New Zealand (Maori: Aotearoa) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The country geographically comprises two main landmasses - that of the North and South - and numerous smaller islands. New Zealand is situated some 1500 km (900 mi) east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and roughly 1000 km (600 mi) south of the Pacific islands of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga. Because of its remoteness, it was one of the last lands to be settled by humans.