Nieuw-Zeeland

The country has had several names. Abel Tasman, who was one of the first Europeans to see New Zealand, called it 'Stateland', on the assumption that it was connected to the Staten Island of South America. After Hendrik Brouwer proved that this was not the case in 1643, the name was changed by Dutch cartographers to 'Nova Zeelandia', after the Dutch province of Zeeland. British Lieutenant James Cook in turn translated this to New Zealand.