
Why did Abel Tasman give New Zealands its name?
“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.
Was Abel Tasman the first to discover New Zealand?
Cuyp, c. 1637 Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman became the first European to discover what we call today New Zealand, and Tasmania, the island state off Australia’s southern coast. While Tasman’s voyages were regarded as a failure by the Dutch East India Company, he was the first to map and explore the coastlines of these new territories.
When did Abel Tasman first arrive in New Zealand?
The first European to arrive in New Zealand was the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman in 1642. The name New Zealand comes from the Dutch ‘Nieuw Zeeland’, the name first given to us by a Dutch mapmaker. Who is the best adventurer in the world? Raft the Grand Canyon Arizona, USA.
What to see and do in Abel Tasman?
Top 3 Family
- Introduce the children to the magical experience of kayaking the Abel Tasman with Kahu Kayaks Family Cruiser trip.
- A walk for all ages with stunning views and a golden beach or two included. ...
- Take a short drive towards nearby Golden Bay and on the way visit Ngārua Caves and see the extinct bones of the extinct moa and other underground sites. ...
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Why did Abel Tasman call it New Zealand?
Tasman named the place where he anchored Moordenaers Baij (Murderers Bay). Despite the tragic encounter, Tasman was impressed by the new country. Just days after his men had been killed he wrote that the place was 'a very fine land'.
Was Australia ever called New Zealand?
Instead, his discovery of a flat, uninteresting coastline with no apparent resources and a hostile indigenous people was of little interest to the company. Later Dutch expeditions charted the Australian coastline further and dubbed the island continent “Nieuw Holland” (New Holland).
How old was Abel Tasman when he died?
56 years (1603–1659)Abel Tasman / Age at death
What was Abel Tasman known for?
Seafarer, explorer and merchant Abel Janszoon Tasman was the first European to discover Tasmania and confirm Australia as an island continent. Born in the Netherlands around 1602, he was raised and educated in Lutjegast, Gronigen.
Who named NZ NZ?
In 1642 Dutch explorer Abel Tasman was the first European to discover New Zealand, calling it Staten Land. In 1645, Dutch cartographers renamed the land Nova Zeelandia after the Dutch province of Zeeland. British explorer James Cook subsequently anglicized the name to New Zealand.
What was the original name of New Zealand?
Aotearoa was used for the name of New Zealand in the 1878 translation of "God Defend New Zealand", by Judge Thomas Henry Smith of the Native Land Court—this translation is widely used today when the anthem is sung in Māori.
Who discovered NZ?
navigator Abel TasmanFrom that perspective, New Zealand was first spotted on December 13, 1642 by Dutch navigator Abel Tasman and explored by Captain James Cook in 1769.
Was New Zealand found before Australia?
Early history Australia and New Zealand had quite separate indigenous histories, settled at different times by very different peoples – Australia from Indonesia or New Guinea around 50,000 years ago, New Zealand from islands in the tropical Pacific around 1250–1300 CE.
Who discovered Australia and NZ?
Captain James Cook first came to New Zealand in 1769. After circumnavigating and mapping the coastline he sailed to Australia and landed at Botany Bay in 1770. The Australian Aborigines have been in Australia for at least 40,000 years and are not closely related to the Máori of New Zealand.
Did Abel Tasman Discover New Zealand?
Abel Tasman is officially recognised as the first European to 'discover' New Zealand in 1642. His men were the first Europeans to have a confirmed encounter with Māori.
Did Tasman land in NZ?
On 13 December 1642 they sighted land on the north-west coast of the South Island, New Zealand, becoming the first Europeans to sight New Zealand. Tasman named it Staten Landt "in honour of the States General" (Dutch parliament).
What is Abel Tasman's greatest achievement?
Abel Tasman is famous for being the first European to reach Van Diemen's island (now Tasmania), and New Zealand. He was also the first to sight the Fiji islands. He helped to map large areas of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands.
