Jump to content

Australia: Difference between revisions

Australia (edit)

Revision as of 15:47, 18 August 2023

46,539 bytes added ,  18 August 2023
Add
(Redirected page to simple:Australia)
Tag: New redirect
 
(Add)
Tag: Removed redirect
Line 1: Line 1:
#REDIRECT [[:simple:Australia]]
{{Infobox country
| conventional_long_name = Commonwealth of Australia
| common_name            = Australia
| image_flag            = Flag of Australia (converted).svg
| alt_flag              = A blue field with the union flag in the upper hoist quarter, a large white seven-pointed star in the lower hoist quarter, and constellation of five white stars in the fly – one small five-pointed star and four, larger, seven-pointed stars.
| image_coat            = Coat of Arms of Australia.svg
| alt_coat              = <!--alt text for coat of arms-->
| national_anthem        = "[[Advance Australia Fair]]"<br /><br />[[File:U.S. Navy Band, Advance Australia Fair (instrumental).ogg]]
| royal_anthem          = [[God Save the King]]{{lower|0.2em|{{refn|Australia's [[royal anthem]] is "[[God Save the Queen]]", played in the presence of a member of the [[House of Windsor|Royal family]] when they are in Australia. In other contexts, the [[national anthem]] of Australia, "[[Advance Australia Fair]]", is played.<ref>{{cite web |title=It's an Honour - Symbols - Australian National Anthem |url=http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au:80/symbols/anthem.cfm |website=Gov.Au |accessdate=10 May 2022 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071010090336/http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au:80/symbols/anthem.cfm |archivedate=10 October 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref>|name="anthem explanation"|group="N"}}<!--end lower:-->}}<br /><br />[[File:U.S. Navy Band, Advance Australia Fair (instrumental).ogg]]
| image_map              = Australia_with_AAT_(orthographic_projection).svg
| map_width              = 220px
| alt_map                = <!--alt text for map-->
| capital                = [[Canberra]]
| coordinates            = {{Coord|35|18|29|S|149|07|28|E|type:city_region:AU}}
| largest_city          = [[Sydney]]
| official_languages    = {{nowrap|None at [[Government of Australia|federal level]]}}
| languages              = [[English language|English]]{{refn|English does not have ''[[de jure]]'' status.|group="N"}}
| demonym                = {{hlist|[[Australians|Australian]] <br />[[Aussie]] (colloquial)<ref>See entry in the Macquarie Dictionary.</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Collins English Dictionary |year=2009 |publisher=HarperCollins |location=Bishopbriggs, Glasgow |isbn=978-0-00-786171-2 |page=18 }}</ref><!--end hlist:-->}}
| government_type        = [[Federalism|Federal]] [[parliamentary system|parliamentary]] [[constitutional monarchy]]
| leader_title1          = [[Monarchy of Australia|Monarch]]
| leader_name1          = [[Charles III]]
| leader_title2          = {{nowrap|[[Governor-General of Australia|Governor-General]]}}
| leader_name2          = [[David Hurley]]
| leader_title3          = [[Prime Minister of Australia|Prime Minister]]
| leader_name3          = [[Anthony Albanese]]
| leader_title4          = [[Deputy Prime Minister of Australia|Deputy Prime Minister]]
| leader_name4          = [[Richard Marles]]
| leader_title5          = [[Chief Justice of Australia|Chief Justice]]
| leader_name5          = [[Susan Kiefel]]
| leader_title6          = [[President of the Senate (Australia)|Senate President]]
| leader_name6          = [[Slade Brockman]]
| leader_title7          = [[Speaker of the Australian House of Representatives|House Speaker]]
| leader_name7          = [[Andrew Wallace]]
| legislature            = [[Parliament of Australia|Parliament]]
| upper_house            = [[Australian Senate|Senate]]
| lower_house            = [[Australian House of Representatives|House of Representatives]]
| sovereignty_type      = Independence
| sovereignty_note      = from the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]]
| established_event1    = [[Federation of Australia|Federation]], [[Constitution of Australia|Constitution]]
| established_date1      = 1 January 1901
| established_event2    = [[Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942|Statute of Westminster Adoption Act]]
| established_date2      = {{nowrap|9 October 1942 {{small|(with effect<br />from 3 September 1939)}}}}
| established_event3    = [[Australia Act 1986|Australia Act]]
| established_date3      = 3 March 1986
| area_km2              = 7692024
| area_rank              = 6th
| percent_water          = 0.76
| population_estimate    = {{data Australia|poptoday|formatnum}}<ref name="popclock">{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/[email protected]/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/1647509ef7e25faaca2568a900154b63?OpenDocument|title=Population clock|work=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] website|publisher=Commonwealth of Australia|access-date=1 July 2017}} The population estimate shown is automatically calculated daily at 00:00 UTC and is based on data obtained from the population clock on the date shown in the citation.</ref>
| population_census      = 23,401,892<ref>{{Census 2016 AUS|id=036|name=Australia|accessdate=27 June 2017|quick=on}}</ref>
| population_estimate_year = {{CURRENTYEAR}}
| population_estimate_rank = 51st
| population_census_year = 2016
| population_density_km2 = {{#expr:{{Data Australia|poptoday}} / 7692024 round 1}}
| population_density_rank = 236th
| GDP_PPP                = {{nowrap|US$1.24 [[trillion]]<ref name="IMF">{{cite web |url=http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2017/02/weodata/weorept.aspx?pr.x=62&pr.y=11&sy=2017&ey=2017&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=193&s=NGDPD%2CPPPGDP%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPPC&grp=0&a= |title=Australia |publisher=International Monetary Fund |date=October 2016 |access-date=27 October 2017}}</ref>}}
| GDP_PPP_year          = 2017
| GDP_PPP_rank          = 19th
| GDP_PPP_per_capita    = US$49,882<ref name=IMF/>
| GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = 17th
| GDP_nominal            = {{nowrap|US$1.39 trillion<ref name=IMF/>}}
| GDP_nominal_year      = 2017
| GDP_nominal_rank      = 13th
| GDP_nominal_per_capita = US$56,135<ref name=IMF/>
| GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = 10th
| Gini                  = 33.6<!--number only-->
| Gini_year              = 2012
| Gini_change            = <!--increase/decrease/steady-->
| Gini_ref              = <ref>{{cite web|title=OECD Economic Surveys: Norway 2012|url=http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/economics/oecd-economic-surveys-norway-2012/gini-coefficients-before-and-after-taxes-and-transfers_eco_surveys-nor-2012-graph1-en#page1|access-date=2015-03-13|archive-date=2014-08-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812150611/http://www.keepeek.com/Digital-Asset-Management/oecd/economics/oecd-economic-surveys-norway-2012/gini-coefficients-before-and-after-taxes-and-transfers_eco_surveys-nor-2012-graph1-en#page1|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| Gini_rank              = 19th
| HDI                    = 0.939<!--number only-->
| HDI_year              = 2015<!-- Please use the year to which the data refers, not the publication year-->
| HDI_change            = increase<!--increase/decrease/steady-->
| HDI_ref                = <ref name="HDI">{{cite web |url=http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/2016_human_development_report.pdf |title=2016 Human Development Report |year=2016 |access-date=23 March 2017 |publisher=United Nations Development Programme}}</ref>
| HDI_rank              = 2nd
| currency              = [[Australian dollar]]
| currency_code          = AUD
| time_zone              = [[Time in Australia|various]]<ref name="time" group="N">There are minor variations from three basic time zones; see [[Time in Australia]].</ref>
| utc_offset            = +8 to +10.5
| utc_offset_DST        = +8 to +11.5
| time_zone_DST          = [[Time in Australia|various]]<ref name="time" group="N" />
| date_format            = dd/mm/yyyy
| drives_on              = [[Right- and left-hand traffic#Australia|left]]
| calling_code          = [[+61]]
| cctld                  = [[.au]]
}}
'''Australia''', formally the '''Commonwealth of Australia''', is a [[country]] and [[sovereign state]] in the [[southern hemisphere]], located in [[Oceania]]. Its [[capital city]] is [[Canberra]], and its largest city is [[Sydney]].
 
