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The first time that the name Australia appears to have been officially used was in a despatch to Lord Bathurst of 4 April 1817 in which Governor [[Lachlan Macquarie]] acknowledges the receipt of Capt. Flinders' charts of Australia.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article58549315 |title=WHO NAMED AUSTRALIA? |newspaper=[[The Mail (Adelaide)|The Mail (Adelaide, SA : 1912 – 1954)]] |location=Adelaide|date=11 February 1928 |accessdate=14 February 2012 |page=16 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}</ref> On 12 December 1817, Macquarie recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted.<ref>Weekend Australian, 30–31 December 2000, p. 16</ref> In 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially as ''Australia''.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Department of Immigration and Citizenship|title=Life in Australia|publisher=Commonwealth of Australia|year=2007|page=11|isbn=978-1-921446-30-6|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/living-in-australia/values/book/english/lia_english_part1.pdf|accessdate=30 March 2010}}</ref>
 
The first time that the name Australia appears to have been officially used was in a despatch to Lord Bathurst of 4 April 1817 in which Governor [[Lachlan Macquarie]] acknowledges the receipt of Capt. Flinders' charts of Australia.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article58549315 |title=WHO NAMED AUSTRALIA? |newspaper=[[The Mail (Adelaide)|The Mail (Adelaide, SA : 1912 – 1954)]] |location=Adelaide|date=11 February 1928 |accessdate=14 February 2012 |page=16 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}</ref> On 12 December 1817, Macquarie recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted.<ref>Weekend Australian, 30–31 December 2000, p. 16</ref> In 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially as ''Australia''.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Department of Immigration and Citizenship|title=Life in Australia|publisher=Commonwealth of Australia|year=2007|page=11|isbn=978-1-921446-30-6|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/living-in-australia/values/book/english/lia_english_part1.pdf|accessdate=30 March 2010}}</ref>
   
==History==
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== History ==
 
{{Main|History of Australia}}
 
{{Main|History of Australia}}
[[File:Bradshaw rock paintings.jpg|thumb|Aboriginal rock art in the [[Kimberley (Western Australia)|Kimberley]] region of Western Australia]]
 
Human habitation of the Australian continent is estimated to have begun between 42,000 and 48,000 years ago,<ref>{{cite journal |author=Gillespie, Richard |year=2002 |url=https://journals.uair.arizona.edu/index.php/radiocarbon/article/download/4118/3543 |title=Dating the First Australians (full text) |journal=Radiocarbon |volume=44 |issue=2 |format=PDF |pages=455–472 |accessdate=28 July 2014}}</ref> possibly with the migration of people by [[land bridge]]s and short sea-crossings from what is now [[Southeast Asia|South-East Asia]]. These first inhabitants may have been ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians.<ref>{{cite web|title=The spread of people to Australia|publisher=[[Australian Museum]]|url=http://australianmuseum.net.au/The-spread-of-people-to-Australia}}</ref> At the time of European settlement in the late 18th century, most Indigenous Australians were [[hunter-gatherer]]s, with a complex [[oral tradition|oral culture]] and spiritual values based on reverence for the land and a belief in the [[Dreamtime]]. The [[Torres Strait Islanders]], ethnically [[Melanesia]]n, were originally horticulturalists and hunter-gatherers.<ref>{{cite web|title=Early Aussie Tattoos Match Rock Art|last=Viegas|first=Jennifer|publisher=Discovery News|date=3 July 2008|accessdate=30 March 2010|url=http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/07/03/australia-tattoos-art.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080710014604/http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/07/03/australia-tattoos-art.html|archivedate=10 July 2008}}</ref> The northern coasts and waters of Australia were visited sporadically by fishermen from [[Maritime Southeast Asia]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=MacKnight|first=CC|year=1976|title=The Voyage to Marege: Macassan Trepangers in Northern Australia|publisher=[[Melbourne University Press]]}}</ref>
 
   
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=== Prehistory ===
[[File:Captainjamescookportrait.jpg|left|upright|thumb|Portrait of Captain [[James Cook]], the first European to map the eastern coastline of Australia in 1770]]
 
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{{Further|Indigenous Australians}}
The first recorded European sighting of the Australian mainland, and the first recorded European landfall on the Australian continent, are attributed to the Dutch navigator [[Willem Janszoon]]. He sighted the coast of [[Cape York Peninsula]] in early 1606, and made landfall on 26 February at the [[Pennefather River]] near the modern town of [[Weipa, Queensland|Weipa]] on Cape York.<ref name=dhm233>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, p. 233.</ref> The Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines and named the island continent "[[New Holland (Australia)|New Holland]]" during the 17th century, but made no attempt at settlement.<ref name=dhm233/> [[William Dampier]], an English explorer and privateer, landed on the north-west coast of New Holland in 1688 and again in 1699 on a return trip.<ref>{{cite book|last=Marsh|first=Lindsay|title=History of Australia : understanding what makes Australia the place it is today|year=2010|publisher=Ready-Ed Publications|location=Greenwood, W.A.|isbn=978-1-86397-798-2|page=9}}</ref> In 1770, [[James Cook]] sailed along and mapped the east coast, which he named New South Wales and claimed for Great Britain.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/australianhistory/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110216230554/http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/australianhistory/|archivedate=16 February 2011|title=European discovery and the colonisation of Australia|work=Australian Government: Culture Portal|publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Commonwealth of Australia|date=11 January 2008}}</ref> With the loss of its American colonies in 1783, the British Government sent a fleet of ships, the "[[First Fleet]]", under the command of Captain [[Arthur Phillip]], to establish a new [[penal colony]] in New South Wales. A camp was set up and the flag raised at [[Sydney Cove]], [[Port Jackson]], on 26 January 1788,<ref name="Davison pp. 157, 254"/> a date which became Australia's national day, [[Australia Day]] although the British [[British Overseas Territories|Crown Colony]] of New South Wales was not formally promulgated until 7 February 1788. The first settlement led to the foundation of [[Sydney]], the establishment of farming, industry and commerce; and the exploration and settlement of other regions.
 
 
[[File:Bradshaw rock paintings.jpg|thumb|[[Aboriginal rock art]] in the [[Kimberley (Western Australia)|Kimberley]] region of Western Australia]]
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Human habitation of the Australian continent is known to have begun at least 65,000 years ago,<ref name="Nunn2018">{{cite book|first=Patrick|last=Nunn|title=The Edge of Memory: Ancient Stories, Oral Tradition and the Post-Glacial World|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z4xaDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT16|year=2018|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|isbn=978-1-4729-4327-9|page=16}}</ref><ref name="FaganDurrani2018">{{cite book|first1=Brian M.|last1=Fagan|first2=Nadia|last2=Durrani|title=People of the Earth: An Introduction to World Prehistory|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W0NvDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT250|year=2018|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=978-1-351-75764-5|pages=250–253}}</ref> with the migration of people by [[land bridge]]s and short sea-crossings from what is now [[Southeast Asia]].<ref name="Oppenheimer2013">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VQQvDwAAQBAJ&pg=PP111|title=Out of Eden: The Peopling of the World|first=Stephen|last=Oppenheimer|date=2013|publisher=Little, Brown Book Group|isbn=978-1-78033-753-1|pages=111–}}</ref> The [[Madjedbebe]] rock shelter in [[Arnhem Land]] is recognised as the oldest site showing the presence of humans in Australia.<ref name="Gilligan2018">{{cite book|first=Ian|last=Gilligan|title=Climate, Clothing, and Agriculture in Prehistory: Linking Evidence, Causes, and Effects|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ux50DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA237|date= 2018|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-108-47008-7|page=237}}</ref> The oldest human remains found are the [[Lake Mungo remains]], which have been dated to around 41,000 years ago.<ref name="TunizGillespie2016">{{cite book|first1=Claudio|last1=Tuniz|first2=Richard|last2=Gillespie|first3=Cheryl|last3=Jones|title=The Bone Readers: Science and Politics in Human Origins Research|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WrJmDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA43|year=2016|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-315-41888-9|page=43}}</ref><ref name="Castillo2015">{{cite book|first=Alicia|last=Castillo|title=Archaeological Dimension of World Heritage: From Prevention to Social Implications|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jV64BAAAQBAJ&pg=PA41|date= 2015|publisher=Springer Science |isbn=978-1-4939-0283-5|page=41}}</ref> These people were the ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://australian.museum/learn/science/human-evolution/the-spread-of-people-to-australia/|title=The spread of people to Australia|publisher=[[Australian Museum]]}}</ref> [[Aboriginal Australian]] culture is one of the oldest continual cultures on earth.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.australiangeographic.com.au:80/journal/Aboriginal-Australians-the-oldest-culture-on-Earth.htm|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130518061422/http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/journal/Aboriginal-Australians-the-oldest-culture-on-Earth.htm|archivedate=18 May 2013|title=Aboriginal Australians the oldest culture on Earth|publisher=Australian Geographic|date=18 May 2013|access-date=18 December 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>
   
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At the time of first European contact, most Indigenous Australians were [[hunter-gatherer]]s with complex economies and societies.<ref>{{cite journal|title=Complex hunter-gatherers: a view from Australia|journal=Antiquity|volume=61|issue=232|pages=310–321|first=Elizabeth|last=Williams|publisher= Cambridge University Press|year=2015|doi=10.1017/S0003598X00052182}}</ref><ref name="SáenzEmbrick2015">{{cite book|first1=Rogelio|last1=Sáenz|first2=David G.|last2=Embrick|first3=Néstor P.|last3=Rodríguez|title=The International Handbook of the Demography of Race and Ethnicity|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v_bLCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA602|date=3 June 2015|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-90-481-8891-8|pages=602–}}</ref> Recent archaeological finds suggest that a population of 750,000 could have been sustained.<ref name="pop_abs">[http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/bfc28642d31c215cca256b350010b3f4!OpenDocument 1301.0 – Year Book Australia, 2002] [[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] 25 January 2002</ref><ref>also see other historians including Noel Butlin (1983) ''Our Original Aggression'' George Allen and Unwin, Sydney. {{ISBN|0-86861-223-5}}</ref> Indigenous Australians have an [[oral tradition|oral culture]] with spiritual values based on reverence for the land and a belief in the [[Dreamtime]].<ref name="Galván2014">{{cite book|first=Javier A.|last=Galván|title=They Do What? A Cultural Encyclopedia of Extraordinary and Exotic Customs from around the World|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=e2RyBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA83|year=2014|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-61069-342-4|page=83}}</ref> The [[Torres Strait Islanders]], ethnically [[Melanesia]]n, obtained their livelihood from seasonal horticulture and the resources of their reefs and seas.<ref>{{cite web|title=Early Aussie Tattoos Match Rock Art|last=Viegas|first=Jennifer|publisher=Discovery News|date=3 July 2008|accessdate=30 March 2010|url=http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/07/03/australia-tattoos-art.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080710014604/http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/07/03/australia-tattoos-art.html|archivedate=10 July 2008}}</ref> The northern coasts and waters of Australia were [[Makassan contact with Australia|visited sporadically]] by [[Makassar people|Makassan]] fishermen from what is now Indonesia.<ref>{{Cite book|last=MacKnight|first=CC|year=1976|title=The Voyage to Marege: Macassan Trepangers in Northern Australia|publisher=[[Melbourne University Press]]}}</ref>
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=== European arrival ===
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{{See also|European exploration of Australia}}
 
