New Zealand

Kate Sheppard, the head of the franchise and legislation department of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, became the most prominent leader of the suffrage campaign.

On 19 September 1893, New Zealand became the first self-governing country in the world where all women had the right to vote in parliamentary elections.

In most other democracies – Great Britain, the United States, France, etc. – women did not win the right to the vote until after the First World War.

More details here:

http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/politics/womens-suffrage

It is widely believed that New Zealand has 20 sheep for every person.

But in fact, with a population of about 5.3 million people and around 24.4 million sheep, there are actually 4,6 sheep per person.

A sheep-to-person ratio that keeps falling!

More details here:

https://www.infometrics.co.nz/article/2023-05-chart-of-the-month-lambslide-in-sheep-numbers

It was on 12 November 1988 that the world's first commercial bungy (or bungee) jump opened.

On the first day, twenty-eight people, at the Kawarau Bridge, paid to leap off the 43-metre bridge with a cord attached to their ankles.

As for now, the highest commercial bungy jump in the world, according to the Guinness Book of Records, is 233m, off the Macau Tower in China.

More details here:

https://www.bungy.co.nz/about-us/

In Golden Bay the Te Waikoropupu Springs produce one to two billion litres of water a day.

These springs could provide enough drinking water for the entire population of New Zealand!

In addition, they are the clearest natural water in the world, after Antarctica: the horizontal visibility of the water has been measured at an average of 63 meters, a world record…

More details here:

http://www.newzealand.com/nouvelle-zélande/article/crystal-clear-te-waikoropupu-springs/

Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu

What is it? The longest name for a place in the whole world! 89 letters!

The board above the name explains that Tamatea was a chief, a warrior and an explorer. One day, he met with his people a rival tribe, and during the battle his brother was killed. He was so grieved that he stayed some time at that very place, and each morning he sat on the hill and played a lament for his lost brother.

So the name of the place really means: the summit where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, the climber of mountains, the land-swallower who travelled about, played his nose flute to his loved one.

More details here:

https://www.newzealand.com/ca/feature/the-longest-place-name-in-new-zealand/

New Zealand was the first country to have its three top power positions held at the same time by women: the Prime Minister (Helen Clark - 1999 to 2008), the Governor General (Dame Silvia Cartwright - 2001 to 2006), and the Chief Justice (Sian Elias - 1999 to 2019).

More details here:

http://world-class.com.au/countries/new-zealand-2/