Australia is the [[List of countries by area|sixth biggest country in the world]] by land area, and is part of the [[Oceania|Oceanic]] and [[Australasia]]n regions. Australia, [[New Zealand]], [[New Guinea]] and other islands on the Australian [[tectonic plate]] are together called [[Australasia]], which is one of the world's great [[ecozone]]s. When other Pacific islands are included with Australasia, it is called [[Oceania]].
 
25 million<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/D3310114.nsf/home/25+Million+Population+Milestone|title=Australian Bureau of Statistics web site|last=Statistics|first=c=AU; o=Commonwealth of Australia; ou=Australian Bureau of|website=www.abs.gov.au|language=en|access-date=2018-09-25}}</ref> people live in Australia, and about 85% of them live near the east coast.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://blog.id.com.au/2014/population/demographic-trends/how-centralised-is-australias-population/|title=How centralised is Australia's population?}}</ref> The country is divided up into six [[States of Australia|states]] and two territories, and more than half of Australia's [[population]] lives in and around the cities of [[Sydney]], [[Melbourne]], [[Brisbane]], [[Perth, Western Australia|Perth]] and [[Adelaide]]. The first people to live in the country were the [[Indigenous Australians]]: many of them died from [[smallpox]] during colonisation.
 
Australia is known for its [[mining]] (coal, iron, gold, diamonds and crystals), its production of [[wool]], and as the world's largest producer of [[bauxite]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mams.rmit.edu.au/0wzm6liriybr1.PDF|title=Alcola World Alumina Australia|publisher=MAMS.RMIT.edu.au|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040916191126/http://mams.rmit.edu.au/0wzm6liriybr1.PDF|archive-date=16 September 2004|access-date=December 11, 2014}}</ref> Its [[emblem]] is a flower called the [[golden wattle]].
 
Australia is also known for its animals and rich [[wildlife]]. The national symbols of Australia are the [[kangaroo]] and the [[golden wattle]]. Scientifically, perhaps even more important are its two [[monotreme |monotreme mammal]]s: the [[platypus]] and the [[echidna]].
 
== Geography ==
[[File:As-map.png|thumbnail|Map of Australia]]
[[File:Australia Köppen.svg|thumb|upright=1.2|right|[[Köppen climate classification|Köppen climate types]] of Australia.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Beck|first1=Hylke E.|last2=Zimmermann|first2=Niklaus E. |last3=McVicar|first3=Tim R.|last4=Vergopolan|first4=Noemi|last5=Berg|first5=Alexis|last6=Wood|first6=Eric F.|title=Present and future Köppen-Geiger climate classification maps at 1-km resolution |journal=Scientific Data|date=30 October 2018|volume=5|issue=1|page=180214|doi=10.1038/sdata.2018.214|pmid=30375988|pmc=6207062|bibcode=2018NatSD...580214B}}</ref>]]
 
Australia's landmass of {{conv|7,617,930|km2|mi2}} is on the [[Indo-Australian Plate|Indo-Australian plate]].<ref>{{cite book | last=Turner | first=Kate | year=2008 | title=National Geographic Australia | publisher=Horupu | location=Tokyo | page=8}}</ref> The continent of Australia, including the island of Tasmania, was separated from the other continents of the world many millions of years ago. Because of this, many [[animals]] and [[plants]] live in Australia that do not live anywhere else. These include animals like the [[kangaroo]], the [[koala]], the [[emu]], the [[kookaburra]], and the [[platypus]].
 