[[File:Captainjamescookportrait.jpg|left|upright|thumb|alt=A painting of Captain James Cook in uniform sitting down in front of a map|Portrait of Captain [[James Cook]], the first European to map the eastern coastline of Australia in 1770]]
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The first recorded European sighting of the Australian mainland, and the first recorded European landfall on the Australian continent, are attributed to the [[Dutch people|Dutch]].<ref name="BarberBarnes2013">{{cite book|first1=Peter|last1=Barber|first2=Katherine|last2=Barnes|author3=Dr Nigel Erskine|title=Mapping Our World: Terra Incognita To Australia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uZ_sAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA99|year=2013|publisher=National Library of Australia|isbn=978-0-642-27809-8|page=99}}</ref> The first ship and crew to chart the Australian coast and meet with Aboriginal people was the ''[[Duyfken]]'' captained by Dutch navigator, [[Willem Janszoon]].<ref name="SmithBurke2007">{{cite book|first1=Claire|last1=Smith|first2=Heather|last2=Burke|title=Digging It Up Down Under: A Practical Guide to Doing Archaeology in Australia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0HsRb_AY9jQC&pg=PA47|date= 2007|publisher=Springer Science|isbn=978-0-387-35263-3|page=47}}</ref> He sighted the coast of [[Cape York Peninsula]] in early 1606, and made landfall on 26 February at the [[Pennefather River]] near the modern town of [[Weipa, Queensland|Weipa]] on Cape York.<ref name="dhm233">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|p=233}}</ref> Later that year, Spanish explorer [[Luís Vaz de Torres]] sailed through, and navigated, [[Torres Strait]] islands.<ref>Brett Hilder (1980) ''The Voyage of Torres''. University of Queensland Press, St. Lucia, Queensland. {{ISBN|0-7022-1275-X}}</ref> The Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines and named the island continent "[[New Holland (Australia)|New Holland]]" during the 17th century, and although no attempt at settlement was made,<ref name="dhm233" /> [[Shipwrecks of Western Australia#Notable wrecks|a number of shipwrecks]] left men either stranded or, as in the case of the ''[[Batavia (1628 ship)|Batavia]]'' in 1629, marooned for mutiny and murder, thus becoming the first Europeans to permanently inhabit the continent.<ref>Davis, Russell Earls (2019). ''A Concise History of Western Australia''. Woodslane Press. {{ISBN|9781925868227}}, pp. 3–6.</ref> [[William Dampier]], an English explorer and privateer, landed on the north-west coast of New Holland in 1688 (while serving as a crewman under pirate Captain [[John Read (pirate)|John Read]]<ref name="Baer – Pirates of the British Isles">{{cite book |last1=Baer |first1=Joel |title=Pirates of the British Isles |date=2005 |publisher=Tempus |location=Gloucestershire |isbn=978-0-7524-2304-3 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/piratesofbritish0000baer/page/66 66]–68 |url=https://archive.org/details/piratesofbritish0000baer |url-access=registration |accessdate=29 July 2019 |language=en}}</ref>) and again in 1699 on a return trip.<ref>{{cite book|last=Marsh|first=Lindsay|title=History of Australia : understanding what makes Australia the place it is today|year=2010|publisher=Ready-Ed Publications|location=Greenwood, W.A.|isbn=978-1-86397-798-2|page=9}}</ref> In 1770, [[James Cook]] sailed along and mapped the east coast, which he named New South Wales and claimed for Great Britain.<ref name="GoucherWalton2013">{{cite book|first1=Candice|last1=Goucher|first2=Linda|last2=Walton|title=World History: Journeys from Past to Present|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O_3fCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA427|year=2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-135-08829-3|pages=427–28}}</ref>
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With the loss of its American colonies in 1783, the British Government sent a fleet of ships, the "[[First Fleet]]", under the command of Captain [[Arthur Phillip]], to establish a new [[penal colony]] in New South Wales. A camp was set up and the [[Union flag]] raised at [[Sydney Cove]], [[Port Jackson]], on 26 January 1788,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://australia.gov.au/about-australia/australian-story/european-discovery-and-colonisation|title=European discovery and the colonisation of Australia|work=Australian Government: Culture Portal|publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Commonwealth of Australia|quote=[The British] moved north to Port Jackson on 26 January 1788, landing at Camp Cove, known as 'cadi' to the Cadigal people. Governor Phillip carried instructions to establish the first British Colony in Australia. The First Fleet was under prepared for the task, and the soil around Sydney Cove was poor.|date=11 January 2008|accessdate=7 May 2010}}</ref><ref name="Egan2003">{{cite book|first=Ted|last=Egan|title=The Land Downunder|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ND3OqVdOwqoC&pg=PA25|year=2003|publisher=Grice Chapman Publishing|isbn=978-0-9545726-0-0|pages=25–26}}</ref> a date which later became Australia's national day, [[Australia Day]]. Most early [[convicts in Australia|convicts]] were [[penal transportation|transported]] for petty crimes and assigned as labourers or servants upon arrival. While the majority settled into colonial society once [[emancipist|emancipated]], convict rebellions and uprisings were also staged, but invariably suppressed under martial law. The 1808 [[Rum Rebellion]], the only successful armed takeover of government in Australia, instigated a two-year period of military rule.<ref>Matsuda, Matt K. (2012). ''Pacific Worlds: A History of Seas, Peoples, and Cultures''. Cambridge University Press. {{ISBN|9780521887632}}, pp. 165–167.</ref>
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The indigenous population declined for 150 years following settlement, mainly due to infectious disease.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Smallpox Through History |url=http://encarta.msn.com/media_701508643/Smallpox_Through_History.html |work=Encarta |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040618142015/http://encarta.msn.com/media_701508643/Smallpox_Through_History.html |archivedate=18 June 2004 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Thousands more died as a result of [[Australian frontier wars|frontier conflict]] with settlers.<ref>Attwood, Bain; Foster, Stephen Glynn (2003). ''Frontier Conflict: The Australian Experience''. National Museum of Australia. {{ISBN|978-1-876944-11-7}}, p. 89.</ref> A government policy of "assimilation" beginning with the ''[[Aboriginal Protection Act 1869]]'' resulted in the removal of many Aboriginal children from their families and communities—referred to as the [[Stolen Generations]]—a practice which also contributed to the decline in the indigenous population.<ref>{{Cite book|author=Attwood, Bain |title=Telling the truth about Aboriginal history |year=2005 |url=https://www.questia.com/read/109251500?title=Telling%20the%20Truth%20about%20Aboriginal%20History |publisher=Allen & Unwin |isbn=978-1-74114-577-9 |location=Crows Nest, New South Wales}}</ref> As a result of the [[Australian referendum, 1967 (Aboriginals)|1967 referendum]], the Federal government's power to enact special laws with respect to a particular race was extended to enable the making of laws with respect to Aboriginals.<ref name="Edwards2004">{{cite book|first=William Howell|last=Edwards|title=An Introduction to Aboriginal Societies|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kF-_Pe5WX6UC&pg=PA132|year=2004|publisher=Cengage Learning Australia|isbn=978-1-876633-89-9|pages=132–33}}</ref> Traditional ownership of land ("[[Native title in Australia|native title]]") was not recognised in law until 1992, when the [[High Court of Australia]] held in ''[[Mabo v Queensland (No 2)]]'' that the legal doctrine that Australia had been ''[[terra nullius]]'' ("land belonging to no one") did not apply to Australia at the time of British settlement.<ref name="Davison pp5-7, 402">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|pages=5–7, 402}}</ref>
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=== Colonial expansion ===
 
[[File:PortArthurPenitentiary.jpg|thumb|alt=A calm body of water is in the foreground. The shoreline is about 200 metres away. To the left, close to the shore, are three tall [[Eucalyptus|gum trees]]; behind them on an incline are ruins, including walls and watchtowers of light-coloured stone and brick, what appear to be the foundations of walls, and grassed areas. To the right lie the outer walls of a large rectangular four-storey building dotted with regularly spaced windows. Forested land rises gently to a peak several kilometres back from the shore.|Tasmania's [[Port Arthur, Tasmania|Port Arthur]] penal settlement is one of eleven UNESCO World Heritage-listed [[Australian Convict Sites]].]]
 
[[File:PortArthurPenitentiary.jpg|thumb|alt=A calm body of water is in the foreground. The shoreline is about 200 metres away. To the left, close to the shore, are three tall [[Eucalyptus|gum trees]]; behind them on an incline are ruins, including walls and watchtowers of light-coloured stone and brick, what appear to be the foundations of walls, and grassed areas. To the right lie the outer walls of a large rectangular four-storey building dotted with regularly spaced windows. Forested land rises gently to a peak several kilometres back from the shore.|Tasmania's [[Port Arthur, Tasmania|Port Arthur]] penal settlement is one of eleven UNESCO World Heritage-listed [[Australian Convict Sites]].]]
A British settlement was established in [[Van Diemen's Land]], now known as Tasmania, in 1803 and it became a separate colony in 1825.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 464–65, 628–29.</ref> The United Kingdom formally claimed the western part of [[Western Australia]] (the [[Swan River Colony]]) in 1828.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, p. 678.</ref> Separate colonies were carved from parts of New South Wales: [[South Australia]] in 1836, [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]] in 1851, and Queensland in 1859.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, p. 464.</ref> The [[Northern Territory]] was founded in 1911 when it was excised from South Australia.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, p. 470.</ref> South Australia was founded as a "free province"—it was never a penal colony.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, p. 598.</ref> Victoria and Western Australia were also founded "free", but later accepted [[convicts in Australia|transported convicts]].<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, p. 679.</ref><ref>[http://www.access.prov.vic.gov.au/public/PROVguides/PROVguide057/PROVguide057.jsp Convict Records] Public Record office of Victoria; [http://www.sro.wa.gov.au/collection/convict-records State Records Office of Western Australia].</ref> A campaign by the settlers of New South Wales led to the end of convict transportation to that colony; the last convict ship arrived in 1848.<ref>{{cite web|year=1988 |url=http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs%40.nsf/0/A890E87A9AB97424CA2569DE0025C18B?Open |title=1998 Special Article&nbsp;– The State of New South Wales&nbsp;– Timeline of History |publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]]}}</ref>
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The expansion of British control over other areas of the continent began in the early 19th century, initially confined to coastal regions. A settlement was established in [[Van Diemen's Land]] (present-day [[Tasmania]]) in 1803, and it became a separate colony in 1825.<ref name="Davison pp464-5">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|pages=464–65, 628–29}}</ref> In 1813, [[Gregory Blaxland]], [[William Lawson (explorer)|William Lawson]] and [[William Wentworth]] crossed the [[Blue Mountains (New South Wales)|Blue Mountains]] west of Sydney, opening the interior to European settlement.<ref>{{cite book |last=Conway |first=Jill |chapter-url=http://adbonline.anu.edu.au/biogs/A010109b.htm?hilite=blaxland |title=Biography – Gregory Blaxland – Australian Dictionary of Biography |publisher=Adbonline.anu.edu.au |date= |accessdate=14 July 2011|chapter=Blaxland, Gregory (1778–1853) }}</ref> The British claim was extended to the whole Australian continent in 1827 when Major [[Edmund Lockyer]] established a settlement on [[King George Sound]] (modern-day [[Albany, Western Australia]]).<ref>{{cite book |last=Grey |first=Jeffrey |title=A Military History of Australia |url=https://archive.org/details/militaryhistorya00grey_277 |url-access=limited |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Port Melbourne |year=2008 |edition=Third |isbn=978-0-521-69791-0 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/militaryhistorya00grey_277/page/n43 28]–40}}</ref> The [[Swan River Colony]] was established in 1829, evolving into the largest Australian colony by area, [[Western Australia]].<ref name="Davison p678">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|p=678}}</ref> In accordance with population growth, separate colonies were carved from parts of New South Wales: [[South Australia]] in 1836, [[New Zealand]] in 1841, [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]] in 1851, and [[Queensland]] in 1859.<ref name="Davison p464">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|p=464}}</ref> The [[Northern Territory]] was excised from South Australia in 1911.<ref name="Davison p470">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|p=470}}</ref> South Australia was founded as a "free province"—it was never a penal colony.<ref name="Davison p598">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|p=598}}</ref> Western Australia was also founded "free" but later accepted [[Convict era of Western Australia|transported convicts]], the last of which arrived in 1868, decades after transportation had ceased to the other colonies.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20051225154618/http://www.access.prov.vic.gov.au/public/PROVguides/PROVguide057/PROVguide057.jsp Convict Records] Public Record office of Victoria; [http://www.sro.wa.gov.au/collection/convict-records State Records Office of Western Australia] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120530100051/http://www.sro.wa.gov.au/collection/convict-records |date=30 May 2012 }}</ref> By 1850, Europeans still had not entered large areas of the inland. Explorers remained ambitious to discover new lands for agriculture or answers to scientific enquiries.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/explorers/ |title=Early explorers|work=Australia's Culture Portal |access-date=6 November 2013 |url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110408183209/http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/explorers/ |archivedate=8 April 2011}}</ref>
   
 
A [[Australian gold rushes|series of gold rushes]] beginning in the early 1850s led to an influx of new migrants from [[Chinese Australians|China]], North America and mainland Europe,<ref name="JuppJupp2001">{{cite book|first1=James|last1=Jupp|author2=Director Centre for Immigration and Multicultural Studies James Jupp|title=The Australian People: An Encyclopedia of the Nation, Its People and Their Origins|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wgoFxfSTfYAC&pg=PA35|year=2001|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-80789-0|pages=35–36}}</ref> and also spurred outbreaks of [[bushranger|bushranging]] and civil unrest. The latter peaked in 1854 when [[Ballarat]] miners launched the [[Eureka Rebellion]] against gold license fees.<ref name="Davison pp227-9">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|pages=227–29}}</ref> Between 1855 and 1890, the six colonies individually gained [[responsible government]], managing most of their own affairs while remaining part of the [[British Empire]].<ref name="Davison p556">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|p=556}}</ref> The Colonial Office in London retained control of some matters, notably foreign affairs,<ref name="Davison p138-9679">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|pages=138–39}}</ref> defence,<ref>{{Cite news|title=Colonial Defence and Imperial Repudiation|url=http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=DSC18601113.2.12&l=mi&e=-------10--1----0-all|date=13 November 1860|issue=vol XVII, issue 1349|newspaper=Daily Southern Cross|access-date=4 April 2010}}</ref> and international shipping.
The indigenous population, estimated to have been between 750,000 and 1,000,000 at the time European settlement began,<ref name=APR>{{cite book|last=Briscoe|first=Gordon|title=The Aboriginal Population Revisited: 70,000 years to the present|year=2002|publisher=Aboriginal History Inc.|location=Canberra, Australia|isbn=978-0-9585637-6-5|author2=Smith, Len|page=12}}</ref> declined for 150 years following settlement, mainly due to infectious disease.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title=Smallpox Through History|url=http://encarta.msn.com/media_701508643/Smallpox_Through_History.html|work=Encarta|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/query?id=1257008292443871|archivedate=31 October 2009|deadurl=yes}}</ref> A government policy of "assimilation" beginning with the ''[[Aboriginal Protection Act 1869]]'' resulted in the removal of many Aboriginal children from their families and communities—often referred to as the [[Stolen Generations]]—a practice which may also have contributed to the decline in the indigenous population.<ref>{{Cite book|author=Attwood, Bain |title=Telling the truth about Aboriginal history |year=2005 |url=http://www.questia.com/read/109251500?title=Telling%20the%20Truth%20about%20Aboriginal%20History |publisher=Allen & Unwin |isbn=1-74114-577-5 |location=Crows Nest, New South Wales}}</ref> The Federal government gained the power to make laws with respect to Aborigines following the [[Australian referendum, 1967 (Aboriginals)|1967 referendum]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/messageclub/duknow/stories/s888141.htm|publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]]|title=1967 Referendum|last=Dawkins|first=Kezia|date=1 February 2004|accessdate=30 March 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100420063848/http://www.abc.net.au/messageclub/duknow/stories/s888141.htm| archivedate= 20 April 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Traditional ownership of land—[[Native title in Australia|aboriginal title]]—was not recognised until 1992, when the [[High Court of Australia|High Court]] case ''[[Mabo v Queensland (No 2)]]'' overturned the legal doctrine that Australia had been ''[[terra nullius]]'' ("land belonging to no one") before the European occupation.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 5–7, 402.</ref>
 
   
  +
=== Nationhood ===
A [[gold rush]] began in Australia in the early 1850s<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 283–85.</ref> and the [[Eureka Rebellion]] against mining licence fees in 1854 was an early expression of civil disobedience.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp.227–29.</ref> Between 1855 and 1890, the six colonies individually gained [[responsible government]], managing most of their own affairs while remaining part of the [[British Empire]].<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, p. 556.</ref> The Colonial Office in London retained control of some matters, notably foreign affairs,<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 138–39.</ref> defence,<ref>{{Cite news|title=Colonial Defence and Imperial Repudiation|url=http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=DSC18601113.2.12&l=mi&e=-------10--1----0-all|date=13 November 1860|issue=vol XVII, issue 1349|newspaper=Daily Southern Cross|accessdate=4 April 2010}}</ref> and international shipping.
 
