Turns out the US is playing a game of "guess who" with Aotearoa, and our haka and flag are causing some serious confusion.
A fresh survey of American travellers has revealed performances of a haka leave many tourists scratching their heads with our cultural identity lagging behind in the tourism scene.
According to Distinctive Bat, New Zealand is somewhat of a mystery to Americans, with haka only being correctly recognised as uniquely Māori/Kiwi by about 26%.
The rest? Well, 26% think it comes from Japan and 6% give it a Samoan shout.
When it comes to our flag, it's waving proudly but often gets mistaken for the UK or Australia by a whopping 49% of people.
The study reminds us of past questions about Aotearoa's flag - and we all remember what a shitshow that referendum was.
“While this is a known issue, with the failed flag referendums taking place less than 10 years ago, costing approximately $26 million and stirring extensive public debate, the implications will mostly affect the international tourism industry,” said the study.
SOURCE: Wikimedia Commons
The agency suggests we stay clear away from confusingly similar symbols, or we could unintentionally promote our Aussie neighbours.
It's all about owning our Kiwi identity and making sure the world knows it's us bringing the haka to the world and flying our flag high!