People first arrived in Australia more than 50,000 years ago. These native Australians are called the [[Australian Aboriginals]]. For the history of Australia, see [[History of Australia]].
 
Most of the Australian colonies, having been settled from [[Britain]], became mostly independent democratic states in the 1850s and all six combined as a federation on 1 January 1901. The first [[Prime Minister of Australia]] was [[Edmund Barton]] in 1901. Australia is a member of the [[United Nations]] and the [[Commonwealth of Nations]]. It is a [[Parliamentary system|parliamentary democracy]] and a [[constitutional monarchy]] with [[Charles III|King Charles III]] as King of Australia and Head of State and a [[Governor-General of Australia|Governor-General]] who is chosen by the Prime Minister to carry out all the duties of the King in Australia.
 
=== Regions and cities ===
{{Other pages|List of Cities in Australia}}
 
Australia has six states, two major mainland territories, and other minor territories. The states are [[New South Wales]], [[Queensland]], [[South Australia]], [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]], [[Western Australia]] and [[Tasmania]] (which is a large island).<ref>{{cite book | last=Cummins | first=Brian R. | year=1990 | title=Australia | url=https://archive.org/details/australiahandboo00bria | publisher= the Australian Government Publishing Service | location=Canberra | pages= [https://archive.org/details/australiahandboo00bria/page/16 16]-17 | isbn=9780644097840 }}</ref> The two major mainland territories are the [[Northern Territory]] (which is huge) and the [[Australian Capital Territory]] (ACT) which is not much  more than a city.
 
The population is about 26 million people (2021 census = 25,890,773). Most Australians live in cities along the coast, such as [[Sydney]], [[Melbourne]], [[Brisbane]], [[Perth, Western Australia|Perth]], [[Adelaide]], [[Newcastle, New South Wales|Newcastle]] and the [[Gold Coast, Queensland|Gold Coast]]. The largest inland city is [[Canberra]], which is also the nation's capital. The largest city is Sydney.<ref>{{cite book | title= Oceania South Pole | author= Tanabe Yu | year= 1997 | publisher= Asakura Bookstore | location= Shinjyuku ward | page= 3179 }}</ref>
 
Australia is a very large country, but much of the land is very dry, and the middle of the continent is mostly a hot [[desert]]. Only the areas around the east, west and south coast have enough rain and a suitable [[climate]] (not too hot and dry) for [[farm]]s and [[cities]]. The island state of [[Tasmania]] has a more balanced climate than much of the mainland.
 
=== Climate change ===
All the capital cities except Perth and [[Darwin, Northern Territory|Darwin]] are in the south-east of the country. There is now increasing rainfall and [[flooding]] which affects this region, which is ominous [threatening]. It is thought this is caused by [[climate change]], and may continue to get worse.<ref>Australia election: How climate is making Australia more unliveable. [[BBC]] News [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-61432462].</ref> The BBC report comments: "In the past three years, record-breaking [[bushfire]] and [[flood]] events have killed more than 500 people and billions of animals. [[Drought]], [[cyclone]]s and freak [[tide]]s have gripped communities". The BBC report continues: "Nowhere is this a bigger issue than in [[Queensland]]. It is home to almost 40% of the 500,000 homes projected to be effectively uninsurable". This means people can't get [[insurance]] because the risk of flooding (in one season) or fire (in another season) is too great.
 
== History ==
=== Aboriginal people ===
[[File:Corroboree.jpg|thumb|Photograph of Arrernte men of Central Australia in a [[Corroboree]] in 1900]]
[[File:Bradshaw rock paintings.jpg|thumb|upright=1.0|right|[[Aboriginal]] [[rock art]] in the [[Kimberley (Western Australia)|Kimberley]] region of Western Australia]]
 
The [[Australian Aboriginals|Aboriginal]] and [[Torres Strait Islander]] people arrived in Australia about 60,000 years ago or maybe even earlier.<ref>Hesp, Patrick A. ''et al'' 1999. Aboriginal occupation on Rottnest Island, Western Australia, provisionally dated by aspartic acid racemisation assay of land snails to greater than 50 ka. ''Australian Archaeology'', No 49 (1999)</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.stonepages.com/news/archives/000236.html |title=Stone Pages Archaeo News: Australia colonized earlier than previously thought? |work=stonepages.com |year=2003 |access-date=28 March 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | title=The history of Australia |author=Takao Fujikawa |year=2004|publisher=Yuhikaku ARMA |location=Tokyo |page=4}}</ref> Until the arrival of British settlers in 1788, the Aboriginal people lived by hunting and gathering food from the land. They lived in all sorts of climates and managed the land in different ways. An example of Aboriginal land management was the [[Cumberland Plain]] where Sydney is now. Every few years the Aboriginal people would burn the grass and small trees.<ref>{{cite book| last = Cochrane| first = Mark| title = Tropical Fire Ecology: Climate Change, Land Use and Ecosystem Dynamics| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=6J6fWSULMVEC&pg=PA99| date = 2010-04-11| publisher = Springer Science & Business Media| language = en| isbn = 978-3-540-77381-8| page = 99 }}</ref> This meant that a lot of grass grew back, but not many big trees. Kangaroos like to live on grassy plains, but not in forests. The kangaroos that lived on the plain were a good food supply for the Aboriginal people. Sometimes, Aboriginals would name a person after an animal, and they could not eat that animal to help level out the food population.
 