 
[[File:Anzac2.jpg|left|alt=Photo of an ANZAC memorial with an elderly man playing a bugle. Rows of people are seated behind the memorial. Many small white crosses with red poppies have been stuck into the lawn in rows on either side of the memorial.|thumb|The [[Last Post]] is played at an [[Anzac Day]] ceremony in [[Port Melbourne, Victoria|Port Melbourne]], Victoria. Similar ceremonies are held in many suburbs and towns.]]
  +
On 1 January 1901, [[Federation of Australia|federation of the colonies]] was achieved after a decade of planning, consultation and voting.<ref name="Davison pp243-4">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|pages=243–44}}</ref> After the [[1907 Imperial Conference]], Australia and the other self-governing British colonies were given the status of "[[dominion]]" within the British Empire.<ref name="dominionstatus">{{cite web|title=History of the Commonwealth|url=http://www.commonwealthofnations.org/commonwealth/history/|website=Commonwealth Network|publisher=Commonwealth of Nations|accessdate=16 February 2015}}</ref><ref>The name "the Commonwealth of Australia" is prescribed in section 3 (covering clause 3) of the [https://www.legislation.gov.au/Browse/ByTitle/Constitution/InForce#top Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act 1900 (Imp)].</ref> The Federal Capital Territory (later renamed the [[Australian Capital Territory]]) was formed in 1911 as the location for the future federal capital of Canberra. [[Melbourne]] was the temporary seat of government from 1901 to 1927 while Canberra was being constructed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uninews.unimelb.edu.au/news/4332/|title=When Melbourne was Australia's capital city|last=Otto|first=Kristin|date=25 June – 9 July 2007|publisher=University of Melbourne|accessdate=29 March 2010|location=Melbourne, Victoria| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100402083202/http://uninews.unimelb.edu.au/news/4332/| archivedate= 2 April 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The Northern Territory was transferred from the control of the South Australian government to the federal parliament in 1911.<ref name="Souter2012">{{cite book|first=Gavin|last=Souter|title=Lion & Kangaroo: The Initiation of Australia|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oQIBMD23lL0C&pg=PT141|year=2012|publisher=Xoum Publishing|isbn=978-1-922057-00-6|page=141}}</ref> Australia became the colonial ruler of the [[Territory of Papua]] (which had initially been annexed by Queensland in 1888) in 1902 and of the [[Territory of New Guinea]] (formerly [[German New Guinea]]) in 1920. The two were unified as the [[Territory of Papua and New Guinea]] in 1949 and gained independence from Australia in 1975.
   
 
In 1914, Australia joined Britain in fighting World War I, with support from both the outgoing [[Commonwealth Liberal Party]] and the incoming [[Australian Labor Party]].<ref>Macintyre, Stuart (1986) ''The Oxford History of Australia'', vol. 4, p. 142</ref><ref>C. Bean Ed. (1941). [http://www.awm.gov.au/histories/ww1/1/index.asp Volume I – The Story of Anzac: the first phase] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080828064649/http://www.awm.gov.au/histories/ww1/1/index.asp |date=28 August 2008 }}, First World War Official Histories, Eleventh Edition.</ref> Australians took part in many of the major battles fought on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.awm.gov.au/atwar/ww1.htm|title=First World War 1914–1918|publisher=Australian War Memorial|accessdate=5 December 2006|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20061207011059/http://www.awm.gov.au/atwar/ww1.htm|archivedate=7 December 2006|url-status=dead}}</ref> Of about 416,000 who served, about 60,000 were killed and another 152,000 were wounded.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Tucker|first=Spencer|title=Encyclopedia of World War I|publisher=ABC-CLIO|location=Santa Barbara, CA|year=2005|page=273|isbn=978-1-85109-420-2|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2YqjfHLyyj8C&pg=PA273}}</ref> Many Australians regard the defeat of the [[Australian and New Zealand Army Corps]] (ANZACs) at [[Gallipoli Campaign|Gallipoli]] as the birth of the nation—its first major military action.<ref>Macintyre, Stuart (2000). ''A Concise History of Australia''. Cambridge: [[Cambridge University Press]], pp. 151–53, {{ISBN|0-521-62359-6}}.</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Reed|first=Liz|title=Bigger than Gallipoli: war, history, and memory in Australia|year=2004|page=5|location=Crawley, WA |publisher=University of Western Australia |isbn=978-1-920694-19-7}}</ref> The [[Kokoda Track campaign]] is regarded by many as an analogous nation-defining event during World War II.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Nelson|first=Hank|year=1997|title=Gallipoli, Kokoda and the Making of National Identity|journal=Journal of Australian Studies|volume=53|issue=1|pages=148–60|url=http://www.api-network.com/main/pdf/scholars/jas53_nelson.pdf}}</ref>
[[File:Anzac2.jpg|thumb|left|alt=Photo of an ANZAC memorial with an elderly man playing a bugle. Rows of people are seated behind the memorial. Many small white crosses with red poppies have been stuck into the lawn in rows on either side of the memorial.|The [[Last Post]] is played at an [[Anzac Day]] ceremony in [[Port Melbourne, Victoria]]. Similar ceremonies are held in most suburbs and towns.]]
 
   
  +
Britain's [[Statute of Westminster 1931]] formally ended most of the constitutional links between Australia and the UK. Australia [[Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942|adopted it]] in 1942,<ref name="Davison p609">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|p=609}}</ref> but it was backdated to 1939 to confirm the validity of legislation passed by the Australian Parliament during [[World War II]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://foundingdocs.gov.au/item-did-25.html|title=Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942 (Cth)|publisher=[[National Archives of Australia]]|accessdate=28 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.comlaw.gov.au/comlaw/Legislation/ActCompilation1.nsf/0/AEA1CBA4FD61CFCFCA256F71005017A1/$file/StatuteWestminAdopt1942.pdf|title=Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942|publisher=ComLaw|accessdate=30 March 2010}}</ref> The shock of Britain's [[Battle of Singapore|defeat in Asia]] in 1942, followed soon after by the [[bombing of Darwin]] and [[Air raids on Australia, 1942–43|other Japanese attacks]], led to a widespread belief in Australia that [[Proposed Japanese invasion of Australia during World War II|an invasion was imminent]], and a shift towards the [[Australia–United States relations|United States as a new ally]] and protector.<ref name="Davison pp22-3">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|pages=22–23}}</ref> Since 1951, Australia has been a formal military ally of the US, under the [[ANZUS]] treaty.<ref name="Davison p30">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|p=30}}</ref>
On 1 January 1901, [[Federation of Australia|federation of the colonies]] was achieved after a decade of planning, consultation and voting.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 243–44.</ref> This established the Commonwealth of Australia as a [[dominion]] of the British Empire.<ref name=dominionstatus>{{cite web|title=History of the Commonwealth|url=http://www.commonwealthofnations.org/commonwealth/history/|website=Commonwealth Network|publisher=Commonwealth of Nations|accessdate=16 February 2015}}</ref> The Federal Capital Territory (later renamed the Australian Capital Territory) was formed in 1911 as the location for the future federal capital of Canberra. Melbourne was the temporary seat of government from 1901 to 1927 while Canberra was being constructed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uninews.unimelb.edu.au/news/4332/|title=When Melbourne was Australia's capital city|last=Otto|first=Kristin|date=25 June – 9 July 2007|publisher=University of Melbourne|accessdate=29 March 2010|location=Melbourne, Victoria| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100402083202/http://uninews.unimelb.edu.au/news/4332/| archivedate= 2 April 2010 | deadurl=yes}}</ref> The Northern Territory was transferred from the control of the South Australian government to the federal parliament in 1911.<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://books.google.com/?id=-embDa-x6MwC|title=Official year book of the Commonwealth of Australia|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|year=1957}}</ref> In 1914, Australia joined Britain in fighting World War I, with support from both the outgoing [[Commonwealth Liberal Party]] and the incoming [[Australian Labor Party]].<ref>Macintyre, Stuart (1986) ''The Oxford History of Australia'', vol. 4, p. 142</ref><ref>C. Bean Ed. (1941). [http://www.awm.gov.au/histories/ww1/1/index.asp Volume I&nbsp;– The Story of Anzac: the first phase], First World War Official Histories, Eleventh Edition.</ref> Australians took part in many of the major battles fought on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.awm.gov.au/atwar/ww1.htm|title=First World War 1914–1918|publisher=Australian War Memorial|accessdate=5 December 2006| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20061207011059/http://www.awm.gov.au/atwar/ww1.htm| archivedate= 7 December 2006 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Of about 416,000 who served, about 60,000 were killed and another 152,000 were wounded.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Tucker|first=Spencer|title=Encyclopedia of World War I|publisher=ABC-CLIO|location=Santa Barbara, California|year=2005|page=273|isbn=1-85109-420-2|url=http://books.google.com/?id=2YqjfHLyyj8C&pg=PA273}}</ref> Many Australians regard the defeat of the [[Australian and New Zealand Army Corps]] (ANZACs) at [[Gallipoli Campaign|Gallipoli]] as the birth of the nation—its first major military action.<ref>Macintyre, Stuart (2000). ''A Concise History of Australia''. Cambridge, U.K.: [[Cambridge University Press]], pp. 151–153, ISBN 0-521-62359-6.</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Reed|first=Liz|title=Bigger than Gallipoli: war, history, and memory in Australia|year=2004|page=5|location=Crawley, WA |publisher=University of Western Australia |isbn=1-920694-19-6}}</ref> The [[Kokoda Track campaign]] is regarded by many as an analogous nation-defining event during World War II.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Nelson|first=Hank|year=1997|title=Gallipoli, Kokoda and the Making of National Identity|journal=Journal of Australian Studies|volume=53|issue=1|pages=148–60|url=http://www.api-network.com/main/pdf/scholars/jas53_nelson.pdf}}</ref>
 
   
Britain's [[Statute of Westminster 1931]] formally ended most of the constitutional links between Australia and the UK. Australia [[Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942|adopted it]] in 1942,<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, p. 609.</ref> but it was backdated to 1939 to confirm the validity of legislation passed by the Australian Parliament during World War II.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://foundingdocs.gov.au/item-did-25.html|title=Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942 (Cth)|publisher=[[National Archives of Australia]]|accessdate=28 July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.comlaw.gov.au/comlaw/Legislation/ActCompilation1.nsf/0/AEA1CBA4FD61CFCFCA256F71005017A1/$file/StatuteWestminAdopt1942.pdf|title=Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942|publisher=ComLaw|accessdate=30 March 2010}}</ref> The shock of the United Kingdom's defeat in Asia in 1942 and the [[Military history of Australia during World War II#Defence of Australia|threat of Japanese invasion]] caused Australia to turn to the United States as a new ally and protector.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 22–23.</ref> Since 1951, Australia has been a formal military ally of the US, under the [[ANZUS]] treaty.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, p. 30.</ref> After World War II Australia encouraged immigration from Europe. Since the 1970s and following the abolition of the [[White Australia policy]], immigration from Asia and elsewhere was also promoted.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 338–39, 681–82.</ref> As a result, Australia's demography, culture, and self-image were transformed.<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 442–43.</ref> The final constitutional ties between Australia and the UK were severed with the passing of the [[Australia Act 1986]], ending any British role in the government of the Australian States, and closing the option of judicial appeals to the [[Privy council|Privy Council]] in London.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/aa1986114/index.html |title=Australia Act 1986 |accessdate=17 June 2010 | publisher=[[Australasian Legal Information Institute]]}}</ref> In a [[Australian republic referendum, 1999|1999 referendum]], 55% of voters and a majority in every state rejected a proposal to become a [[republic]] with a president appointed by a two-thirds vote in both Houses of the Australian Parliament. Since the election of the [[Gough Whitlam|Whitlam Government]] in 1972,<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/opinion/whitlam-turned-focus-on-to-asia/2005/11/10/1131578173705.html|title=Whitlam turned focus on to Asia|last=Woodard|first=Garry|date=11 November 2005|publisher=[[The Age]]|accessdate=30 March 2010 | location=Melbourne}}</ref> there has been an increasing focus in foreign policy on ties with other [[Pacific Rim]] nations, while maintaining close ties with Australia's traditional allies and trading partners.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Pacific Basin since 1945: A history of the foreign relations of the Asian, Australasian, and American rim states and the Pacific islands|last=Thompson|first=Roger C.|isbn=0-582-02127-8|publisher=Longman|year=1994}}</ref>
+
After World War II, Australia encouraged immigration from mainland Europe. Since the 1970s and following the abolition of the [[White Australia policy]], immigration from Asia and elsewhere was also promoted.<ref name="Davison pp338-6, 681-2">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|pages=338–39, 681–82}}</ref> As a result, Australia's demography, culture, and self-image were transformed.<ref name="Davison p442–379">{{Harvnb|Davison, Hirst and Macintyre|pages=442–43}}</ref> The ''[[Australia Act 1986]]'' severed the remaining constitutional ties between Australia and the UK.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.foundingdocs.gov.au/item-did-32.html |title=Australia Act 1986 (Cth) |accessdate=25 July 2020 | work = Documenting a Democracy |publisher=Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House}}</ref> In a [[1999 Australian republic referendum|1999 referendum]], 55% of voters and a majority in every state rejected a proposal to become a [[republic]] with a president appointed by a two-thirds vote in both Houses of the Australian Parliament. There has been an increasing focus in foreign policy on ties with other [[Pacific Rim]] nations, while maintaining close ties with Australia's traditional allies and trading partners.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Pacific Basin since 1945: A history of the foreign relations of the Asian, Australasian, and American rim states and the Pacific islands|last=Thompson|first=Roger C.|isbn=978-0-582-02127-3|publisher=Longman|year=1994|url=https://archive.org/details/pacificbasinsinc0000thom}}</ref>
   
