Christchurch

Name

The city was named by the Canterbury Association , which settled in the area. The name of Christchurch was selected during the first meeting of association, on March 27th, 1848. It was suggested by J.R. Godley, which had studied with Christ Church College, with Oxford (England). At some beginning called it Church Christ , but in the minutes of the meeting deciding the name one wrote Christchurch .

Its name māori, Ōtautahi , is a short cut of Te Whenua O Potiki-Tautahi , which honors the chief Ngāi Tahu Tautahi, who was established with Port Levy on the Avon, where is located today the bridge of Barbadoes Street.

Geography

Christchurch is located in the Canterbury, in the middle of the east coast of the island of the South, between the Péninsule of Banks and the Plaines of Canterbury. It is located close to the southern point of the Baie of Pegasus and is delimited in the east by the Pacific Ocean as well as the estuary of the rivers Avon and Heathcote. The south and south-east are dominated by volcanic hills, the Port Hills . In north one finds the river Waimakariri.

The Avon river which runs in the city was named thus in honor of that in the Ayrshire, in Scotland, on request of the Deans brothers, originating in the area.

In winter one often measures températues falling under O°C the night. On average 70 days ago of Givre per annum. Snow falls approximately twice per year on the hills and one or twice on the plains.

At the time of certain cold nights of winter, the surrounding hills and the calm cold contribute to the creation of a Couche of inversion which catches the exhaust of the vehicles and the smoke of fires to create Smog. Though not in a situation as serious as Los Angeles or Mexico City, Christchurch often exceeded the limits of Air pollution of the the World Health Organization. The town hall tries to level the systems heating of the city to try to limit pollution.

Temperatures

Demography

March 6th, 2004, the area managed by the Town council of Christchurch had a population of: 344100, doing it the second city of New Zealand and the first of the island of the South. The metropolitan region of Christchurch is the third of the country after those of Auckland and Wellington.

The following table shows the ethnic profile of the population of Christchurch according to the censuses of 2001 and 2006. The percentages go up above 100% because some are identified like members of more than one ethnicity. The figures of 2006 apply only to the town of Christchurch and not its metropolitan region. The great fall of the percentage of Europeans is due to the growing number of people being identified like New Zealander , though this denomination was not officially on the form.

The census of 2006 also includes information on the multilingualism of the area. According to the results: 283986 people living the town of Christchurch speak only one language, while: 37947 speak two about them, and: 7881 speaks three about them or more; there are Japanese panels around the public garden of the Cathedral and several churches being particularly appraisals of couples wishing to marry there.

Government

The local government consists of several organizations:

the Town council of Christchurch, the territorial authority governing the area;
six community boards , each one governing an electoral section, with five members by and two advisers by community board ;
of the district councils for the surrounding areas;
the Regional Canterbury Council ( Environment Canterbury ), including four electoral constituencies with two members per district, and
the District Health Board of Canterbury, with five members for Christchurch

In 1993 the Fondation Bertelsmann decreed in Christchurch the price of the city best controlled world ( Best Run City in the World ), ex-aequo with Phoenix (Arizona).

Teaching

In Secondary education, Christchurch is known for several colleges of the public style of the schools of the the United Kingdom, of which Christ' S College, St Andrew' S, St Margaret' S College , and the Rangi Ruru Girls' School . One also finds there the Burnside High School , known for his teaching in the field of the music and the second largest school of New Zealand, with: 2650 students.

In higher education, one finds the Université of Canterbury, the Université Lincoln, the polytechnic Institut of technology of Christchurch, and the medical college of the Université of Otago.

Transport

Christchurch is served by the International airport of Christchurch, of the drunk lines of and Train. The local, known buses under the name of Subway , are under the authority of the Canterbury Regional Council , and there exist free lines of bus limited to the downtown area. The means of transport more used remain nevertheless the Voiture. The ground of the city being very flat, the Town council installs several cycle tracks.

There is a Tramway, but its course is limited to a circuit of the downtown area and is thus rather of tourist interest. The trams were introduced in 1905 and ceased their service in 1954, being reinstalled like tourist attraction in 1995.

The railway line of north goes to Kaikoura and Picton, using trains TranzCoastal; the line of the south goes to Invercargill while passing by Dunedin. The most famous train on the basis of the station of Christchurch is the TranzAlpine, which takes the line of the south until Rolleston, then takes the Midland line and passes by the Alps of the South by taking the Tunnel Otira, finishing the way with Greymouth in the Westland. It is, from the crossed landscapes, a purely tourist line.

History

June 22nd 1954, a fact various to Christchurch shook all New Zealand: a named young girl Pauline Parker had just killed her mother with the assistance of her friend Juliet Hulme. This fact various was reported in the film celestial Créatures carried out by Peter Jackson in 1994 and turned on the same spot of the drama. -->

Archaeological excavations led to Redcliffs in 1876 found traces of the first inhabitants of the area: tribes which drove out moa towards 1250. The oral history māorie reports that they already lived the area around the year 1000. These first inhabitants are replaced by the tribe Waitaha, which would have migrated there since the east coast of the island of North in the 16th century. After tribal wars, Waitaha (compounds of three people) were dispossessed by the tribe Kāti Mamoe, itself subjugated later by the Ngāi Tahu, which would control the area until the arrival of Europeans.