Aboriginal people did not usually build houses, except huts of grass, leaves and bark. They did not usually build walls or fences, and there were no horses, cows or sheep in Australia that needed to be kept in pens. The only Aboriginal buildings that are known are fish-traps made from stones piled up in the river, and the remains of a few stone huts in [[Victoria, Australia|Victoria]] and [[Tasmania]].<ref>{{cite book| last = Finnerty| first = Anne| title = The Architecture of East Australia: An Architectural History in 432 Individual Presentations| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=FUItnsGv-doC&pg=PA15| date = 2001| publisher = Edition Axel Menges| language = en| isbn = 978-3-930698-90-5| page = 15 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book| last1 = Nichols| first1 = David| last2 = Hurlimann| first2 = Anna| last3 = Mouat| first3 = Clare| last4 = Pascoe| first4 = Stephen| title = Green Fields, Brown Fields, New Fields: Proceedings of the 10th Australasian Urban History, Planning History Conference| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Q0HuApjnk2AC&pg=PA272| date = 2010| publisher = UoM Custom Book Centre| language = en| isbn = 978-1-921775-07-9| page = 272 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book| last = Tan| first = Linsie| title = Tasmania| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=hrFVDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA7| date = 2017-03-01| publisher = Redback Publishing| language = en| isbn = 978-0-9946247-5-8| page = 7 }}</ref> The Aboriginal people did not use metal or make pottery or use bows and arrows or weave cloth. In some parts of Australia the people used sharp flaked-stone spearheads, but most Aboriginal spears were made of sharply pointed wood. Australia has a lot of trees that have very hard wood that was good for spear making. The [[boomerang]] was used in some areas for sport and for hunting.
 
The Aboriginal people did not think that the land belonged to them. They believed that they had grown from the land, so it was like their mother, and they belonged to the land.
 
=== ''Terra Australis'' ===
In the 1600s, [[Dutch people|Dutch]] merchants traded with the islands of [[Batavia]] (now [[Indonesia]]), to the north of Australia and several different Dutch ships touched on the coast of Australia. The Dutch governor, [[van Diemen]], sent [[Abel Tasman]] on a voyage of discovery and he found [[Tasmania]], which he named [[Van Diemen's Land]]. Its name was later changed to honour the man who discovered it.
 
The [[British Government]] was sure that there must be a very large land in the south, that had not been explored. They sent Captain [[James Cook]] to the [[Pacific Ocean]]. His ship, ''[[HMS Endeavour]]'', carried the famous scientists, Sir [[Joseph Banks]] and Dr Solander who were going to [[Tahiti]] where they would watch the planet [[Venus (planet)|Venus]] pass in front of the [[Sun]]. Captain Cook's secret mission was to find "[[Terra Australis]]" (the Land of the South).
 
The voyage of discovery was very successful, because they found [[New Zealand]] and sailed right around it. Then they sailed westward. At last, a boy, William Hicks, who was up the mast spotted land on the [[horizon]]. Captain Cook named that bit of land [[Point Hicks]]. They sailed up the coast and Captain Cook named the land that he saw "New South Wales". At last they sailed into a large open bay which was full of fish and stingrays which the sailors speared for food. Joseph Banks and Dr. Solander went ashore and were astonished to find that they did not know what any of the plants or birds or animals that they saw were. They collected hundreds of plants to take back to [[England]].
 
Captain Cook saw the Aboriginal people with their simple way of life. He saw them fishing and hunting and collecting grass seeds and fruit. But there were no houses and no fences. In most parts of the world, people put up a house and a fence or some marker to show that they own the land. But the Aboriginal people did not own the land in that way. They belonged to the land, like a baby belongs to its mother. Captain Cook went home to England and told the government that no-one owned the land. This would later cause a terrible problem for the Aboriginal people.
 
=== Settlement ===
[[File:The Founding of Australia. By Capt. Arthur Phillip R.N. Sydney Cove, Jan. 26th 1788.jpg|thumb|Captain [[Arthur Phillip]] raises the British flag at [[Sydney]] in 1788.]]
 
In the 1700s, in England, laws were tough, many people were poor and [[gaol]]s ([[jail]]s) were full. A person could be [[death penalty|sentenced to death]] for stealing a loaf of [[bread]]. Many people were hanged for small crimes. But usually they were just thrown in gaol. Often they were sent away to the British colonies in America. But by the 1770s, the colonies in America became the [[United States]]. They were free from British rule and would not take England's convicts any more, so England needed to find a new and less populated place.
 
By the 1780s the gaols of England were so full that convicts were often chained up in rotting old ships. The government decided to make a settlement in New South Wales and send some of the convicts there. In 1788 the [[First Fleet]] of eleven ships set sail from [[Portsmouth]] carrying convicts, sailors, marines, a few free settlers and enough food to last for two years. Their leader was Captain [[Arthur Phillip]]. They were to make a new colony at the place that Captain Cook had discovered, named [[Botany Bay]] because of all the unknown plants found there by the two scientists.
 
Captain Phillip found that Botany Bay was flat and windy. There was not much fresh water. He went with two ships up the coast and sailed into a great harbour called [[Port Jackson]], which he said was "the finest harbour in the world". There were many small bays on the harbour so he decided on one which had a good stream of fresh water and some flat shore to land on. On 26 January 1788, the flag was raised and [[New South Wales]] was claimed in the name of [[George III of the United Kingdom|King George III]] of England, and the new settlement was called Sydney.
 