 
==Government==
 
==Government==
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| image1 = Scott Morrison 2019.jpg
 
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| alt1 =
| caption1 = [[Tony Abbott]], [[Prime Minister of Australia]]
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| caption1 = [[Scott Morrison]], [[Prime Minister of Australia]]
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| caption2 = [[Peter Cosgrove]], [[Governor-General of Australia]]
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| caption2 = [[David Hurley]], [[Governor-General of Australia]]
 
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}}
In the Senate (the upper house), there are 76 senators: twelve each from the states and two each from the mainland territories (the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory).<ref name=sen>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/guide/senatecomposition.htm|title=Senate Summary |publisher= [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] |accessdate=23 April 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100506235552/http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/guide/senatecomposition.htm| archivedate= 6 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> The [[Australian House of Representatives|House of Representatives]] (the lower house) has 150 members elected from single-member electoral divisions, commonly known as "electorates" or "seats", allocated to states on the basis of population,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aec.gov.au/Voting/How_to_vote/Voting_HOR.htm|title=Voting HOR|publisher=[[Australian Electoral Commission]]|date=31 July 2007|accessdate=23 April 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100525053550/http://www.aec.gov.au/Voting/How_to_vote/Voting_HOR.htm| archivedate= 25 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> with each original state guaranteed a minimum of five seats.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/guide/state_tas.htm|title=Election Summary: Tasmania |publisher= [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] |accessdate=23 April 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100503053159/http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/guide/state_tas.htm| archivedate= 3 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Elections for both chambers are normally held every three years, simultaneously; senators have overlapping six-year terms except for those from the territories, whose terms are not fixed but are tied to the electoral cycle for the lower house; thus only 40 of the 76 places in the Senate are put to each election unless the cycle is interrupted by a [[double dissolution]].<ref name=sen/>
+
In the Senate (the upper house), there are 76 senators: twelve each from the states and two each from the mainland territories (the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory).<ref name="sen">{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/guide/senatecomposition.htm|title=Senate Summary |publisher= [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] |accessdate=23 April 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100506235552/http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/guide/senatecomposition.htm| archivedate= 6 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> The [[Australian House of Representatives|House of Representatives]] (the lower house) has 150 members elected from single-member electoral divisions, commonly known as "electorates" or "seats", allocated to states on the basis of population,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aec.gov.au/Voting/How_to_vote/Voting_HOR.htm|title=Voting HOR|publisher=[[Australian Electoral Commission]]|date=31 July 2007|accessdate=23 April 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100525053550/http://www.aec.gov.au/Voting/How_to_vote/Voting_HOR.htm| archivedate= 25 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> with each original state guaranteed a minimum of five seats.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/guide/state_tas.htm|title=Election Summary: Tasmania |publisher= [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] |accessdate=23 April 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100503053159/http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/guide/state_tas.htm| archivedate= 3 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Elections for both chambers are normally held every three years, simultaneously; senators have overlapping six-year terms except for those from the territories, whose terms are not fixed but are tied to the electoral cycle for the lower house; thus only 40 of the 76 places in the Senate are put to each election unless the cycle is interrupted by a [[double dissolution]].<ref name="sen" />
   
 
Australia's [[electoral system of Australia|electoral system]] uses [[Instant-runoff voting|preferential voting]] for all lower house elections with the exception of Tasmania and the ACT which, along with the Senate and most state upper houses, combine it with [[proportional representation]] in a system known as the [[single transferable vote]]. [[Compulsory voting|Voting is compulsory]] for all enrolled citizens 18 years and over in every jurisdiction,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aec.gov.au/pdf/voting/compulsory_voting.pdf|title=Compulsory Voting in Australia|last=Evans|first=Tim|year=2006|publisher=[[Australian Electoral Commission]]|page=4|accessdate=21 June 2009| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090618031223/http://www.aec.gov.au/pdf/voting/compulsory_voting.pdf| archivedate= 18 June 2009 | deadurl=no}}</ref> as is enrolment (with the exception of South Australia).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://aec.gov.au/FAQs/Voting_Australia.htm#What%20happens%20if%20I%20do%20not%20vote|title=What happens if I do not vote?|work=Voting Australia&nbsp;– Frequently Asked Questions|publisher=[[Australian Electoral Commission]]|accessdate=8 January 2008| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071218045424/http://www.aec.gov.au/FAQs/Voting_Australia.htm#Why%20do%20they%20supply%20pencils%20in%20polling%20booths%20and%20not%20pens?| archivedate= 18 December 2007 | deadurl=no}}</ref> The party with majority support in the House of Representatives forms the government and its leader becomes Prime Minister. In cases where no party has majority support, the Governor-General has the constitutional power to appoint the Prime Minister and, if necessary, dismiss one that has lost the confidence of Parliament.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gg.gov.au/content.php/page/id/3/title/governor-generals-role|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014171300/http://www.gg.gov.au/content.php/page/id/3/title/governor-generals-role|archivedate=14 October 2012|title=Governor-General's Role|publisher=Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia|accessdate=13 January 2012}}</ref>
 
Australia's [[electoral system of Australia|electoral system]] uses [[Instant-runoff voting|preferential voting]] for all lower house elections with the exception of Tasmania and the ACT which, along with the Senate and most state upper houses, combine it with [[proportional representation]] in a system known as the [[single transferable vote]]. [[Compulsory voting|Voting is compulsory]] for all enrolled citizens 18 years and over in every jurisdiction,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aec.gov.au/pdf/voting/compulsory_voting.pdf|title=Compulsory Voting in Australia|last=Evans|first=Tim|year=2006|publisher=[[Australian Electoral Commission]]|page=4|accessdate=21 June 2009| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090618031223/http://www.aec.gov.au/pdf/voting/compulsory_voting.pdf| archivedate= 18 June 2009 | deadurl=no}}</ref> as is enrolment (with the exception of South Australia).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://aec.gov.au/FAQs/Voting_Australia.htm#What%20happens%20if%20I%20do%20not%20vote|title=What happens if I do not vote?|work=Voting Australia&nbsp;– Frequently Asked Questions|publisher=[[Australian Electoral Commission]]|accessdate=8 January 2008| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071218045424/http://www.aec.gov.au/FAQs/Voting_Australia.htm#Why%20do%20they%20supply%20pencils%20in%20polling%20booths%20and%20not%20pens?| archivedate= 18 December 2007 | deadurl=no}}</ref> The party with majority support in the House of Representatives forms the government and its leader becomes Prime Minister. In cases where no party has majority support, the Governor-General has the constitutional power to appoint the Prime Minister and, if necessary, dismiss one that has lost the confidence of Parliament.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gg.gov.au/content.php/page/id/3/title/governor-generals-role|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014171300/http://www.gg.gov.au/content.php/page/id/3/title/governor-generals-role|archivedate=14 October 2012|title=Governor-General's Role|publisher=Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia|accessdate=13 January 2012}}</ref>
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There are two major political groups that usually form government, federally and in the states: the [[Australian Labor Party]]<!-- NOTE TO EDITORS: The name of the party is spelt "Labor" (i.e., no "u") even though the usual Australian spelling is "labour". --> and the [[Coalition (Australia)|Coalition]] which is a formal grouping of the [[Liberal Party of Australia|Liberal Party]] and its minor partner, the [[National Party of Australia|National Party]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/guide/glossary.htm#coalition|title=Glossary of Election Terms |publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] |accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/results/sop.htm|title=State of the Parties |publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] |accessdate=23 April 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100418163914/http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/results/sop.htm| archivedate= 18 April 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Within Australian political culture, the Coalition is considered [[centre-right]] and the Labor Party is considered [[centre-left]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Fenna|first1=Alan|last2=Robbins|first2=Jane|last3=Summers|first3=John|title=Government Politics in Australia|publisher=Pearson Higher Education AU|location=London, United Kingdom|year=2013|isbn=978 1486 00138 5|page=139}}</ref> Independent members and several minor parties have achieved representation in Australian parliaments, mostly in upper houses.
 
There are two major political groups that usually form government, federally and in the states: the [[Australian Labor Party]]<!-- NOTE TO EDITORS: The name of the party is spelt "Labor" (i.e., no "u") even though the usual Australian spelling is "labour". --> and the [[Coalition (Australia)|Coalition]] which is a formal grouping of the [[Liberal Party of Australia|Liberal Party]] and its minor partner, the [[National Party of Australia|National Party]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/guide/glossary.htm#coalition|title=Glossary of Election Terms |publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] |accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/results/sop.htm|title=State of the Parties |publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] |accessdate=23 April 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100418163914/http://www.abc.net.au/elections/federal/2007/results/sop.htm| archivedate= 18 April 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Within Australian political culture, the Coalition is considered [[centre-right]] and the Labor Party is considered [[centre-left]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Fenna|first1=Alan|last2=Robbins|first2=Jane|last3=Summers|first3=John|title=Government Politics in Australia|publisher=Pearson Higher Education AU|location=London, United Kingdom|year=2013|isbn=978 1486 00138 5|page=139}}</ref> Independent members and several minor parties have achieved representation in Australian parliaments, mostly in upper houses.
   
Following a [[Australian Labor Party leadership spill, 2010|partyroom leadership challenge]], [[Julia Gillard]] became the first female Prime Minister in June 2010.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Gillard ousts Rudd in bloodless coup |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/06/24/2935500.htm|accessdate=24 June 2010|publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]]|date=24 June 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100625130706/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/06/24/2935500.htm| archivedate= 25 June 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> The [[Australian federal election, 2013|most recent federal election]] was held on 7 September 2013 and resulted in a [[majority government]] for the [[Coalition (Australia)|Coalition]]. [[Liberal Party of Australia|Liberal Party]] leader [[Tony Abbott]] was sworn into office as Prime Minister by the [[Governor-General of Australia]] on 18 September.
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Following a [[Australian Labor Party leadership spill, 2010|partyroom leadership challenge]], [[Julia Gillard]] became the first female Prime Minister in June 2010.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Gillard ousts Rudd in bloodless coup |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/06/24/2935500.htm|accessdate=24 June 2010|publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]]|date=24 June 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100625130706/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/06/24/2935500.htm| archivedate= 25 June 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> The [[Australian federal election, 2019|most recent federal election]] was held on 18 May 2019 and resulted in a [[minority government]] for the [[Coalition (Australia)|Coalition]]. [[Liberal Party of Australia|Liberal Party]] leader [[Scott Morrison]] was sworn into office as Prime Minister by the [[Governor-General of Australia]] on 24 August.
   
 
==States and territories==
 
==States and territories==
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{{Main|Geography of Australia|Climate of Australia|Geology of Australia}}
 
{{Main|Geography of Australia|Climate of Australia|Geology of Australia}}
 
[[File:Australia-climate-map MJC01.png|right|thumb|alt=Australia divided into different colours indicating its climatic zones|Climatic zones in Australia, based on the [[Köppen climate classification]].]]
 