What was Australia's original name?
Terra AustralisIn 1804, the British navigator Matthew Flinders proposed the names Terra Australis or Australia for the whole continent, reserving "New Holland" for the western part of the continent.
What was Australia originally called?
New HollandAfter Dutch navigators charted the northern, western and southern coasts of Australia during the 17th Century this newly found continent became known as 'New Holland'. It was the English explorer Matthew Flinders who made the suggestion of the name we use today.
Why did New Zealand separate from Australia?
Drifting Away Forty million years later India (with Madagascar) broke away and the Atlantic Ocean opened up, separating Africa from South America. Eighty million years ago, the landmass that was to become New Zealand, broke away from Gondwana, splitting away from Australia and Antarctica as the Tasman Sea opened up.
Why New Zealand did not become an Australian state?
One of the reasons that New Zealand chose not to join Australia was due to perceptions that the indigenous Māori population would suffer as a result.
Who was Abel Tasman?
Cuyp, c. 1637. Abel Janszoon Tasman ( Dutch: [ˈɑbəl ˈjɑnsoːn ˈtɑsmɑn]; 1603 – 10 October 1659) was a Dutch seafarer, explorer, and merchant, best known for his voyages of 1642 and 1644 in the service of the Dutch East India Company (VOC).
Where was Abel Tasman born?
Attributed to Jacob Gerritsz Cuyp, 1637 (not authenticated). Abel Tasman was born around 1603 in Lutjegast, a small village in the province of Groningen, in the north of the Netherlands.
How many waka did Tasman see?
As Tasman sailed out of the bay he observed 22 waka near the shore, of which "eleven swarming with people came off towards us." The waka approached the Zeehaen which fired and hit a man in the largest waka holding a small white flag. Canister shot also hit the side of a waka. Archaeological research has shown the Dutch had tried to land at a major agricultural area, which the Māori may have been trying to protect. Tasman named the area "Murderers' Bay".
Why did the Tasman sail from Batavia?
The reason for this was the crew could be fed well on the island; there was plenty of fresh water and timber to repair the ships.
What direction did Tasman go?
After some exploration, Tasman had intended to proceed in a northerly direction but as the wind was unfavourable he steered east. The expedition endured an extremely rough voyage and in one of his diary entries Tasman credited his compass, claiming it was the only thing that had kept him alive.
Why did Tasman claim possession of the land?
However, because the sea was too rough, the carpenter swam through the surf and planted the Dutch flag. Tasman then claimed formal possession of the land, on 3 December 1642. For two more days, he continued to follow the east coast northward to see how far it went.
What island did Tasman go to?
During this period, Tasman took part in a voyage to Seram Island; the locals had sold spices to other European nationalities than the Dutch. He had a narrow escape from death, when in an incautious landing several of his companions were killed by people of Seram.
Where did Abel Tasman sail?
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Leaving Batavia (modern Jakarta) on August 14, 1642, with two ships, the Heemskerk and Zeehaen, Tasman sailed to Mauritius (September 5–October 8), then southward and eastward, reaching his most southerly latitude of 49° S at about 94° E.
What was Tasman's first voyage?
On his first voyage (1642–43) in the service of the Dutch East India Company, Tasman explored the Indian Ocean, Australasia, and the southern Pacific; on his second voyage (1644) he traveled in Australian and South Pacific waters. Tasman entered the service of the Dutch East India Company in 1632 or 1633 and made his first voyage ...
How many men died on the Tasman voyage?
Turning northwest, the ships reached New Guinea waters on April 1 and Batavia on June 14, 1643, completing a 10-month voyage on which only 10 men had died from illness. Tasman had circumnavigated Australia without seeing it, thus establishing that it was separated from the hypothetical southern continent.
What was Tasman's task?
He was instructed to explore the Indian Ocean from west to east, south of the ordinary trade route, and, proceeding eastward into the Pacific (if this proved possible), to investigate the practicability of a sea passage eastward to Chile, to rediscover the Solomon Islands of the Spaniards, and to explore New Guinea.