For the first few years of the settlement, things were very difficult. No-one in the British Government had thought very hard about what sort of convicts should be sent to make a new colony. Nobody had chosen them carefully. There was only one man who was a farmer. There was no-one among the convicts who was a builder, a brick-maker or a blacksmith. No-one knew how to fix the tools when they broke. All of the cattle escaped. There were no cooking pots. All the plants were different so no-one knew which ones could be eaten. It was probable that everyone in the new colony would die of starvation.
 
The little group of tents had a hut for the Governor, Arthur Phillip, and another hut for the supply of food. Soon it grew into a small town with streets, a bridge over the stream, a windmill for grinding grain and wharves for ships. By the 1820s there was a fine brick house for the Governor. There was also a hospital and a convict barracks and a beautiful church which are still standing today. Settlements had spread out from Sydney, firstly to [[Norfolk Island]] and to [[Van Diemen's Land]] (Tasmania), and also up the coast to Newcastle, where coal was discovered, and inland where the missing cattle were found to have grown to a large herd. [[Spain|Spanish]] [[Merino sheep]] had been brought to Sydney, and by 1820, farmers were raising fat lambs for meat and also sending fine wool back to the factories of England.
 
While the settlement was growing in New South Wales, it was also growing in Tasmania. The climate in Tasmania was more like that in England, and farmers found it easy to grow crops there.
 
=== Exploration ===
[[File:Toussaint Antoine DE CHAZAL DE Chamerel - Portrait of Captain Matthew Flinders, RN, 1774-1814 - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|[[Matthew Flinders]] went round the whole continent of Australia. Australia was first called ''Terra Australis''.]]
 
Because Australia is such a very large land, it was easy to think that it might be able to hold a large number of people. In the early days of the colony, a great number of explorers went out, searching for good land to settle on.
When the settlers looked west from Sydney, they saw a range of mountains which they called the [[Blue Mountains (New South Wales)|Blue Mountains]]. They were not very high and did not look very rugged but for many years no-one could find their way through them. In 1813 [[Gregory Blaxland]], [[William Lawson (explorer)|William Lawson]] and a 17-year-old called [[William Charles Wentworth]] crossed the Blue Mountains and found land on the other side which was good for farming. A road was built and the governor, [[Lachlan Macquarie]] founded the town of [[Bathurst, New South Wales|Bathurst]] on the other side, 160&nbsp;km (100 miles) from Sydney. Bathurst became Australia's first inland settlement.
 
Some people, like Captain [[Charles Sturt]] were sure that there must be a sea in the middle of Australia and set out to find it. Many of the explorers did not prepare very well, or else they went out to explore at the hottest time of year. Some died like Burke and Wills. [[Ludwig Leichhardt]] got lost twice. The second time, he was never seen again. Major [[Thomas Mitchell]] was one of the most successful explorers. He mapped the country as he went, and his maps remained in use for more than 100 years. He travelled all the way to what is now western Victoria, and to his surprise and annoyance found that he was not the first white person there. The [[Henty Brothers|Henty brothers]] had come from [[Tasmania]], had built themselves a house, had a successful farm and fed the Major and his men on roast lamb and wine.
 
===Self government===
 
The [[Australian gold rushes|gold rushes]] of New South Wales and Victoria started in 1851 leading to large numbers of people arriving to search for gold. The population grew across south east Australia and made great wealth and industry. By 1853 the gold rushes had made some poor people very rich.
 
The transportation of convicts to Australia ended in the 1840s and 1850s and more changes came. The people in Australia wanted to run their own country, and not be told what to do from [[London]]. The first governments in the colonies were run by governors chosen by London. Soon the settlers wanted local government and more [[democracy]]. [[William Wentworth]] started the [[Australian Patriotic Association]] (Australia's first political party) in 1835 to demand [[Parliamentary democracy|democratic government]]. In 1840, the city councils started and some people could vote. [[New South Wales Legislative Council]] had its first elections in 1843, again with some limits on who could vote. In 1855, limited self-government was given by London to New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania. In 1855, the [[right to vote]] was given to all men over 21 in [[South Australia]]. The other colonies soon followed. Women were given the vote in the [[Parliament of South Australia]] in 1895 and they became the first women in the world allowed to stand in elections.<ref name="aec.gov.au">{{cite web|url=https://aec.gov.au/Voting/indigenous_vote/indigenous.htm |title=Electoral milestones for Indigenous Australians |publisher=aec.gov.au |date=4 July 2019 |access-date=5 July 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://foundingdocs.gov.au/item.asp?dID=8 |title=Documenting Democracy |access-date=2011-01-24 |archive-date=2011-08-14 |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/60vtMmmE7?url=http://foundingdocs.gov.au/item.asp?dID=8 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
 
Australians had started parliamentary democracies all across the continent. But voices were getting louder for all of them to come together as one country with a national parliament.
 
