New Zealand is often left off world maps. This time, at least, it's there. Somewhere. Photo / Instagram/Amazing Maps
New Zealand often gets left out of world maps. This time, we got included - there is just one slight issue.
Popular Instagram account "Amazing Maps" posts regular world maps showing different kinds of data and facts about the world.
Its latest world map shows the countries that are monarchies and the ones that are republics.
While the same map template often excludes New Zealand, this one at least included Aotearoa, but it placed us west of Australia, in the Indian Ocean.
The same Instagram page appears to have a thing for New Zealand - often changing the shape of the country, on the few times it bothers to include it in its maps.
The misplacement caught the attention of Kiwis who shared the map across social media, pointing out the mistake.
On Reddit, where many Kiwis saw the funny side of being placed west of Australia, one user joked that "the map is drunk".
The user who shared the map had a reaction commonly shared by others, writing: "at least this map includes New Zealand".
"Ah yes, New Zealand, Australia's favourite western neighbour," another Reddit user joked.
Users on Reddit also pointed out numerous other issues with the map in question, including leaving out some monarchies and wrongly described some countries, such as Jordan, as republics.
The same Instagram account often leaves New Zealand completely off its maps, as in the example below:
Aotearoa is no stranger to being left off the map, with plenty of examples of that happening, from books to tattoos, as well as board games and wall art.
Back in 2019, an eagle-eyed New Zealander spotted New Zealand had appeared on a map not once but twice.
The image was posted on Reddit with the caption "I didn't know there were two New Zealands in the world in 1920."
Whether it's left off completely, added twice or placed in the wrong spot, New Zealand's relationship status with world maps remains the same - it's complicated.
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