoris dates from the conquest of New Zealand by Great Britain. Some 72 percent of the New Zealanders live on the North Island, and only 28 percent on the South Island; 81.5 percent of the New Zealanders are urban dwellers. The culture of the New Zealanders has evolved out of the culture brought by the settlers from the British Isles, which has absorbed elements of the Maori culture.