=== The Commonwealth of Australia ===
[[File:Opening of the first parliament.jpg|thumb|300px|A painting of the opening of the first [[Parliament of Australia]], 9 May 1901, painted by [[Tom Roberts]]. Australia has had democracy since the 1850s.]]
[[File:Australian PR COB 2006.PNG|right|300px|thumb|Countries of birth of Australian estimated resident population, 2006.<br />Source:Australian Bureau of Statistics<ref>[http://www.ausstats.abs.gov.au/ausstats/subscriber.nsf/0/E0A79B147EA8E0B5CA2572AC001813E8/$File/34120_2005-06.pdf Australian Bureau of Statistics]. Retrieved 9 December 2007.</ref>]]
 
Until 1901, Australia was not a [[nation]], it was six separate [[colony|colonies]] governed by Britain. They voted to join to form one new country, called the Commonwealth of Australia, in 1901. Australia was still part of the [[British Empire]], and at first wanted only British or Europeans to come to Australia. But soon it had its own [[Australian dollar|money]], its own [[Australian Army|Army]] and its own [[Royal Australian Navy|Navy]].
 
In Australia at this time, the [[trade union]]s were very strong, and they started a political party, the [[Australian Labor Party]]. Australia passed many laws to help the [[worker]]s.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://aec.gov.au/Elections/Australian_Electoral_History/wright.htm | title = Women and the Right to Vote in Australia - Australian Electoral Commission |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20070609093923/http://aec.gov.au/Elections/Australian_Electoral_History/wright.htm |archivedate = 2007-06-09 }}</ref>
 
In 1914, the [[World War I|First World War]] started in [[Europe]]. Australia joined in on the side of Britain against [[Germany]], [[Austria-Hungary]] and the [[Ottoman Empire]]. Australian soldiers were sent to [[Gallipoli Campaign|Gallipoli]], in the [[Ottoman Empire]]. They fought bravely, but were beaten by the [[Turkish people|Turks]]. Today Australia remembers this battle every year on [[ANZAC Day]]. They also fought on the [[Western Front]]. More than 60,000 [[Australians]] and [[New Zealanders]] were killed.
 
In 1932, the [[Sydney Harbour Bridge]] was opened.
 
Australia had a really hard time in the [[Great Depression]] of the 1930s and joined Britain in a war against [[Nazi Germany]] when [[Adolf Hitler|Hitler]] invaded [[Poland]] in 1939. But in 1941 lots of Australian soldiers were captured in the [[Japanese Occupation of Singapore|Fall of Singapore]] by [[Japan]]. Then Japan started attacking Australia and people worried about invasion. But with help from the [[United States Navy]], the Japanese were stopped. After the war, Australia became a close friend of the United States and Japan.
 
When the war ended, Australia felt that it needed many more people to fill the country up and to work. So the government said it would take in people from Europe who had lost their homes in the war. It did things like building the [[Snowy Mountains Scheme]]. Over the next 25 years, millions of people came to Australia. They came especially from [[Italy]] and [[Greece]], other countries in Europe. Later they also came from countries like [[Turkey]] and [[Lebanon]]. An important new party, the [[Liberal Party (Australia)|Liberal Party of Australia]] was made by [[Robert Menzies]] in 1944 and it won lots of elections from 1949 until in 1972, then [[Gough Whitlam]] won for the [[Australian Labor Party|Labor Party]]. Whitlam made changes, but he made the [[Australian Senate|Senate]] unhappy and the [[Governor-General of Australia|Governor-General]] sacked him and forced an election in 1975. Then [[Malcolm Fraser]] won a few elections for the [[Liberal Party of Australia|Liberal Party]].
 
In the 1960s many people began coming to Australia from [[China]], [[Vietnam]], [[Malaysia]] and other countries in [[Asia]]. Australia became more [[multicultural]]. In the 1950s and 1960s Australia became one of the richest countries in the world, helped by mining and wool. Australia started trading more with America, than Japan. Australia supported the United States in wars against [[dictatorship]]s in [[Korea]] and [[Vietnam]] and later [[Iraq]]. Australian soldiers also helped the [[United Nations]] in countries like [[East Timor]] in 1999.
 
In 1973, the famous [[Sydney Opera House]] opened. In the 1970s, 80s and 90s lots of [[Australian cinema|Australian movies]], actors and [[Australian music|singers]] became famous around the world. In the year 2000, [[2000 Summer Olympics|Sydney had the Summer Olympics]].
 
In the 1980s and 90s, the Labor Party under [[Bob Hawke]] and [[Paul Keating]], then the Liberal Party under [[John Howard]] made lots of changes to the economy. Australia had a bad [[recession]] in 1991, but when other Western countries [[Global financial crisis of September–October 2008|had trouble with their economies in 2008]], Australia stayed strong.
 
Today Australia is a rich, peaceful and democratic country. But it still has problems. Around 4-5% of Australians could not get a job in 2010. A lot of land in Australia (like [[Uluru]]) has been returned to Aboriginal people, but lots of Aboriginals are still poorer than everybody else. Every year the government chooses a big number of new people from all around the world to come as [[immigrant]]s to live in Australia. These people may come because they want to do business, or to live in a democracy, to join their family, or because they are [[refugee]]s. Australia took 6.5 million immigrants in the 60 years after [[World War Two]], including around 660,000 refugees.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/aib/overview.html |title=Australia in Brief: Australia - an overview - Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade |access-date=2011-01-24 |archive-date=2011-02-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110216000834/http://www.dfat.gov.au/aib/overview.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
 
[[Julia Gillard]] became the first woman [[Prime Minister of Australia]] in 2010 when she replaced her Labor Party colleague [[Kevin Rudd]] (who later replaced her).
 
== Politics ==
[[File:Australian house of representatives04.jpg|thumb|right|The chamber of the [[Australian House of Representatives]] in [[Canberra]].]]
[[File:20201018 Albanese Council Flat (rectangle).jpg|thumb|right|[[Anthony Albanese]] ([[Labor Party of Australia|Labor]]) is the current [[Prime Minister of Australia|Prime Minister]] since 2022]]
 
Australia is part of the [[Commonwealth of Nations]]. Australia is made up of six [[state]]s, and two mainland [[wikt:territory|territories]]. Each state and territory has its own [[Parliament]] and makes its own local [[law]]s. The [[Parliament of Australia]] sits in Canberra and makes laws for the whole country, also known as the Commonwealth or [[Federation]].
 
The [[Federation|Federal]] government is led by the [[Prime Minister of Australia]], who is the member of Parliament chosen as leader. The current Prime Minister is [[Anthony Albanese]].
 
The leader of Australia is the Prime Minister, although the [[Governor-General of Australia|Governor-General]] represents the Queen of Australia, who is also the Queen of Great Britain, as head of state. The Governor-General, currently [[His Excellency]] [[David Hurley]], is chosen by the Prime Minister.
 
== Culture ==
[[File:Foreign Secretary helping at the barbecue (5369151185).jpg|thumb|right|Former prime minister [[Kevin Rudd]] helping out at the [[barbecue]].]]
[[File:Fish and chips at Boardwalk Bistro on Hastings, Noosa Heads, 2021.jpg|thumb|right|Australian [[fish and chips]]]]
 
Australia was [[Colonisation|colonised]] by people from [[Britain]],<ref>{{cite book|title=A New History of Australia |author=Takao Fujikawa |year=2004 |publisher=ARMA |location=Tokyo |page=40 }}</ref> but today people from all over the world live there. English is the main spoken language. Christianity is the main religion, though all religions are accepted and not everybody has a religion. Australia is [[multiculturalism|multicultural]]: all its people are encouraged to keep their different languages, religions and ways of life, while also learning [[Australian English|English]] and joining in with other Australians. Australia has many immigrants from different countries around the world.
 
Famous [[Australian literature|Australian writers]] include the bush balladeers [[Banjo Paterson]] and [[Henry Lawson]] who wrote about life in the Australian bush. More modern famous writers include [[Peter Carey (novelist)|Peter Carey]], [[Thomas Keneally]] and [[Colleen McCullough]]. In 1973, [[Patrick White]] won the [[Nobel Prize in Literature]], the only Australian to have achieved this; he is seen as one of the great English-language writers of the twentieth century.
 
[[Australian music]] has had world-wide stars, for example the opera singers [[Nellie Melba]] and [[Joan Sutherland]], the rock and roll bands [[Bee Gees]], [[AC/DC]] and [[INXS]], the folk-rocker [[Paul Kelly (musician)]], the pop singer [[Kylie Minogue]] and [[Australian country music]] stars [[Slim Dusty]] and John Williamson. [[Australian Aboriginal music]] is very special and very ancient: it has the famous [[didgeridoo]] woodwind instrument. [[File:didgeridoo.jpg|thumb|A fancy [[didgeridoo]]]]
 
Australian TV has produced many successful programs for home and overseas. [[Skippy the Bush Kangaroo]], [[Home and Away]] and [[Neighbours]] are examples. It has had well known TV stars, such as [[Barry Humphries]] (''Dame Edna Everage''), [[Steve Irwin]] (''The Crocodile Hunter'') and [[The Wiggles]]. Major Australian subgroups such as the [[Bogan]] have been shown on Australian TV in shows such as [[Bogan Hunters]] and [[Kath & Kim]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://theconversation.com/our-fascination-with-bogans-will-be-televised-25262 |title="Our fascination with "Bogans" will be televised" |publisher=[[The Conversation (website)|The Conversation]] |last=Smith |first=Michelle |date=4 April 2014 |access-date=19 November 2014}}</ref>
 
Australia has two public broadcasters (the ABC and the multicultural SBS), three commercial television networks, three pay-TV services, and numerous public, non-profit television and radio stations. Each major city has its daily newspapers, and there are two national daily newspapers, ''[[The Australian]]'' and ''[[The Australian Financial Review]]''.
 
[[Australian cinema|Australian movies]] have a long history. The world's first feature movie was the Australian movie ''[[The Story of the Kelly Gang]]'' of 1906.<ref>[http://aso.gov.au/titles/features/story-kelly-gang Video Overview The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906) on ASO - Australia's audio and visual heritage online]</ref> In 1933, ''[[In the Wake of the Bounty]]'', directed by [[Charles Chauvel (filmmaker)|Charles Chauvel]], had [[Errol Flynn]] as the main actor.<ref>[http://aso.gov.au/titles/features/wake-bounty/ Video Overview In the Wake of the Bounty (1933) on ASO - Australia's audio and visual heritage online]</ref> Flynn went on to a celebrated career in Hollywood. The first Australian Oscar was won by the 1942 ''[[Kokoda Front Line!]]'', directed by [[Ken G. Hall]].<ref>[http://aso.gov.au/titles/newsreels/kokoda-front-line/ Video Overview Kokoda Front Line! (1942) on ASO - Australia's audio and visual heritage online]</ref> In the 1970s and 1980s Australian movies and movie stars became world famous. There were movies like ''[[Picnic at Hanging Rock]]'', [[Gallipoli (1981 movie)|''Gallipoli'']] (with [[Mel Gibson]]), ''[[The Man from Snowy River (1982 movie)|The Man From Snowy River]]'' and ''[[Crocodile Dundee]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://wwwmcc.murdoch.edu.au/ReadingRoom/film/Croc.html |title="Fair Dinkum Fillums": the Crocodile Dundee Phenomenon |access-date=2011-01-24 |archive-date=2020-04-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200412042204/http://wwwmcc.murdoch.edu.au/ReadingRoom/film/Croc.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Russell Crowe]], [[Cate Blanchett]] and [[Heath Ledger]] became global stars during the 1990s and ''[[Australia (2008 movie)|Australia]]'' starring [[Nicole Kidman]] and [[Hugh Jackman]] made a lot of money in 2008.
 
