Tag Archives: New Zealand words

New Zealand Word of the Week : Tramping

New Zealanders don’t go walking or hiking they go ‘tramping’.

The derivation seems to be from Middle English (1350-1400) ; a verb meaning to “walk with heavy footsteps”. I am not sure why New Zealanders were reading 14th Century English, but I have noted that books cost more in NZ than in the UK…

So if they ask you in NZ if you like tramping they are not suggesting that you may want to make yourself homeless. They are merely asking if you like walking.