[[File:Australia-climate-map MJC01.png|right|thumb|alt=Australia divided into different colours indicating its climatic zones|Climatic zones in Australia, based on the [[Köppen climate classification]].]]
Australia's landmass of {{convert|7617930|km2|sqmi}}<ref name="Size">{{cite web|url=http://www.ga.gov.au/education/facts/dimensions/compare.htm|title=Australia's Size Compared|publisher=[[Geoscience Australia]]|accessdate=19 May 2007| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070324194241/http://www.ga.gov.au/education/facts/dimensions/compare.htm| archivedate = 24 March 2007}}</ref> is on the [[Indo-Australian Plate]]. Surrounded by the Indian and Pacific oceans,{{refn|Australia describes the body of water south of its mainland as the [[Southern Ocean]], rather than the Indian Ocean as defined by the [[International Hydrographic Organization]] (IHO). In 2000, a vote of IHO member nations defined the term "Southern Ocean" as applying only to the waters between [[Antarctica]] and [[60th parallel south|60 degrees south]] latitude.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://geography.about.com/od/learnabouttheearth/a/fifthocean.htm|last=Rosenberg|first=Matt|title=The New Fifth Ocean–The World's Newest Ocean&nbsp;– The Southern Ocean|publisher=About.com: Geography|date=20 August 2009|accessdate=5 April 2010}}</ref>|name="Southern Ocean"|group="N"}} it is separated from Asia by the [[Arafura Sea|Arafura]] and [[Timor Sea|Timor]] seas, with the [[Coral Sea]] lying off the Queensland coast, and the [[Tasman Sea]] lying between Australia and New Zealand. The world's smallest continent<ref name="NatlGeo">{{cite web|url=http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/places/continents/index.html|title=Continents: What is a Continent?|publisher=[[National Geographic Society]]|accessdate=22 August 2009}} "Most people recognize seven continents—Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia, from largest to smallest—although sometimes Europe and Asia are considered a single continent, Eurasia."</ref> and [[List of countries and outlying territories by total area|sixth largest country by total area]],<ref name="Britannica">{{cite web|url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/43654/Australia|title=Australia|publisher=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]|accessdate=22 August 2009}} "Smallest continent and sixth largest country (in area) on Earth, lying between the Pacific and Indian oceans."</ref> Australia—owing to its size and isolation—is often dubbed the "island continent",<ref>{{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100424005732/http://www.ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/landforms/islands.jsp|url=http://www.ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/landforms/islands.jsp|publisher=[[Geoscience Australia]]|title=Islands|archivedate=24 April 2010}} "Being surrounded by ocean, Australia often is referred to as an island continent. As a continental landmass it is significantly larger than the many thousands of fringing islands&nbsp;..."</ref> and is sometimes considered the [[List of islands by area|world's largest island]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/aib/island_continent.html|title=Australia in Brief: The island continent|publisher=[[Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia)|Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade]]|accessdate=29 May 2009| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090604082917/http://www.dfat.gov.au/aib/island_continent.html| archivedate= 4 June 2009 | deadurl=no}} "Mainland Australia, with an area of 7.69 million square kilometres, is the Earth's largest island but smallest continent."</ref> Australia has {{convert|34218|km|mi|0}} of coastline (excluding all offshore islands),<ref name="Coast">{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/soe/2006/publications/drs/indicator/142/index.html|title=State of the Environment 2006|publisher=Department of the Environment and Water Resources|accessdate=19 May 2007}}</ref> and claims an extensive [[Exclusive economic zone|Exclusive Economic Zone]] of {{convert|8148250|km2|sqmi}}. This exclusive economic zone does not include the Australian Antarctic Territory.<ref>{{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090703204723/http://www.ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/dimensions/oceans-seas.jsp|url=http://www.ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/dimensions/oceans-seas.jsp|publisher=[[Geoscience Australia]]|title=Oceans and Seas&nbsp;– Geoscience Australia|archivedate=3 July 2009}}</ref> Apart from [[Macquarie Island]], Australia lies between latitudes [[9th parallel south|9°]] and [[44th parallel south|44°S]], and longitudes [[112th meridian east|112°]] and [[154th meridian east|154°E]].
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Australia's landmass of {{convert|7617930|km2|sqmi}}<ref name="Size">{{cite web|url=http://www.ga.gov.au/education/facts/dimensions/compare.htm|title=Australia's Size Compared|publisher=[[Geoscience Australia]]|accessdate=19 May 2007| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070324194241/http://www.ga.gov.au/education/facts/dimensions/compare.htm| archivedate = 24 March 2007}}</ref> is on the [[Indo-Australian Plate]]. Surrounded by the Indian and Pacific oceans,{{refn|Australia describes the body of water south of its mainland as the [[Southern Ocean]], rather than the Indian Ocean as defined by the [[International Hydrographic Organization]] (IHO). In 2000, a vote of IHO member nations defined the term "Southern Ocean" as applying only to the waters between [[Antarctica]] and [[60th parallel south|60 degrees south]] latitude.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://geography.about.com/od/learnabouttheearth/a/fifthocean.htm|last=Rosenberg|first=Matt|title=The New Fifth Ocean–The World's Newest Ocean&nbsp;– The Southern Ocean|publisher=About.com: Geography|date=20 August 2009|accessdate=5 April 2010}}</ref>|name = "Southern Ocean"|group = "N"}} it is separated from Asia by the [[Arafura Sea|Arafura]] and [[Timor Sea|Timor]] seas, with the [[Coral Sea]] lying off the Queensland coast, and the [[Tasman Sea]] lying between Australia and New Zealand. The world's smallest continent<ref name="NatlGeo">{{cite web|url=http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/places/continents/index.html|title=Continents: What is a Continent?|publisher=[[National Geographic Society]]|accessdate=22 August 2009}} "Most people recognize seven continents—Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia, from largest to smallest—although sometimes Europe and Asia are considered a single continent, Eurasia."</ref> and [[List of countries and outlying territories by total area|sixth largest country by total area]],<ref name="Britannica">{{cite web|url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/43654/Australia|title=Australia|publisher=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]|accessdate=22 August 2009}} "Smallest continent and sixth largest country (in area) on Earth, lying between the Pacific and Indian oceans."</ref> Australia—owing to its size and isolation—is often dubbed the "island continent",<ref>{{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100424005732/http://www.ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/landforms/islands.jsp|url=http://www.ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/landforms/islands.jsp|publisher=[[Geoscience Australia]]|title=Islands|archivedate=24 April 2010}} "Being surrounded by ocean, Australia often is referred to as an island continent. As a continental landmass it is significantly larger than the many thousands of fringing islands&nbsp;..."</ref> and is sometimes considered the [[List of islands by area|world's largest island]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/aib/island_continent.html|title=Australia in Brief: The island continent|publisher=[[Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (Australia)|Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade]]|accessdate=29 May 2009| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090604082917/http://www.dfat.gov.au/aib/island_continent.html| archivedate= 4 June 2009 | deadurl=no}} "Mainland Australia, with an area of 7.69 million square kilometres, is the Earth's largest island but smallest continent."</ref> Australia has {{convert|34218|km|mi|0}} of coastline (excluding all offshore islands),<ref name="Coast">{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/soe/2006/publications/drs/indicator/142/index.html|title=State of the Environment 2006|publisher=Department of the Environment and Water Resources|accessdate=19 May 2007}}</ref> and claims an extensive [[Exclusive economic zone|Exclusive Economic Zone]] of {{convert|8148250|km2|sqmi}}. This exclusive economic zone does not include the Australian Antarctic Territory.<ref>{{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090703204723/http://www.ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/dimensions/oceans-seas.jsp|url=http://www.ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/dimensions/oceans-seas.jsp|publisher=[[Geoscience Australia]]|title=Oceans and Seas&nbsp;– Geoscience Australia|archivedate=3 July 2009}}</ref> Apart from [[Macquarie Island]], Australia lies between latitudes [[9th parallel south|9°]] and [[44th parallel south|44°S]], and longitudes [[112th meridian east|112°]] and [[154th meridian east|154°E]].
   
The [[Great Barrier Reef]], the world's largest coral reef,<ref name=UNEP>{{cite web|author=UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre|year=1980|title=Protected Areas and World Heritage&nbsp;– Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area|url=http://sea.unep-wcmc.org/sites/wh/gbrmp.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070528210526/http://sea.unep-wcmc.org/sites/wh/gbrmp.html|archivedate=28 May 2007|publisher=[[Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts|Department of the Environment and Heritage]]|accessdate=19 May 2007}}</ref> lies a short distance off the north-east coast and extends for over {{convert|2000|km|mi|-1}}. [[Mount Augustus National Park|Mount Augustus]], claimed to be the world's largest monolith,<ref name="Monolith">{{Cite news|url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/Western-Australia/Mount-Augustus/2005/02/17/1108500208314.html|title=Mount Augustus|publisher=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]|date=17 February 2005 |accessdate=30 March 2010}}</ref> is located in Western Australia. At {{convert|2228|m|ft|0}}, [[Mount Kosciuszko]] on the [[Great Dividing Range]] is the highest mountain on the Australian mainland. Even taller are [[Mawson Peak]] (at {{convert|2745|m|ft|0|disp=or}}), on the remote Australian territory of [[Heard Island and McDonald Islands|Heard Island]], and, in the Australian Antarctic Territory, [[Mount McClintock]] and [[Mount Menzies]], at {{convert|3492|m|ft|0}} and {{convert|3355|m|ft|0}} respectively.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/landforms/highest-mountains.html|publisher=[[Geoscience Australia]]|title=Highest Mountains|accessdate=2 February 2012}}</ref>
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The [[Great Barrier Reef]], the world's largest coral reef,<ref name="UNEP">{{cite web|author=UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre|year=1980|title=Protected Areas and World Heritage&nbsp;– Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area|url=http://sea.unep-wcmc.org/sites/wh/gbrmp.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070528210526/http://sea.unep-wcmc.org/sites/wh/gbrmp.html|archivedate=28 May 2007|publisher=[[Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts|Department of the Environment and Heritage]]|accessdate=19 May 2007}}</ref> lies a short distance off the north-east coast and extends for over {{convert|2000|km|mi|-1}}. [[Mount Augustus National Park|Mount Augustus]], claimed to be the world's largest monolith,<ref name="Monolith">{{Cite news|url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/Western-Australia/Mount-Augustus/2005/02/17/1108500208314.html|title=Mount Augustus|publisher=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]|date=17 February 2005 |accessdate=30 March 2010}}</ref> is located in Western Australia. At {{convert|2228|m|ft|0}}, [[Mount Kosciuszko]] on the [[Great Dividing Range]] is the highest mountain on the Australian mainland. Even taller are [[Mawson Peak]] (at {{convert|2745|m|ft|0|disp=or}}), on the remote Australian territory of [[Heard Island and McDonald Islands|Heard Island]], and, in the Australian Antarctic Territory, [[Mount McClintock]] and [[Mount Menzies]], at {{convert|3492|m|ft|0}} and {{convert|3355|m|ft|0}} respectively.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ga.gov.au/education/geoscience-basics/landforms/highest-mountains.html|publisher=[[Geoscience Australia]]|title=Highest Mountains|accessdate=2 February 2012}}</ref>
   
 
[[File:Coral Outcrop Flynn Reef.jpg|thumb|left|Coral of the [[Great Barrier Reef]], the world's largest [[coral reef]] system.]]
 
[[File:Coral Outcrop Flynn Reef.jpg|thumb|left|Coral of the [[Great Barrier Reef]], the world's largest [[coral reef]] system.]]
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The landscapes of the [[Top End]] and the [[Gulf Country]]{{mdash}}with their tropical climate{{mdash}}include forest, [[woodland]], wetland, [[grassland]], rainforest and desert.<ref>{{WWF ecoregion|name=Arnhem Land tropical savanna|id=aa0701|accessdate=16 June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=27 June 2009|title=Rangelands&nbsp;– Overview|work=Australian Natural Resources Atlas|publisher=Australian Government|url=http://www.anra.gov.au/topics/rangelands/overview/qld/ibra-gup.html|accessdate =16 June 2010|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100430171751/http://www.anra.gov.au/topics/rangelands/overview/qld/ibra-gup.html|archivedate=30 April 2010}}</ref><ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Cape York Peninsula tropical savanna | id=aa0703| accessdate=16 June 2010}}</ref> At the north-west corner of the continent are the sandstone cliffs and gorges of [[Kimberley (Western Australia)|The Kimberley]], and below that the [[Pilbara]]. To the south of these and inland, lie more areas of grassland: the [[Ord Victoria Plain]] and the [[Western Australian Mulga shrublands]].<ref>{{Cite book| last = Van Driesum | first = Rob | year = 2002 | title = Outback Australia | publisher = Lonely Planet | isbn = 1-86450-187-1 | page = 306}}</ref><ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Victoria Plains tropical savanna | id=aa0709 | accessdate =16 June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Western Australian Mulga shrublands | id=aa1310 | accessdate =16 June 2010}}</ref> At the heart of the country are the [[Central Ranges xeric scrub|uplands of central Australia]]. Prominent features of the centre and south include [[Uluru]] (also known as Ayers Rock), the famous sandstone monolith, and the inland [[Simpson Desert|Simpson]], [[Tirari-Sturt stony desert|Tirari and Sturt Stony]], [[Gibson Desert|Gibson]], [[Great Sandy-Tanami desert|Great Sandy, Tanami]], and [[Great Victoria Desert|Great Victoria]] deserts, with the famous [[Nullarbor Plain]] on the southern coast.<ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Central Ranges xeric scrub | id=aa1302 | accessdate =16 June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book| last = Banting | first = Erinn | year = 2003 | title = Australia: The land | publisher = Crabtree Publishing Company | isbn = 0-7787-9343-5 | page = 10}}</ref><ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Tirari-Sturt stony desert | id=aa1309 | accessdate =16 June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Great Sandy-Tanami desert | id=aa1304 | accessdate =16 June 2010}}</ref>
 
The landscapes of the [[Top End]] and the [[Gulf Country]]{{mdash}}with their tropical climate{{mdash}}include forest, [[woodland]], wetland, [[grassland]], rainforest and desert.<ref>{{WWF ecoregion|name=Arnhem Land tropical savanna|id=aa0701|accessdate=16 June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=27 June 2009|title=Rangelands&nbsp;– Overview|work=Australian Natural Resources Atlas|publisher=Australian Government|url=http://www.anra.gov.au/topics/rangelands/overview/qld/ibra-gup.html|accessdate =16 June 2010|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100430171751/http://www.anra.gov.au/topics/rangelands/overview/qld/ibra-gup.html|archivedate=30 April 2010}}</ref><ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Cape York Peninsula tropical savanna | id=aa0703| accessdate=16 June 2010}}</ref> At the north-west corner of the continent are the sandstone cliffs and gorges of [[Kimberley (Western Australia)|The Kimberley]], and below that the [[Pilbara]]. To the south of these and inland, lie more areas of grassland: the [[Ord Victoria Plain]] and the [[Western Australian Mulga shrublands]].<ref>{{Cite book| last = Van Driesum | first = Rob | year = 2002 | title = Outback Australia | publisher = Lonely Planet | isbn = 1-86450-187-1 | page = 306}}</ref><ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Victoria Plains tropical savanna | id=aa0709 | accessdate =16 June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Western Australian Mulga shrublands | id=aa1310 | accessdate =16 June 2010}}</ref> At the heart of the country are the [[Central Ranges xeric scrub|uplands of central Australia]]. Prominent features of the centre and south include [[Uluru]] (also known as Ayers Rock), the famous sandstone monolith, and the inland [[Simpson Desert|Simpson]], [[Tirari-Sturt stony desert|Tirari and Sturt Stony]], [[Gibson Desert|Gibson]], [[Great Sandy-Tanami desert|Great Sandy, Tanami]], and [[Great Victoria Desert|Great Victoria]] deserts, with the famous [[Nullarbor Plain]] on the southern coast.<ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Central Ranges xeric scrub | id=aa1302 | accessdate =16 June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book| last = Banting | first = Erinn | year = 2003 | title = Australia: The land | publisher = Crabtree Publishing Company | isbn = 0-7787-9343-5 | page = 10}}</ref><ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Tirari-Sturt stony desert | id=aa1309 | accessdate =16 June 2010}}</ref><ref>{{WWF ecoregion| name = Great Sandy-Tanami desert | id=aa1304 | accessdate =16 June 2010}}</ref>
   
