List of islands of New Zealand
New Zealand consists of more than six hundred islands, mainly remnants of a larger land mass now beneath the sea. New Zealand is the seventh-largest island nation on earth, and the third-largest located entirely in the Southern Hemisphere. The following is a list of islands of New Zealand. The two largest islands – where most of the human population lives – have names in both English and in the Māori language. They are the North Island or "Te Ika-a-Māui" and the South Island or "Te Waipounamu". Various Māori iwi sometimes use other  names, with some preferring to call the South Island "Te Waka o Aoraki". The two islands are separated by Cook Strait. The South Island is sometimes informally referred to as the "mainland", especially by its residents, because it is somewhat larger, albeit with a smaller population. However, in general practice, the "mainland" refers to the North Island and South Island collectively, in contrast with the smaller offshore islands. To the south of the South Island, Stewart Island / Rakiura is the largest of the smaller islands, and Waiheke Island in the urban Auckland Region has the largest population of the smaller  islands. Listed by size. The following table lists the largest islands of New Zealand by area. (The associated Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau, and islands of the Antarctic Ross Dependency are excluded.) River delta islands such as Rakaia Island (), Fereday Island, Rangitata Island, and Inch Clutha (approximately , , and respectively) are also omitted, as are temporary islands in braided river channels and tidal islands such as Rabbit Island, Nelson (). The country's largest island within a lake, Pomona Island, has an area of just . Listed by highest point. The following table lists the islands of New Zealand by their highest elevation. These  islands are all in harbours or the open sea. The country's tallest island within a lake, Pomona Island, rises to above sea level, which is about above Lake Manapouri's normal lake level. Outlying. New Zealand administers the following islands outside the main archipelago. Only the Chatham Islands have a permanent population although others also did in the past. Others host visitors for science, conservation, meteorological observation and tourism. The New Zealand Subantarctic Islands are designated as a World Heritage Site. Realm of New Zealand. The following islands are part of the Realm of New Zealand, but are not  part of New Zealand proper: Territorial claims. New Zealand also claims the Ross Dependency in Antarctica, including: