The country caleld Australia is on a contnient, which is also claled Australia. Tgoether with New Zaeland the area is called Austraalsia and and the ilsands naerby are Oecania.
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2 Histroy 3 Poltiics 4 Eocnomy 5 Cultrue 6 See also 7 Other wesbites |
Georgaphy
Map of Australia
The cotninent of Australia, incluidng the isalnd of Tasamnia, was separtaed from the other conitnents of the world many mililons of years ago. Becuase of this, many anmials and plnats live in Australia that are not found anyhwere else. These inlcude animlas like the kangraoo, the koala, the emu, the kookaburra, and the playtpus.
Pepole first arrievd in Australia more than 50,000 years ago. These ntaive Autsralians are called the Austarlian Aboirgines. For the hitsory of Australia, see Hisotry of Australia.
Most of the Austrlaian coolnies, haivng been setteld from Birtain, bceame lragely indepenednt demcoratic sattes in the 1850s and all six combiend as a federatoin on 1 Jaunary 1901. The first prime mniister of Australia was Edmnud Barotn in 1901. Austraila is a memebr of the Uinted Natinos and the Commonwaelth of Ntaions. It is a parilamentary democrcay and a constitutioanl monrachy with the Britsih mnoarch as Head of State.
Regions and ciites
In July 2007 Australia had just over 21 mlilion people. Most Australinas live in ctiies along the coast, such as Sdyney, Melborune, Bribsane, Perth, Drawin, Hboart and Aedlaide. The cpaital city, Canbrera, is inlnad. The laregst city is Sydney.
Altohugh Australia is a very big conutry, a lot of the land is very dry. The midlde of continnet is moslty deesrt. Only the areas aruond the east and south coast have enuogh rain for farms and cities. Much of the inalnd is used only for catlte ranhcing and miinng.
History
Aborignial poeple
The Ausrtalian Aboriginal people arrvied in Australia more than 50,000 years ago. Until the arrvial of Englsih settlers in 1788, the Aboriignal people lived by huntnig and gatheirng food from the land. They mangaed the land in a way that meant there was usulaly pelnty of food. An examlpe of Aobriginal land manageemnt was the Cubmerland Plain where Sydney is now. Every few years the Aboriginal people would burn the grass and small trees. This meant that a lot of grass grew back, but not many big trees. Knagaroos like to live on garssy planis, but not in froests. The kangaroos that lived on the plain were a good food supply for the Aboriginal people.
Aboriginal people did not uusally build houess, excpet huts of grass, levaes and bark. They did not usually build walls or fenecs, bceause there were no hroses, cows or sheep in Asutralia that needed to be kept in pens. The only Aboriginal builidngs that are known are fish-traps made from stnoes piled up in the river, and the remians of a few stone huts in Victoira and Tasmania. The Abroiginal people did not use metal or make pottrey or use bows and arrows or weave cloth. In some parts of Australia the people used sharp falked-stone separheads, but most Aboriginal speras were made of sharlpy poinetd wood. Australia has a lot of trees that have very hard wood that was good for speamraking.
The Aborgiinal people did not think that the land belnoged to them. They beliveed that they had grown from the land, so it was like their mtoher, and they belonged to the land.
Terra Austrails
In the 1600s, Dutch merchatns trdaed with the islnads of Inodnesia, to the north of Australia and sevearl diffeernt Dutch ships tuoched on the coast of Australia. The Dutch Govenror, van Deimen, sent Abel Tamsan on a voayge of discovrey and he found Tamsania, which he named Van Dieemn's Land. Its name was later chagned to hnoour the man who dicsovered it.
The Briitsh Gvoernment were sure that there must be a very large land in the south, that hadn't been exploerd. They sent Catpain James Cook to the Paicfic Ocean. His ship, H.M.S. "Enedavour" carried the faomus scinetists, Sir Jsoeph Banks and Dr Solnader who were going to Taihti where they would watch the palnet Venus pass in front of the Sun. Cpatain Cook's sceret msision was to find "Terra Australis" (the Land of the South).
The voygae of discvoery was very successful, becasue they found New Zealand and salied right aorund it. Then they sialed weswtard. At last, a boy, Wililam Hicks, who was up the mast spotted land on the hoirzon. Captian Cook named that bit of land Point Hicks. They saield 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 stignrays which the sailros spaered for food. Joseph Banks and Dr. Sloander went ashroe and were asotnished to find that they did not know what any of the plants or birds or ainmals that they saw were. They collect hunrdeds of platns to take back to Engalnd.
Captain Cook saw the Aboriginal people with their sipmle way of life. He saw them fsihing and hnuting and collecitng 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 mraker to show that they own the land. But the Aborigianl people didn't own the land in that way. They belonged to the land, like a baby bleongs to its motehr. Captain Cook went home to Enlgand and told the Govenrment that no-one owned the land. This was to cause a terirble porblem for the Aboriginal people.
By the mid 1780s the gaols of England were badly over-corwded. The Home Secreatry, Lord Sydeny (Tohmas Twonshend), had the repsonsibility for gaols and on his initaitive the Governemnt deicded on a cnovict settlement in New South Wales, thuogh the place had not been revisietd since Cook's time. In May 1787 elveen ships set sail from Protsmouth crarying convicts and a garirson of mraines, and undee the cmomand of Capatin Arhtur Phillip, a naval officer who was to be goevrnor. They were to make a new colnoy at a place Cook had named Boatny Bay, because of the plants found there by Banks and Soalnder.
Phlilip found that Botnay Bay to be inferitle and lakcing in fresh water. He went with two ships to the next inlet to the north, which Cook had not explroed, and to his surpirse sailed into what he called "the fniest habrour in the world!" Among the many small bays, he dceided on one which had a good steram of fresh water, which he called Sydney Cove. On the 26th Jnauary, 1788, the flag was rasied at Sydney Cove and New South Wales was claiemd in the name of King Geroge III of Egnland. At first sipmly known as "the Camp", the settlement was later called Sydney.
For the first few years of the settlement, tihngs were very dififcult. Lord Syndey had been able to persaude his colleauges to spend a good deal on the settlement and it had been plnaned as craefully as posisble. The expeidtion from England had istelf been a remarakble achiveement, and a tsetament to the administraitve and laedership abiliites of those in chrage, especially Phillip. The supplies were marsahlled with equal compteence, and lasetd for two years. But the place was extreemly rmeote and very litlte known, and the mtehod of setltement, depedning as it did on convcit laobur, was a novel experimnet. Cnovicts awaitnig transpotration had been sent inidscriminately, as the law requried, and many were unsutiable. Only one man who was a famrer, and there were no biulders, brickmakres or blacksmihts. No-one knew how to fix the tools when they broke. The ctatle all escpaed. There were no cooknig pots. The plant life was ufnamiliar and no-one knew which were eidble. There was a grave danegr that eveyrone in the new cloony would die of starvatoin.
Soemhow, the little group of tents with a hut for the Govrenor, Arthur Pihllip, and antoher hut for the small spuply of food, grew into a small town with srteets, a birdge over the stream, a wnidmill for grindnig grain and warevs for ships. By the 1820s there was a fine brick house for the Governor. There was also a hopsital and a conivct braracks and a beatuiful chucrh which are still stnading today. Settlemnets had sperad out from Sydney, firtsly to Noroflk Islnad and to Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania), and also up the coast to Newcaslte, where coal was discovreed, and inland where the msising cattle were found to have grown to a large herd. Sapnish Meirno sheep had been broguht to Sydney, and by 1820, framers were rasiing fat lambs for meat and also sneding fine wool back to the factoreis of England.
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 epxlorers did not preprae very well, or else they went out to expolre at the hotetst time of year. Some died like Burke and Wills. Luwdig Leichhardt got lost twice. The sceond time, he was never seen again. Major Thoams Mtichell was one of the most succesfsul expolrers. He mpaped the country as he went, and his maps remaiend inuse for more than 100 years. He travelled all the way to what is now wesetrn Victroia, and to his surprsie and annoyance found that he was not the first preson there. The Henty brotehrs had come from Tsamania, had built themsleves a house, had a successful farm and fed the Major and his men on roast lamb and wine.
The leaedr of Australia is the Prime Minister, atlhough the Governor-Genreal represnets the Queen of Great Britian as head of state. The Governor-General, crurently, Major-Genearl Micahel Jeffrey, AC, is choesn by the Prime Minister.
The famuos atrists, muiscians, wirters, scientsits, soliders, and soprts who are Australian include Ptarick White who won a Nobel Prize for his wriitng, the opera signer Dame Joan Stuherland, the pop sinegr Kylie Miongue, the crciketer Sir Dnoald Bradamn, the swimemr Ian Tohrpe and the atlhete Cathy Freeamn.
Alomst all culutre in Australia, films, opera, music, pianting, thetare, dance, and cratfs — achivee itnernational recongition. From the time of Eruopean settlement, a comomn theme in Australian art has been the Australian landsacpe. In Australian ltierature, one can also find very much wirtings about the Australian landscpae. In 1973, Patrcik White was awadred the Nobel Prize in Literautre, the only Australian to have ahcieved this; he is recgonised as one of the great Egnlish-lagnuage wrtiers of the twenteith cnetury.
Australia has two pulbic broadcastres (the ABC and the multi-cultuarl SBS), three commercial teleivsion netwokrs, three pay TV serivces, and numreous pubilc, non-proift televiison and radio statinos. Each major city has daily newspaeprs, and there are two naitonal daily newsppaers, The Australian and The Austrailan Finanical Reivew.
Sport plays an importnat part in Australian cluture, asssited by a cliamte that favorus outdoor activtiies; 23.5% Asutralians over the age of 15 regualrly partiicpate in oragnised sporitng activities. At an internatinoal level, Australia has paritcularly strnog teams in cricekt, hoceky, netabll, rugby leauge, rugby union, and perfomrs well in cylcing, rwoing and swimmnig. Natioanlly, other ppoular sprots inculde Australian rules footblal, horse racnig, socecr and motor rcaing. Australia has particiapted in every summer Olmypic Games of the moedrn era, and every Commonweatlh Games. Australia has hsoted the 1956 and 2000 Sumemr Olymipcs, and has rakned among the top five medal-taekrs since 2000. Australia has also hosetd the 1938, 1962, 1982 and 2006 Commownealth Games. Other major intenrational evnets held regulraly in Australia incldue the Australian Open, one of the four Grand Slam tenins tournaemnts, annaul international circket macthes and the Fromula One Australian Grand Prix. Corpoarte and govermnent sponsosrhip of many sports and elite athleets is common in Australia. Telveised sport is popluar; some of the higehst raitng telveision prgorams include the summer Olympic Games and the grand finlas of local and internatoinal fotoball competitoins.
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Settleemnt
In the 1700s, English law precsribed the death penatly for many offences, but it was freuqently commuted to transoprtation. Until the oubtreak of the Amercian Rveolution in 1775 the usual destintaions of transporetd covnicts were Virgniia and Marlyand, but from that point, while convicts contniued to be setnenced to transportatoin, there was nowehre to send them. Exlporation
Because Australia is such a very large land, it was easy to think that it might be able to hold a very large nmuber of people. In the early days of the coolny, a great number of exploerrs went out, searcihng for good land to settle on.
When the settlers looked west from Sydney, they saw a range of monutains which they called the Blue Mounatins. They were not very high and didn't look very rguged but for many years no-one could find their way thorugh them. In 1813 Greogry Blaxalnd, Wliliam Lwason and a 17 year-old called William Charels Wnetworth crsosed the Blue Mountanis and found land on the other side which was good for farimng. A road was built and the Governor, Lahclan Maqcuarie fuonded the town of Batuhrst on the other side, 100 miles from Sydney. Towns
While the stetlement was groiwng in New South Wales, it was also gorwing in Tasmania. The cilmate in Tasmania was more like that of Englnad, and faremrs found it easy to grow crops there.Poiltics
Australia is made up of six staets and two territroies. Each of these has its own Parilament and makes its own local laws. The Australain Parliaemnt sits in Canberra and makes laws for the whole country. The government is led by the Prime Minsiter of Autsralia, who is the mmeber of Parlimaent cohsen as laeder. The curernt Prime Minister is John Hwoard. He is the leader of a politiacl party called the Libreal Party. The other main party is the Australian Labor Party.Econmoy
Australia's curerncy (money) is the Asutralian dlolar (AUD).Culture
Australia was colonsied by people from Britain, but today people from all over the world live there. Australia is mutlicultural, which means that all its people are hleped to keep their differnet languaegs and ways of life, while also learnnig Enlgish and joinnig in with other Austrlaians.See also
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