The climate of Australia is significantly influenced by ocean currents, including the [[Indian Ocean Dipole]] and the [[El Niño–Southern Oscillation]], which is correlated with periodic [[Drought in Australia|drought]], and the seasonal tropical low-pressure system that produces [[cyclone]]s in northern Australia.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/climate-watch/no-more-drought-its-a-permanent-dry/2007/09/06/1188783415754.html|title=No more drought: it's a 'permanent dry'|last=Kleinman|first=Rachel|date=6 September 2007|accessdate=30 March 2010|work=[[The Age]] | location=Melbourne}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://news.independent.co.uk/world/australasia/article2465960.ece|title=Australia's epic drought: The situation is grim|last=Marks|first=Kathy|work=[[The Independent]]|date=20 April 2007|accessdate=30 March 2010|location=London}}{{Dead link|date=July 2014}}</ref> These factors cause rainfall to vary markedly from year to year. Much of the northern part of the country has a tropical, predominantly summer-rainfall (monsoon) climate.<ref name=bomclim>{{cite web| title = Australia&nbsp;– Climate of Our Continent | publisher = Bureau of Meteorology |url=http://www.bom.gov.au/lam/climate/levelthree/ausclim/zones.htm | accessdate =17 June 2010|year=2010}}{{dead link|date=March 2015}}</ref> The [[Southwest corner of Western Australia|southwest corner of the country]] has a [[Mediterranean climate]].<ref>{{cite web| title = Climate of Western Australia | publisher = Bureau of Meteorology |url=http://www.bom.gov.au/lam/climate/levelthree/ausclim/ausclimwa.htm | accessdate =6 December 2009}}{{dead link|date=March 2015}}</ref> Much of the southeast (including Tasmania) is temperate.<ref name=bomclim/>
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The climate of Australia is significantly influenced by ocean currents, including the [[Indian Ocean Dipole]] and the [[El Niño–Southern Oscillation]], which is correlated with periodic [[Drought in Australia|drought]], and the seasonal tropical low-pressure system that produces [[cyclone]]s in northern Australia.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/climate-watch/no-more-drought-its-a-permanent-dry/2007/09/06/1188783415754.html|title=No more drought: it's a 'permanent dry'|last=Kleinman|first=Rachel|date=6 September 2007|accessdate=30 March 2010|work=[[The Age]] | location=Melbourne}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://news.independent.co.uk/world/australasia/article2465960.ece|title=Australia's epic drought: The situation is grim|last=Marks|first=Kathy|work=[[The Independent]]|date=20 April 2007|accessdate=30 March 2010|location=London}}{{Dead link|date=July 2014}}</ref> These factors cause rainfall to vary markedly from year to year. Much of the northern part of the country has a tropical, predominantly summer-rainfall (monsoon) climate.<ref name="bomclim">{{cite web| title = Australia&nbsp;– Climate of Our Continent | publisher = Bureau of Meteorology |url=http://www.bom.gov.au/lam/climate/levelthree/ausclim/zones.htm | accessdate =17 June 2010|year=2010}}{{dead link|date=March 2015}}</ref> The [[Southwest corner of Western Australia|southwest corner of the country]] has a [[Mediterranean climate]].<ref>{{cite web| title = Climate of Western Australia | publisher = Bureau of Meteorology |url=http://www.bom.gov.au/lam/climate/levelthree/ausclim/ausclimwa.htm | accessdate =6 December 2009}}{{dead link|date=March 2015}}</ref> Much of the southeast (including Tasmania) is temperate.<ref name="bomclim" />
   
 
==Environment==
 
==Environment==
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Although most of Australia is semi-arid or desert, it includes a diverse range of habitats from [[alpine climate|alpine]] heaths to [[tropical rainforest]]s, and is recognised as a [[megadiverse countries|megadiverse country]]. Fungi typify that diversity; an estimated 250,000 species—of which only 5% have been described—occur in Australia.<ref>Pascoe, I.G. (1991). History of systematic mycology in Australia. ''History of Systematic Botany in Australasia.'' Ed. by: P. Short. Australian Systematic Botany Society Inc. pp. 259–264.</ref> Because of the continent's great age, extremely variable weather patterns, and long-term geographic isolation, much of Australia's [[biota (ecology)|biota]] is unique and diverse. About 85% of flowering plants, 84% of mammals, more than 45% of [[List of birds of Australia|birds]], and 89% of in-shore, temperate-zone fish are [[endemism|endemic]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/about-biodiversity.html|title=About Biodiversity|accessdate=18 September 2007|publisher=Department of the Environment and Heritage|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070205015628/www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/about-biodiversity.html|archivedate=5 February 2007}}</ref> Australia has the greatest number of reptiles of any country, with 755 species.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Lambertini|first=Marco|title=A Naturalist's Guide to the Tropics|year=2000|isbn=0-226-46828-3|publisher=University of Chicago Press|url=http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/468283.html|format=excerpt|accessdate=30 March 2010}}</ref>
 
Although most of Australia is semi-arid or desert, it includes a diverse range of habitats from [[alpine climate|alpine]] heaths to [[tropical rainforest]]s, and is recognised as a [[megadiverse countries|megadiverse country]]. Fungi typify that diversity; an estimated 250,000 species—of which only 5% have been described—occur in Australia.<ref>Pascoe, I.G. (1991). History of systematic mycology in Australia. ''History of Systematic Botany in Australasia.'' Ed. by: P. Short. Australian Systematic Botany Society Inc. pp. 259–264.</ref> Because of the continent's great age, extremely variable weather patterns, and long-term geographic isolation, much of Australia's [[biota (ecology)|biota]] is unique and diverse. About 85% of flowering plants, 84% of mammals, more than 45% of [[List of birds of Australia|birds]], and 89% of in-shore, temperate-zone fish are [[endemism|endemic]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/about-biodiversity.html|title=About Biodiversity|accessdate=18 September 2007|publisher=Department of the Environment and Heritage|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070205015628/www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/about-biodiversity.html|archivedate=5 February 2007}}</ref> Australia has the greatest number of reptiles of any country, with 755 species.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Lambertini|first=Marco|title=A Naturalist's Guide to the Tropics|year=2000|isbn=0-226-46828-3|publisher=University of Chicago Press|url=http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/468283.html|format=excerpt|accessdate=30 March 2010}}</ref>
   
[[Forests of Australia|Australian forests]] are mostly made up of evergreen species, particularly [[eucalyptus]] trees in the less arid regions, [[Acacia|wattles]] replace them in drier regions and deserts as the most dominant species.<ref name=dfat>{{cite web|url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/flora_and_fauna.html|title=About Australia: Flora and fauna|accessdate=15 May 2010|publisher=Commonwealth of Australia|date=May 2008|work=Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website}}{{dead link|date=March 2015}}</ref> Among well-known [[fauna of Australia|Australian animals]] are the [[monotreme]]s (the [[platypus]] and [[echidna]]); a host of [[marsupial]]s, including the [[kangaroo]], [[koala]], and [[wombat]], and birds such as the [[emu]] and the [[kookaburra]].<ref name=dfat/> Australia is home to [[Animal attacks in Australia|many dangerous animals]] including some of the most venomous snakes in the world.<ref>"Snake Bite", ''[http://www.avru.org/compendium/biogs/A000084b.htm The Australian Venom Compendium]''.</ref> The [[dingo]] was introduced by Austronesian people who traded with Indigenous Australians around 3000 [[Common Era|BCE]].<ref name="savolainen2004">{{cite pmid|15299143}}</ref> Many animal and plant species became extinct soon after first human settlement,<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://uninews.unimelb.edu.au/view.php?articleID=170|title=Humans to blame for extinction of Australia's megafauna|publisher=The [[University of Melbourne]]|date=8 June 2001|accessdate=30 March 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100402065113/http://uninews.unimelb.edu.au/view.php?articleID=170| archivedate= 2 April 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> including the [[Australian megafauna]]; others have disappeared since European settlement, among them the [[thylacine]].<ref name="NW">{{cite web|url=http://www.naturalworlds.org/thylacine/index.htm|title=The Thylacine Museum – A Natural History of the Tasmanian Tiger|publisher=The Thylacine Museum|accessdate=14 October 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/ts-day/index.html|title=National Threatened Species Day|publisher=Department of the Environment and Heritage, Australian Government|year=2006|accessdate=21 November 2006| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20061209084616/http://www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/ts-day/index.html| archivedate= 9 December 2006 | deadurl=no}}</ref>
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[[Forests of Australia|Australian forests]] are mostly made up of evergreen species, particularly [[eucalyptus]] trees in the less arid regions, [[Acacia|wattles]] replace them in drier regions and deserts as the most dominant species.<ref name="dfat">{{cite web|url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/flora_and_fauna.html|title=About Australia: Flora and fauna|accessdate=15 May 2010|publisher=Commonwealth of Australia|date=May 2008|work=Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website}}{{dead link|date=March 2015}}</ref> Among well-known [[fauna of Australia|Australian animals]] are the [[monotreme]]s (the [[platypus]] and [[echidna]]); a host of [[marsupial]]s, including the [[kangaroo]], [[koala]], and [[wombat]], and birds such as the [[emu]] and the [[kookaburra]].<ref name="dfat" /> Australia is home to [[Animal attacks in Australia|many dangerous animals]] including some of the most venomous snakes in the world.<ref>"Snake Bite", ''[http://www.avru.org/compendium/biogs/A000084b.htm The Australian Venom Compendium]''.</ref> The [[dingo]] was introduced by Austronesian people who traded with Indigenous Australians around 3000 [[Common Era|BCE]].<ref name="savolainen2004">{{cite pmid|15299143}}</ref> Many animal and plant species became extinct soon after first human settlement,<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://uninews.unimelb.edu.au/view.php?articleID=170|title=Humans to blame for extinction of Australia's megafauna|publisher=The [[University of Melbourne]]|date=8 June 2001|accessdate=30 March 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100402065113/http://uninews.unimelb.edu.au/view.php?articleID=170| archivedate= 2 April 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> including the [[Australian megafauna]]; others have disappeared since European settlement, among them the [[thylacine]].<ref name="NW">{{cite web|url=http://www.naturalworlds.org/thylacine/index.htm|title=The Thylacine Museum – A Natural History of the Tasmanian Tiger|publisher=The Thylacine Museum|accessdate=14 October 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/ts-day/index.html|title=National Threatened Species Day|publisher=Department of the Environment and Heritage, Australian Government|year=2006|accessdate=21 November 2006| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20061209084616/http://www.deh.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/ts-day/index.html| archivedate= 9 December 2006 | deadurl=no}}</ref>
   
 
Many of Australia's ecoregions, and the species within those regions, are threatened by human activities and [[Invasive species in Australia|introduced]] animal, [[chromista]]n, fungal and plant species.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/invasive/index.html |title=Invasive species |publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts |date=17 March 2010 |accessdate=14 June 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100629001302/http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/invasive/index.html| archivedate= 29 June 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> All these factors have led to Australia having the highest mammal extinction rate of any country in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/wildlife/2012/10/australias-most-endangered-species|title=Australia's most endangered species|publisher=Australian Geographic|accessdate=16 June 2014}}</ref> The federal ''Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999'' is the legal framework for the protection of threatened species.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/epbc/about/index.html |title=About the EPBC Act |publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts |accessdate=14 June 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100531084042/http://www.environment.gov.au/epbc/about/index.html| archivedate= 31 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Numerous [[Protected areas of Australia|protected areas]] have been created under the [[Biodiversity action plan|National Strategy for the Conservation of Australia's Biological Diversity]] to protect and preserve unique ecosystems;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/publications/strategy/index.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110312021249/http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/publications/strategy/index.html|archivedate=12 March 2011|title=National Strategy for the Conservation of Australia's Biological Diversity |publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts
 
Many of Australia's ecoregions, and the species within those regions, are threatened by human activities and [[Invasive species in Australia|introduced]] animal, [[chromista]]n, fungal and plant species.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/invasive/index.html |title=Invasive species |publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts |date=17 March 2010 |accessdate=14 June 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100629001302/http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/invasive/index.html| archivedate= 29 June 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> All these factors have led to Australia having the highest mammal extinction rate of any country in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/topics/wildlife/2012/10/australias-most-endangered-species|title=Australia's most endangered species|publisher=Australian Geographic|accessdate=16 June 2014}}</ref> The federal ''Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999'' is the legal framework for the protection of threatened species.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/epbc/about/index.html |title=About the EPBC Act |publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts |accessdate=14 June 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100531084042/http://www.environment.gov.au/epbc/about/index.html| archivedate= 31 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Numerous [[Protected areas of Australia|protected areas]] have been created under the [[Biodiversity action plan|National Strategy for the Conservation of Australia's Biological Diversity]] to protect and preserve unique ecosystems;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/publications/strategy/index.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110312021249/http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/publications/strategy/index.html|archivedate=12 March 2011|title=National Strategy for the Conservation of Australia's Biological Diversity |publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts
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The [[Australian dollar]] is the currency for the nation, including Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent [[Pacific Islands|Pacific Island states]] of [[Kiribati]], [[Nauru]], and [[Tuvalu]]. With the 2006 merger of the Australian Stock Exchange and the Sydney Futures Exchange, the [[Australian Securities Exchange]] became the ninth largest in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.asx.com.au/about/pdf/asx_speech_eric_mayne_061106.pdf|title=On the International Realignment of Exchanges and Related Trends in Self-Regulation&nbsp;– Australian Stock Exchange|format=PDF|accessdate=3 January 2010|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101213134633/http://asx.com.au/about/pdf/asx_speech_eric_mayne_061106.pdf|archivedate=13 December 2010}}</ref>
 
The [[Australian dollar]] is the currency for the nation, including Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent [[Pacific Islands|Pacific Island states]] of [[Kiribati]], [[Nauru]], and [[Tuvalu]]. With the 2006 merger of the Australian Stock Exchange and the Sydney Futures Exchange, the [[Australian Securities Exchange]] became the ninth largest in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.asx.com.au/about/pdf/asx_speech_eric_mayne_061106.pdf|title=On the International Realignment of Exchanges and Related Trends in Self-Regulation&nbsp;– Australian Stock Exchange|format=PDF|accessdate=3 January 2010|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101213134633/http://asx.com.au/about/pdf/asx_speech_eric_mayne_061106.pdf|archivedate=13 December 2010}}</ref>
   
