a country consisting of two main islands, the North Island and the South Island,and several smaller ones, in the Pacific Ocean southeast of Australia. Population: 3,864,000 (2001). Capital: Wellington. Farming, especially sheep farming, is important to the New Zealand economy. About 10% of the population are MAORI people, who first came to New Zealand around the 9th century AD, and who call the country AOTEAROA . Most of the rest of the population are people who came from the UK in the 19th and 20th centuries.