what is the origin of the name new zealand
New Zealand 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.[11] In 1645, Dutch cartographers renamed the land Nova Zeelandia after the Dutch province of Zeeland.[12][13] British explorer James Cook subsequently anglicised the name to New Zealand.[14][15]