Australia is a popular destination for business conferences and research, with [[Sydney]] one of the top 20 meeting destinations in the world.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.businesseventssydney.com.au/conferences/meet-in-sydney/|title=Meet in Sydney|newspaper=Business Events Sydney|access-date=2017-08-10|language=en}}</ref>
 
=== Sport ===
[[File:DonaldBradman.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Don Bradman]].]]
 
Sport is an important part of Australian culture because the climate is good for outdoor activities. 23.5% Australians over the age of 15 regularly take part in organised sporting activities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ndca.asn.au/other-information/about-australia/|title=About Australia|publisher=NDCA|access-date=2013-06-18|archive-date=2013-05-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130503081426/http://www.ndca.asn.au/other-information/about-australia/|url-status=dead}}</ref> The most popular sports are [[Australian rules football]], [[rugby league]] and [[cricket]]. In international sports, Australia has very strong teams in [[cricket]], [[hockey]], [[netball]], [[rugby league]] and [[rugby union]], and performs well in [[cycling]], [[rowing]] and [[swimming]]. Local popular sports include [[Australian Rules Football]], horse racing, soccer and motor racing. Australia has participated in every summer [[Olympic Games]] since 1896, and every [[Commonwealth Games]]. Australia has hosted the [[1956 Summer Olympics|1956]] and [[2000 Summer Olympics]], and has ranked in the top five medal-winners since 2000. Australia has also hosted the 1938, 1962, 1982 and 2006 [[Commonwealth Games]] and are to host the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Other major international events held regularly in Australia include the [[Australian Open]], one of the four [[Grand Slam (tennis)|Grand Slam]] tennis tournaments, annual international cricket matches and the [[Formula One]] [[Australian Grand Prix]]. Corporate and government sponsorship of many sports and elite athletes is common in Australia. Televised sport is popular; some of the highest-rated television programs include the [[Summer Olympic Games]] and the grand finals of local and international football competitions.
 
The main sporting leagues for men are the [[Australian Football League|AFL]] (Australian rules football), the [[National Rugby League|NRL]] (rugby league), the [[A-League]] (soccer) and the [[National Basketball League (Australasia)|NBL]] (basketball). For women, they are the [[AFLW]] (Australian rules football), [[ANZ Netball Championships]] (netball), the [[W-League (Australia)|W-League]] (soccer) and [[WNBL]] (basketball).
 
Famous Australian [[sports]] players include the [[cricket]]er Sir [[Donald Bradman]], the [[swimming|swimmer]] [[Ian Thorpe]], the cricketer [[Shane Warne]] and the [[Sportsperson|athlete]] [[Cathy Freeman]].
 
=== Art festivals ===
Just 60 years ago, Australia had only one big art festival. Now Australia has hundreds of smaller community-based festivals, and national and regional festivals that focus on specific art forms.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/arts_festivals.html | title=Art festivals | author=Australian government | access-date=15 November 2010 | archive-date=22 November 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101122061137/http://dfat.gov.au/facts/arts_festivals.html | url-status=dead }}</ref>
 
== Indigenous life ==
Australia is home to many animals and plants that can be found nowhere else on Earth, except perhaps [[New Guinea]].<ref>Australia and New Guinea were linked for many millions of years.</ref>
 
The [[platypus]] and the [[short-beaked echidna]] are unique, and are two of the only five surviving [[monotreme]]s. Monotremes are only found in Australia and New Guinea.
 
[[Koala]]s, [[kangaroo]]s, [[wombat]]s, [[numbat]]s and many others others, are [[marsupial]]s. Most of the marsupials in the world are found only on the continent or on the neighbouring island of [[New Guinea]]. [[Wildfires]] from global warming in 2020 have reduced their population.
[[File:Baby Tasmanian Devil.jpg|thumb|[[Tasmanian devil]]]]
 
=== Trees ===
The [[Eucalyptus|gum tree]]s are almost as remarkable as the animals. They are mainly [[Eucalyptus|Eucalypts]] and other gum trees. These are woody evergeens which make essential oils and are prone to fire. Sticky heavily scented gum squeezes out of their wood. The tribe has about 860 species. They are all [[Native (ecology)|native]] to [[Southeast Asia]] and [[Oceania]]. Most live in Australia. Until British settlement in Australia, these trees were almost entirely unknown. They had been separated from the Americas, Africa and much of Asia for millions of years.<ref>Macphail, Mike; Thornhill, Andrew H. 2016. How old are the eucalypts? A review of the microfossil and phylogenetic evidence. ''Australian Journal of Botany'' '''64''' (8): 579.</ref>
 
==References==
;Notes
<references group="N"/>
 
;References
{{reflist|refs=
}}
 
==Other websites==
{{Sister project links|Australia|voy=Australia}}
* [http://www.australia.com Official website for australia travel] Official website for Australia travel.
* [http://www.australien-links.ch Australia travel informations] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150316040706/http://www.australien-links.ch/ |date=2015-03-16 }} User generated guide to Australia.
 
[[Category:Australia| ]]
[[Category:Australasia]]
[[Category:Commonwealth realms]]
[[Category:English-speaking countries]]
[[Category:Federations]]
[[Category:1901 establishments]]
Retrieved from "https://en.bharatpedia.org/wiki/Special:MobileDiff/414595"