South Canterbury Anniversary Day in New Zealand Date in the current year: September 22, 2025

South Canterbury is the area of the Canterbury Region of New Zealand’s South Island that is located between the Rangitata River in the north and the border with the Otago Region in the south. Prior to the mid-19th century, the area was inhabited by several Māori iwi (tribes).

The first Europeans to arrive in the area were French whalers in the late 1830s. They established a small settlement at Akaroa with the intention of colonizing the region. Upon learning of France’s plans, New Zealand’s Lieutenant-Governor, Captain William Hobson, dispatched HMS Britomart to assert British sovereignty over the region.

In 1848, members of Parliament, peers, and Anglican Church leaders formed the Canterbury Association to establish a colony on the South Island. Preparations for the settlement began in early 1850, and the first two ships carrying settlers arrived on December 16.

A year and a half later, the UK Parliament passed the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852, which granted New Zealand self-government and established six provinces. Within three years, the Canterbury Association transferred its remaining settlement lands to the newly formed provincial government of Canterbury and concluded its operations.

Canterbury Province originally covered the entire central third of the South Island. However, due to population and economic growth resulting from the West Coast gold rush, the West Coast region split from Canterbury, first forming the County of Westland in 1868, and then Westland Province in 1873.

Settlers in South Canterbury also attempted to secede from Canterbury Province and establish their own provincial government. The main push came around 1865, when dissatisfaction grew over how provincial revenues were spent. Many in South Canterbury felt that Christchurch interests dominated the Canterbury Provincial Council and neglected their region’s needs, such as roads and local development.

Petitions were submitted to the central government seeking the creation of a new “South Canterbury Province”, but these efforts ultimately failed. Except for the split of Westland, Canterbury remained intact until the provincial system was abolished in New Zealand in 1876. Interestingly, when the New Zealand Rugby Union was formed in 1892, South Canterbury was one of its founding members, separate from the rest of the former Canterbury Province.

Although New Zealand’s provincial system was short-lived, the former colonial provinces still officially observe provincial anniversaries, commemorating either the arrival of the first settlers or the founding of the provincial government. South Canterbury also celebrates its own anniversary, despite never having been a province. It is celebrated on the fourth Monday in September, coinciding with Dominion Day, a holiday that has not been properly celebrated for decades.