Why was Tasman's second voyage a disappointment?
Although he was rewarded with the rank of commander and was made a member of the Council of Justice of Batavia, his second voyage was also a disappointment to the company because it had failed to reveal lands of potential wealth. In 1647 Tasman commanded a trading fleet to Siam (now Thailand), and in the following year he commanded a war fleet against the Spaniards in the Philippines. He left the service of the Dutch East India Company several years later.
Who was the Dutch navigator who sighted the West Coast?
In November–December, having made a great circuit of the seas, Tasman sighted the west coast and…. …whom was the Dutch navigator Abel Janszoon Tasman in 1642. Demographers estimate that, by the time British naval captain James Cook visited the country in 1769, the Māori population was not much greater than 100,000.
Who was the first person to discover New Zealand?
New Zealand: Discovery. …Zealand was a Dutch sailor, Abel Janszoon Tasman, who sighted the coast of Westland (northwestern South Island) in December 1642. His sole attempt to land brought only a clash with a South Island tribe during which several of his men were killed. After his voyage the western coast of New….

Overview
First major voyage
In August 1642, the Council of the Indies, consisting of Antonie van Diemen, Cornelis van der Lijn, Joan Maetsuycker, Justus Schouten, Salomon Sweers, Cornelis Witsen, and Pieter Boreel in Batavia dispatched Tasman and Franchoijs Jacobszoon Visscher on a voyage of exploration to little-charted areas east of the Cape of Good Hope, west of Staten Land (near the Cape Horn of South Ameri…
Origins and early life
Abel Tasman was born around 1603 in Lutjegast, a small village in the province of Groningen, in the north of the Netherlands. The oldest available source mentioning him is dated 27 December 1631 when, as a seafarer living in Amsterdam, the 28-year-old became engaged to marry 21-year-old Jannetje Tjaers, of Palmstraat in the Jordaan district of the city.
Relocation to the Dutch East Indies
Employed by the Dutch East India Company (VOC), Tasman sailed from Texel (Netherland) to Batavia, now Jakarta, in 1633 taking the southern Brouwer Route. During this period, Tasman took part in a voyage to Seram Island; the locals had sold spices to other European nationalities than the Dutch. He had a narrow escape from death, when in an incautious landing several of his companions were killed by people of Seram.
Second major voyage
Tasman left Batavia on 30 January 1644 on his second voyage with three ships (Limmen, Zeemeeuw and the tender Braek). He followed the south coast of New Guinea eastwards in an attempt to find a passage to the eastern side of New Holland. However, he missed the Torres Strait between New Guinea and Australia, probably due to the numerous reefs and islands obscuring potential routes, and continued his voyage by following the shore of the Gulf of Carpen…
Later life
On 2 November 1644, Abel Tasman was appointed a member of the Council of Justice at Batavia. He went to Sumatra in 1646, and in August 1647 to Siam (now Thailand) with letters from the company to the King. In May 1648, he was in charge of an expedition sent to Manila to try to intercept and loot the Spanish silver ships coming from America, but he had no success and returned to Batavia in January 1649. In November 1649, he was charged and found guilty of havi…
Legacy
Tasman's ten-month voyage in 1642–43 had significant consequences. By circumnavigating Australia (albeit at a distance) Tasman proved that the small fifth continent was not joined to any larger sixth continent, such as the long-imagined Southern Continent. Further, Tasman's suggestion that New Zealand was the western side of that Southern Continent was seized upon by many Eur…
Tasman map
Held within the collection of the State Library of New South Wales is the Tasman map, thought to have been drawn by Isaac Gilsemans, or completed under the supervision of Franz Jacobszoon Visscher. The map is also known as the Bonaparte map, as it was once owned by Prince Roland Bonaparte, the great-nephew of Napoleon. The map was completed sometime after 1644 and is bas…