Following the purchase of the grounds of Putaringamuto (today Riccarton) by the Frères Weller, hunters of whale, a group of European pioneers, directed by the Sirs Herriott and McGillivray, are established in what is the area of Christchurch today towards 1840. Their abandoned farms will be bought by the Deans brothers in 1843. The first four ships of the Canterbury Association arrive on December 16th, 1850, bringing the 792 first Pilgrim S of Canterbury with the Port of Lyttelton. These ships are the Randolph , the Charlotte-Jane , the Sir George Seymour , and the Cressy . These new pioneers thought of building a city around a cathedral and a university, according to Christ Church College with Oxford. The name of Christchurch was decided on March 27th, 1848, before even the arrival of the ships.

The captain Thomas, the expert geometrician of the group, explores the area. In December 1849 it orders the construction of a road between Port Cooper (today Lyttelton) and Christchurch via Sumner. Its construction proves more difficult than envisaged; it is suspended time to build a small way usable with horse between the port and the valley of Heathcote. This way was baptized Bridle Path ( Chemin du attaches ), because its slope is so stiff that it is necessary to carry out the horses by their supports.

All that was too heavy or too large to be transported in this manner was put in small ships, which would make a way of approximately 13 km skirting the coast to the estuary of Ferrymead; the first public railway line of New Zealand will be that of Ferrymead-Christchurch, open in 1863. One made build a tunnel in the Port Hills due to diffulté of the ground; this line will carry out until Lyttelton and will be open in 1867.

Christchurch becomes officially city from a royal decree of July 31st, 1856; it is the first of New Zealand. Many the Gothic buildings of the architect Benjamin Mountfort go back to this period.

Christchurch will be the administrative center of the Province of Canterbury.

In 1947 took place the worst fire urban of New Zealand, in the store Ballatyne' S of Christchurch; 41 people will lose their life there.

One inaugurates the tunnel between Lyttelton and Christchurch in 1964.

It will be host of the Jeux of the Commonwealth in 1974.

Christchurch and the Antarctic

Christchurch was a long time the starting point of several forwardings in the Antarctic, of which those of Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton, which left the port of Lyttelton. With the downtown area there is a sculpture of Scott made by his wife.

The International Antarctic Centers , opposite the international airport of Christchurch, shelters a museum and equipment for the programs antarctic of the United States and New Zealand. It is the principal base for flights of supply of the bases of McMurdo and Scott.

Culture

Parks and nature

The great number of parks and gardens of Christchurch are worth the nickname of to him Garden City . The Park Hagley and the Botanical garden of Christchurch (large of 30 ha and founded in 1863), are with the downtown area. The Hagley park is particularly snuffed people wishing to make sport; they play Golf there, with the Cricket, the Netball and the Rugby. One also holds many concerts to with it.

Cinema and theater

The first Cinéma S were built around the public garden of the cathedral, but today there remains only the Regent complex, famous Regent one Worcester in 1996. The largest cinemas are Hoyts on the Moorhouse avenue and Reading in the center commerciel of Shirley. The Christchurch Arts Centers includes two cinemas, the Cloisters and the Academy , which show foreign films, traditional and contemporary and take part in an annual cinema festival. The amateurs of cinema have an association, the Canterbury Film Society .

The Christchurch Arts Centers also shelters a theater, the Court Theater .

Music

There is a symphony orchestra professional, the Christchurch Symphony . Christchurch accommodates each January an international festival of the travelling musicians, the World Buskers Festival .

Other

Christchurch shelters the second stage largest of New Zealand, the Westpac Arena , being able to accommodate between: 5000 and: 8000 people according to the configuration. One sees there playing the teams of sport buildings, of which of basketball and netball. It accommodated the international Championship of netball of 1999 like much in concerts.

The auditorium of Christchurch (: 2000 people), open in 1974, contains excellent a Orgue.

Christchurch also has a casino.

Sport

The team of Rugby is called the Crusaders and is more gaining of all the teams Super 14 and Super 12. The Canterbury Rugby Football Union represents the city at the time of the Air New Zealand Cup.

The team of Netball is the Canterbury Flames, playing in the National Bank Cup .

The Canterbury Rams represent the city in Basketball.

The team of Cricket is called the Canterbury Wizards.

Stages

The Queen Elizabeth II Park accommodated the Jeux of the Commonwealth of 1974. The FRIENDLY Stadium accommodates the matches Rugby in winter and of cricket in summer. Poritt and Nunweek Parks (in Avonside and Bishopdale, respectively), one plays Hockey. There is also more than one dozen of golf courses.

Twinnings

Christchurch is twinned with the following cities:

Appendices

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