Ranked third in the [[Index of Economic Freedom]] (2010),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.heritage.org/index/Country/Australia|title=Australia|publisher=2010 Index of Economic Freedom|accessdate=30 March 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100330033949/http://www.heritage.org/index/Country/Australia| archivedate= 30 March 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Australia is the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|world's twelfth largest economy]] and has the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal) per capita|fifth highest per capita GDP]] (nominal) at $66,984. The country was ranked second in the United Nations 2011 [[Human Development Index]] and first in [[Legatum]]'s 2008 [[Legatum Prosperity Index|Prosperity Index]].<ref name=autogenerated1>{{cite web|url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2010_EN_Tables_reprint.pdf|title=Human Development Report 2010 – tables|year=2010|publisher=United Nations|accessdate=25 April 2011| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429045417/http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2010_EN_Tables_reprint.pdf| archivedate= 29 April 2011 | deadurl=no}}</ref> All of Australia's major cities fare well in global comparative livability surveys;<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/02/06/1075854028808.html|title=Melbourne 'world's top city'|date=6 February 2004|work=The Age|accessdate=31 January 2009| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090130144426/http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/02/06/1075854028808.html| archivedate= 30 January 2009 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Melbourne reached top spot for the fourth year in a row on ''[[The Economist]]'''s 2014 list of the [[World's most livable cities|world's most liveable cities]], followed by Adelaide, Sydney, and Perth in the fifth, seventh, and ninth places respectively.<ref>Dyett, Kathleen (19 August 2014). [http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-08-19/melbourne-worlds-most-liveable-city-for-the-fourth-year-running/5681014 "Melbourne named world's most liveable city for the fourth year running, beating Adelaide, Sydney and Perth"], [[ABC News (Australia)|ABC News]]. Retrieved 14 April 2015.</ref> Total government debt in Australia is about $190 billion<ref>{{cite web|author=Hughes, Tim |url=http://www.couriermail.com.au/money/money-matters/australian-dollar-continues-astronomical-rise-to-30-year-highs-as-us-dollar-euro-tank/story-fn3hskur-1226044717380 |title=Australian dollar continues astronomical rise to 30-year highs as US dollar, euro tank |publisher=Courier Mail |accessdate=26 April 2011}}</ref> – 20% of [[Gross domestic product|GDP]] in 2010.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indexmundi.com/australia/public_debt.html |title=Australia Public debt – Economy |publisher=Indexmundi.com |date=9 January 2012 |accessdate=15 April 2012}}</ref> Australia has among the highest house prices and some of the highest household-debt levels in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/nickbryant/2011/04/australian_affordablity.html |title=Nick Bryant's Australia: Australian affordablity |publisher=BBC |accessdate=26 April 2011}}</ref>
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Ranked third in the [[Index of Economic Freedom]] (2010),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.heritage.org/index/Country/Australia|title=Australia|publisher=2010 Index of Economic Freedom|accessdate=30 March 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100330033949/http://www.heritage.org/index/Country/Australia| archivedate= 30 March 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Australia is the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|world's twelfth largest economy]] and has the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal) per capita|fifth highest per capita GDP]] (nominal) at $66,984. The country was ranked second in the United Nations 2011 [[Human Development Index]] and first in [[Legatum]]'s 2008 [[Legatum Prosperity Index|Prosperity Index]].<ref name="autogenerated1">{{cite web|url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2010_EN_Tables_reprint.pdf|title=Human Development Report 2010 – tables|year=2010|publisher=United Nations|accessdate=25 April 2011| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429045417/http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_2010_EN_Tables_reprint.pdf| archivedate= 29 April 2011 | deadurl=no}}</ref> All of Australia's major cities fare well in global comparative livability surveys;<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/02/06/1075854028808.html|title=Melbourne 'world's top city'|date=6 February 2004|work=The Age|accessdate=31 January 2009| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090130144426/http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/02/06/1075854028808.html| archivedate= 30 January 2009 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Melbourne reached top spot for the fourth year in a row on ''[[The Economist]]'''s 2014 list of the [[World's most livable cities|world's most liveable cities]], followed by Adelaide, Sydney, and Perth in the fifth, seventh, and ninth places respectively.<ref>Dyett, Kathleen (19 August 2014). [http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-08-19/melbourne-worlds-most-liveable-city-for-the-fourth-year-running/5681014 "Melbourne named world's most liveable city for the fourth year running, beating Adelaide, Sydney and Perth"], [[ABC News (Australia)|ABC News]]. Retrieved 14 April 2015.</ref> Total government debt in Australia is about $190 billion<ref>{{cite web|author=Hughes, Tim |url=http://www.couriermail.com.au/money/money-matters/australian-dollar-continues-astronomical-rise-to-30-year-highs-as-us-dollar-euro-tank/story-fn3hskur-1226044717380 |title=Australian dollar continues astronomical rise to 30-year highs as US dollar, euro tank |publisher=Courier Mail |accessdate=26 April 2011}}</ref> – 20% of [[Gross domestic product|GDP]] in 2010.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indexmundi.com/australia/public_debt.html |title=Australia Public debt – Economy |publisher=Indexmundi.com |date=9 January 2012 |accessdate=15 April 2012}}</ref> Australia has among the highest house prices and some of the highest household-debt levels in the world.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/nickbryant/2011/04/australian_affordablity.html |title=Nick Bryant's Australia: Australian affordablity |publisher=BBC |accessdate=26 April 2011}}</ref>
   
 
[[File:2006Australian exports.svg|thumb|left|300px|alt=World map showing the distribution of Australian goods|Destination and value of Australian exports in 2006<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/5368.0Apr%202007?OpenDocument |title=5368.0&nbsp;– International Trade in Goods and Services, Australia, April 2007 |publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] |date=31 May 2007 |accessdate=14 June 2010}}</ref>]]
 
[[File:2006Australian exports.svg|thumb|left|300px|alt=World map showing the distribution of Australian goods|Destination and value of Australian exports in 2006<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/5368.0Apr%202007?OpenDocument |title=5368.0&nbsp;– International Trade in Goods and Services, Australia, April 2007 |publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] |date=31 May 2007 |accessdate=14 June 2010}}</ref>]]
An emphasis on exporting commodities rather than manufactured goods has underpinned a significant increase in Australia's [[terms of trade]] since the start of the 21st century, due to rising commodity prices. [[Balance of payments of Australia|Australia has a balance of payments]] that is more than 7% of GDP negative, and has had persistently large [[current account]] deficits for more than 50 years.<ref name="downwonder">{{Cite news|url=http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8931798 |title=Might Australia's economic fortunes turn? |work=The Economist |date=29 March 2007 |accessdate=28 May 2010}}</ref> Australia has grown at an average annual rate of 3.6% for over 15 years, in comparison to the OECD annual average of 2.5%.<ref name="downwonder"/> Australia was the only advanced economy not to experience a recession due to the [[Late-2000s recession|global financial downturn]] in 2008–2009.<ref name="IMFOutlook2010">{{cite web|url=http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2010/01/ |title=World Economic Outlook (WEO) 2010 Rebalancing Growth |publisher=International Monetary Fund | accessdate=31 May 2012}}</ref> However, the economies of six of Australia's major trading partners have been in recession, which in turn has affected Australia, significantly hampering its economic growth in recent years.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/australia-slashes-immigration-as-recession-looms-1646048.html |title=Australia slashes immigration as recession looms |publisher=The Independent |date=16 March 2009 |accessdate=26 April 2011 |location=London}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Mclennan |first=David |url=http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/national/national/general/australian-economy-growing-as-new-recession-fears-fade/2130847.aspx |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111011082911/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/national/national/general/australian-economy-growing-as-new-recession-fears-fade/2130847.aspx |archivedate=11 October 2011 |title=Australian economy growing as new recession fears fade |publisher=The Canberra Times |date=12 April 2011 |accessdate=26 April 2011}}</ref> From 2012 to early 2013, Australia's national economy grew, but some non-mining states and Australia's non-mining economy experienced a recession.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://theconversation.com/national-economy-grows-but-some-non-mining-states-in-recession-12670 |title=National economy grows but some non-mining states in recession |publisher=The Conversation |accessdate=22 March 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.couriermail.com.au/business/mining-punches-through-recession/story-fn7kjcme-1226320756339 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120416091909/http://www.couriermail.com.au/business/mining-punches-through-recession/story-fn7kjcme-1226320756339 |archivedate=16 April 2012 |title=Mining punches through recession |publisher=Courier Mail|author=Syvret, Paul |date=7 April 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-04-23/non-mining-states-27going-backwards27/3967622 |title=Non-mining states going backwards|publisher=ABC |accessdate=22 March 2013}}</ref>
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An emphasis on exporting commodities rather than manufactured goods has underpinned a significant increase in Australia's [[terms of trade]] since the start of the 21st century, due to rising commodity prices. [[Balance of payments of Australia|Australia has a balance of payments]] that is more than 7% of GDP negative, and has had persistently large [[current account]] deficits for more than 50 years.<ref name="downwonder">{{Cite news|url=http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8931798 |title=Might Australia's economic fortunes turn? |work=The Economist |date=29 March 2007 |accessdate=28 May 2010}}</ref> Australia has grown at an average annual rate of 3.6% for over 15 years, in comparison to the OECD annual average of 2.5%.<ref name="downwonder" /> Australia was the only advanced economy not to experience a recession due to the [[Late-2000s recession|global financial downturn]] in 2008–2009.<ref name="IMFOutlook2010">{{cite web|url=http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2010/01/ |title=World Economic Outlook (WEO) 2010 Rebalancing Growth |publisher=International Monetary Fund | accessdate=31 May 2012}}</ref> However, the economies of six of Australia's major trading partners have been in recession, which in turn has affected Australia, significantly hampering its economic growth in recent years.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/australia-slashes-immigration-as-recession-looms-1646048.html |title=Australia slashes immigration as recession looms |publisher=The Independent |date=16 March 2009 |accessdate=26 April 2011 |location=London}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Mclennan |first=David |url=http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/national/national/general/australian-economy-growing-as-new-recession-fears-fade/2130847.aspx |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111011082911/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/news/national/national/general/australian-economy-growing-as-new-recession-fears-fade/2130847.aspx |archivedate=11 October 2011 |title=Australian economy growing as new recession fears fade |publisher=The Canberra Times |date=12 April 2011 |accessdate=26 April 2011}}</ref> From 2012 to early 2013, Australia's national economy grew, but some non-mining states and Australia's non-mining economy experienced a recession.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://theconversation.com/national-economy-grows-but-some-non-mining-states-in-recession-12670 |title=National economy grows but some non-mining states in recession |publisher=The Conversation |accessdate=22 March 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.couriermail.com.au/business/mining-punches-through-recession/story-fn7kjcme-1226320756339 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120416091909/http://www.couriermail.com.au/business/mining-punches-through-recession/story-fn7kjcme-1226320756339 |archivedate=16 April 2012 |title=Mining punches through recession |publisher=Courier Mail|author=Syvret, Paul |date=7 April 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-04-23/non-mining-states-27going-backwards27/3967622 |title=Non-mining states going backwards|publisher=ABC |accessdate=22 March 2013}}</ref>
   
 
The [[Bob Hawke|Hawke Government]] [[Floating exchange rate|floated]] the Australian dollar in 1983 and partially deregulated the financial system.<ref>{{cite web
 
The [[Bob Hawke|Hawke Government]] [[Floating exchange rate|floated]] the Australian dollar in 1983 and partially deregulated the financial system.<ref>{{cite web
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|format=PDF
 
|format=PDF
 
|date=1 October 2002
 
|date=1 October 2002
|accessdate=7 December 2010}}{{dead link|date=March 2015}}</ref> The indirect tax system was substantially changed in July 2000 with the introduction of a 10% [[Goods and Services Tax (Australia)|Goods and Services Tax]] (GST).<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/JATax/2000/23.html|author=Tran-Nam, Binh |title=The Implementation Costs of the GST in Australia: Concepts, Preliminary Estimates and Implications [2000&#93; JlATax 23; (2000) 3(5) |journal=Journal of Australian Taxation 331|publisher=[[Australasian Legal Information Institute]]|accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref> In [[Taxation in Australia|Australia's tax system]], personal and company [[Income tax in Australia|income tax]] are the main sources of government revenue.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.budget.gov.au/2008-09/content/fbo/html/part_1.htm|title=Part 1: Australian Government Budget Outcome|publisher=Budget 2008–09&nbsp;– Australian Government|accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref>
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|accessdate=7 December 2010}}{{dead link|date=March 2015}}</ref> The indirect tax system was substantially changed in July 2000 with the introduction of a 10% [[Goods and Services Tax (Australia)|Goods and Services Tax]] (GST).<ref>{{cite journal|url=http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/JATax/2000/23.html|author=Tran-Nam, Binh |title=<nowiki>The Implementation Costs of the GST in Australia: Concepts, Preliminary Estimates and Implications [2000</nowiki>&#93; JlATax 23; (2000) 3(5) |journal=Journal of Australian Taxation 331|publisher=[[Australasian Legal Information Institute]]|accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref> In [[Taxation in Australia|Australia's tax system]], personal and company [[Income tax in Australia|income tax]] are the main sources of government revenue.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.budget.gov.au/2008-09/content/fbo/html/part_1.htm|title=Part 1: Australian Government Budget Outcome|publisher=Budget 2008–09&nbsp;– Australian Government|accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref>
 
[[File:Kalgoorlie The Big Pit DSC04498.JPG|thumb|alt=A deep opencut mine in which some roads can be seen, the dirt is a rusty colour|The [[Super Pit gold mine]] in [[Kalgoorlie]], Australia's largest [[Open-pit mining|open cut]] mine.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/04/20/2877497.htm |title=Government to help Kalgoorlie quake victims |accessdate=2 June 2010 |date=20 April 2010 |publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]]| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100606061719/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/04/20/2877497.htm| archivedate= 6 June 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref>]]
 
[[File:Kalgoorlie The Big Pit DSC04498.JPG|thumb|alt=A deep opencut mine in which some roads can be seen, the dirt is a rusty colour|The [[Super Pit gold mine]] in [[Kalgoorlie]], Australia's largest [[Open-pit mining|open cut]] mine.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/04/20/2877497.htm |title=Government to help Kalgoorlie quake victims |accessdate=2 June 2010 |date=20 April 2010 |publisher=[[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]]| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100606061719/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/04/20/2877497.htm| archivedate= 6 June 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref>]]
   
