New Zealand Christmas Trivia: Holiday Cheer Down Under!
Get ready to deck the halls with facts and fun this holiday season! Our New Zealand Christmas Trivia is the perfect way to test your knowledge of Kiwi festive traditions and historic celebrations. Are you ready to ring in the holidays with a challenge?
How did Captain Cook and his crew celebrate Christmas on board the Endeavour while battling heavy seas off the northern tip of the North Island in 1769?
With a special serving of pickled herring
With a meal of ‘Goose pye’ (made with gannet)
With a feast of salted pork and hardtack
They did not celebrate Christmas at all
Who is credited with conducting the first Christmas Day service in New Zealand?
Richard Johnson
John King
William Colenso
Samuel Marsden
A ‘light the cigarette race’ (as seen at Tolaga Bay School’s Christmas party in 1953) was run on ships crossing the Atlantic in the early 20th century as a way to:
Entertain passengers during long voyages
Get passengers fit while at sea
Settle bets among the crew
Encourage socializing among passengers
Santa Claus made his commercial New Zealand debut in which year?
1984
1922
1894
1020
Which organisation supplied free cigars, coffee and cake to New Zealand soldiers at Christmas during the First World War?
The Salvation Army
The Red Cross
YMCA
New Zealand Expeditionary Force
Under the terms of the Holidays Act 2003, most people who work on Christmas Day are entitled to:
Double time pay only
Standard pay with no additional benefits
Time-and-a-half pay and an alternative day off
Time-and-a-half pay only
What did 72% of Kiwis surveyed by Reader’s Digest in 2006 claim they would prefer to eat for Christmas dinner?
A barbeque on the beach
A roast dinner and Christmas pudding
A seafood feast
A vegetarian meal
What tree did some early settlers refer to as ‘Antipodean holly’?
Pōhutukawa
Kauri
Rimu
Manuka
According to a popular New Zealand Christmas song of the 1960s, who will ‘pull the Christmas sleigh in the southern hemisphere’?
Sticky Beak the Kiwi
Kiwi the Kangaroo
Puku the Possum
Moa the Mysterious
In which department store did Santa Claus first appear in New Zealand?
Outstanding! Your knowledge of New Zealand’s Christmas customs and history is as bright as the Pōhutukawa in bloom. You've truly captured the spirit of a Kiwi Christmas!
Remarkable! You've shown a heartwarming understanding of the yuletide festivities in New Zealand. Your familiarity with Kiwi Christmas traditions is enough to make Santa proud!
Great job! You have a cozy grasp of Christmas in New Zealand, with some room to add more tinsel to your knowledge tree. Keep exploring the holiday warmth found in the land of the long white cloud.
Not bad! You're familiar with some of the twinkling lights of New Zealand's Christmas traditions. Keep the holiday cheer going by learning more about Kiwi festive history.
You've dipped your toes into the summer waters of a New Zealand Christmas. There's plenty more to discover, so don't be shy—unwrap the gift of knowledge and celebrate the season Kiwi-style!