In May 2012, there were 11,537,900&nbsp;people employed (either full- or part-time), with an unemployment rate of 5.1%.<ref name="ABSLabourForce">Australian Bureau of Statistics. 6202.0 – Labour Force, Australia, April 2012 [http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/6202.0/]</ref> Youth unemployment (15–24) stood at 11.2%.<ref name="ABSLabourForce"/> Data released in mid-November 2013 showed that the number of welfare recipients had grown by 55%. In 2007 228,621 [[Newstart Allowance|Newstart unemployment allowance]] recipients were registered, a total that increased to 646,414 in March 2013.<ref>{{cite news|title=Call for end to welfare poverty|url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/call-for-end-to-welfare-poverty/story-fn59niix-1226758553935?from=public_rss&utm_source=The%20Australian&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=editorial&net_sub_uid=44933799#|accessdate=15 November 2013|newspaper=The Australian|date=13 November 2013|author=Patricia Karvelas}}</ref> According to the Graduate Careers Survey, full-time employment for newly qualified professionals from various occupations has declined since 2011 but it increases for graduates three years after graduation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.graduatecareers.com.au/research/surveys/australiangraduatesurvey|title=Australian Graduate Survey|work=graduatecareers.com.au}}</ref><ref>http://www.graduatecareers.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/GCA_GradStats_2014.pdf</ref>
+
In May 2012, there were 11,537,900&nbsp;people employed (either full- or part-time), with an unemployment rate of 5.1%.<ref name="ABSLabourForce">Australian Bureau of Statistics. 6202.0 – Labour Force, Australia, April 2012 [http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/6202.0/]</ref> Youth unemployment (15–24) stood at 11.2%.<ref name="ABSLabourForce" /> Data released in mid-November 2013 showed that the number of welfare recipients had grown by 55%. In 2007 228,621 [[Newstart Allowance|Newstart unemployment allowance]] recipients were registered, a total that increased to 646,414 in March 2013.<ref>{{cite news|title=Call for end to welfare poverty|url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/call-for-end-to-welfare-poverty/story-fn59niix-1226758553935?from=public_rss&utm_source=The%20Australian&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=editorial&net_sub_uid=44933799#|accessdate=15 November 2013|newspaper=The Australian|date=13 November 2013|author=Patricia Karvelas}}</ref> According to the Graduate Careers Survey, full-time employment for newly qualified professionals from various occupations has declined since 2011 but it increases for graduates three years after graduation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.graduatecareers.com.au/research/surveys/australiangraduatesurvey|title=Australian Graduate Survey|work=graduatecareers.com.au}}</ref><ref>http://www.graduatecareers.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/GCA_GradStats_2014.pdf</ref>
   
 
Over the past decade<!--MOS breach—see "Vague chronological terms". "Since ?1998"-->, inflation has typically been 2–3% and the base interest rate 5–6%. The service sector of the economy, including tourism, education, and financial services, accounts for about 70% of GDP.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/as.html |title=Australia. CIA&nbsp;– The World Factbook |publisher=Cia.gov |accessdate=22 January 2011| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101229010858/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/as.html| archivedate= 29 December 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Rich in natural resources, Australia is a major exporter of agricultural products, particularly wheat and wool, minerals such as iron-ore and gold, and energy in the forms of liquified natural gas and coal. Although [[Agriculture in Australia|agriculture]] and natural resources account for only 3% and 5% of GDP respectively, they contribute substantially to export performance. Australia's largest export markets are Japan, China, the US, South Korea, and New Zealand.<ref name="Year Book 2005">Australian Bureau of Statistics. [http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/1a79e7ae231704f8ca256f720082feb9!OpenDocument Year Book Australia 2005].</ref> Australia is the world's fourth largest exporter of wine, and the wine industry contributes $5.5 billion per year to the nation's economy.<ref name="wineaustralia1">{{cite news |publisher=wineaustralia |url=http://www.wineaustralia.com/australia/ |title= Wine Australia |accessdate=22 October 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101023194405/http://www.wineaustralia.com/australia/| archivedate= 23 October 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref>
 
Over the past decade<!--MOS breach—see "Vague chronological terms". "Since ?1998"-->, inflation has typically been 2–3% and the base interest rate 5–6%. The service sector of the economy, including tourism, education, and financial services, accounts for about 70% of GDP.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/as.html |title=Australia. CIA&nbsp;– The World Factbook |publisher=Cia.gov |accessdate=22 January 2011| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101229010858/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/as.html| archivedate= 29 December 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Rich in natural resources, Australia is a major exporter of agricultural products, particularly wheat and wool, minerals such as iron-ore and gold, and energy in the forms of liquified natural gas and coal. Although [[Agriculture in Australia|agriculture]] and natural resources account for only 3% and 5% of GDP respectively, they contribute substantially to export performance. Australia's largest export markets are Japan, China, the US, South Korea, and New Zealand.<ref name="Year Book 2005">Australian Bureau of Statistics. [http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/1a79e7ae231704f8ca256f720082feb9!OpenDocument Year Book Australia 2005].</ref> Australia is the world's fourth largest exporter of wine, and the wine industry contributes $5.5 billion per year to the nation's economy.<ref name="wineaustralia1">{{cite news |publisher=wineaustralia |url=http://www.wineaustralia.com/australia/ |title= Wine Australia |accessdate=22 October 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101023194405/http://www.wineaustralia.com/australia/| archivedate= 23 October 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref>
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For generations, the vast majority of immigrants came from the British Isles, and the people of Australia are still mainly of British and/or Irish ethnic origin. In the 2011 Australian census, the most commonly nominated ancestry was [[English Australian|English]] (36.1%), followed by Australian (35.4%),<ref>The Australian Bureau of Statistics has stated that most who list "Australian" as their ancestry are part of the [[Anglo-Celtic Australian|Anglo-Celtic]] group. [http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/49f609c83cf34d69ca2569de0025c182!OpenDocument]</ref> [[Irish Australian|Irish]] (10.4%), [[Scottish Australian|Scottish]] (8.9%), [[Italian Australian|Italian]] (4.6%), [[German Australian|German]] (4.5%), [[Chinese Australian|Chinese]] (4.3%), [[Indian Australian|Indian]] (2.0%), [[Greek Australian|Greek]] (1.9%), and [[Dutch Australian|Dutch]] (1.7%).<ref><!-- 36.1 + 35.4 + 10.4 + 8.9 + 4.6 + 4.5 + 4.3 + 2.0 + 1.9 + 1.7 = 109.8 !! "Table presents collective responses to ancestry question. As some people stated two ancestries, the total persons for all ancestries exceed Australia's total population." -->{{cite web |url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/2071.0main+features902012-2013 |title=Reflecting a Nation: Stories from the 2011 Census, 2012–2013 |publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] |date=21 June 2012 |accessdate=25 June 2012}}</ref>
 
For generations, the vast majority of immigrants came from the British Isles, and the people of Australia are still mainly of British and/or Irish ethnic origin. In the 2011 Australian census, the most commonly nominated ancestry was [[English Australian|English]] (36.1%), followed by Australian (35.4%),<ref>The Australian Bureau of Statistics has stated that most who list "Australian" as their ancestry are part of the [[Anglo-Celtic Australian|Anglo-Celtic]] group. [http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/49f609c83cf34d69ca2569de0025c182!OpenDocument]</ref> [[Irish Australian|Irish]] (10.4%), [[Scottish Australian|Scottish]] (8.9%), [[Italian Australian|Italian]] (4.6%), [[German Australian|German]] (4.5%), [[Chinese Australian|Chinese]] (4.3%), [[Indian Australian|Indian]] (2.0%), [[Greek Australian|Greek]] (1.9%), and [[Dutch Australian|Dutch]] (1.7%).<ref><!-- 36.1 + 35.4 + 10.4 + 8.9 + 4.6 + 4.5 + 4.3 + 2.0 + 1.9 + 1.7 = 109.8 !! "Table presents collective responses to ancestry question. As some people stated two ancestries, the total persons for all ancestries exceed Australia's total population." -->{{cite web |url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/2071.0main+features902012-2013 |title=Reflecting a Nation: Stories from the 2011 Census, 2012–2013 |publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] |date=21 June 2012 |accessdate=25 June 2012}}</ref>
   
Australia's population has quadrupled since the end of World War I,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3105.0.65.0012006?OpenDocument |title=3105.0.65.001—Australian Historical Population Statistics, 2006 |accessdate=18 September 2007 |date=23 May 2006 |format=[[Microsoft Excel|XLS]] |publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] |quote=Australian population: (1919) 5,080,912; (2006) 20,209,993 | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070908212308/http://abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3105.0.65.0012006?OpenDocument| archivedate= 8 September 2007 | deadurl=no}}</ref> much of this increase from [[Immigration to Australia|immigration]]. Following World War II and through to 2000, almost 5.9&nbsp;million of the total population settled in the country as new immigrants, meaning that nearly two out of every seven Australians were born in another country.<ref name="Immigration">{{cite web|url=http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2698.htm|title=Background note: Australia|publisher=US Department of State|accessdate=19 May 2007| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070520140730/http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2698.htm| archivedate= 20 May 2007 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Most immigrants are skilled,<ref name="immig">{{cite web|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/20planning.htm |title=Fact Sheet 20&nbsp;– Migration Program Planning Levels |accessdate=17 June 2010 |date=11 August 2009 |publisher=Department of Immigration and Citizenship| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100507054151/http://www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/20planning.htm| archivedate= 7 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> but the immigration quota includes categories for family members and [[refugee]]s.<ref name="immig"/> By 2050, Australia's population is currently projected to reach around 42 million.<ref>"[http://www.news.com.au/national/australias-population-to-grow-to-42m-by-2050-modelling-shows/story-e6frfkvr-1225854742172 Australia's population to grow to 42 million by 2050, modelling shows]". News.com.au. 17 April 2010</ref> Nevertheless, its [[List of countries and dependencies by population density|population density]], 2.8 inhabitants per square kilometre, remains among the lowest in the world.<ref name="worldatlas1"/> As such, Australians have more living space per person than the inhabitants of any other nation.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.switzer.com.au/business-news/news-stories/australian-homes-are-biggest-in-the-world2/ | title=Australian homes are biggest in the world | publisher=''Switzer Daily'' | date=23 August 2011 | accessdate=5 November 2014}}</ref>
+
Australia's population has quadrupled since the end of World War I,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3105.0.65.0012006?OpenDocument |title=3105.0.65.001—Australian Historical Population Statistics, 2006 |accessdate=18 September 2007 |date=23 May 2006 |format=[[Microsoft Excel|XLS]] |publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] |quote=Australian population: (1919) 5,080,912; (2006) 20,209,993 | archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070908212308/http://abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3105.0.65.0012006?OpenDocument| archivedate= 8 September 2007 | deadurl=no}}</ref> much of this increase from [[Immigration to Australia|immigration]]. Following World War II and through to 2000, almost 5.9&nbsp;million of the total population settled in the country as new immigrants, meaning that nearly two out of every seven Australians were born in another country.<ref name="Immigration">{{cite web|url=http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2698.htm|title=Background note: Australia|publisher=US Department of State|accessdate=19 May 2007| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070520140730/http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2698.htm| archivedate= 20 May 2007 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Most immigrants are skilled,<ref name="immig">{{cite web|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/20planning.htm |title=Fact Sheet 20&nbsp;– Migration Program Planning Levels |accessdate=17 June 2010 |date=11 August 2009 |publisher=Department of Immigration and Citizenship| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100507054151/http://www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/20planning.htm| archivedate= 7 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> but the immigration quota includes categories for family members and [[refugee]]s.<ref name="immig" /> By 2050, Australia's population is currently projected to reach around 42 million.<ref>"[http://www.news.com.au/national/australias-population-to-grow-to-42m-by-2050-modelling-shows/story-e6frfkvr-1225854742172 Australia's population to grow to 42 million by 2050, modelling shows]". News.com.au. 17 April 2010</ref> Nevertheless, its [[List of countries and dependencies by population density|population density]], 2.8 inhabitants per square kilometre, remains among the lowest in the world.<ref name="worldatlas1" /> As such, Australians have more living space per person than the inhabitants of any other nation.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.switzer.com.au/business-news/news-stories/australian-homes-are-biggest-in-the-world2/ | title=Australian homes are biggest in the world | publisher=''Switzer Daily'' | date=23 August 2011 | accessdate=5 November 2014}}</ref>
   
In 2011, 24.6% of Australians were born elsewhere and 43.1% of people had at least one overseas-born parent;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://abs.gov.au/websitedbs/censushome.nsf/home/CO-59?opendocument&navpos=620|title=2011 Census reveals one in four Australians is born overseas|publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]]|date=21 June 2012|accessdate=21 June 2012}}</ref> the five largest immigrant groups were those from the [[Anglo-Celtic Australian|United Kingdom]], New Zealand, China, India, and [[Vietnam]].<ref name="census2011"/> Following the abolition of the [[White Australia policy]] in 1973, numerous government initiatives have been established to encourage and promote racial harmony based on a policy of [[multiculturalism]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/facts/06evolution.htm|title=The Evolution of Australia's Multicultural Policy|accessdate=18 September 2007|year=2005|publisher=Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060219130703/http://www.immi.gov.au/facts/06evolution.htm|archivedate=19 February 2006}}</ref> In 2005–06, more than 131,000&nbsp;people emigrated to Australia, mainly from Asia and Oceania.<ref>{{cite web
+
In 2011, 24.6% of Australians were born elsewhere and 43.1% of people had at least one overseas-born parent;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://abs.gov.au/websitedbs/censushome.nsf/home/CO-59?opendocument&navpos=620|title=2011 Census reveals one in four Australians is born overseas|publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]]|date=21 June 2012|accessdate=21 June 2012}}</ref> the five largest immigrant groups were those from the [[Anglo-Celtic Australian|United Kingdom]], New Zealand, China, India, and [[Vietnam]].<ref name="census2011" /> Following the abolition of the [[White Australia policy]] in 1973, numerous government initiatives have been established to encourage and promote racial harmony based on a policy of [[multiculturalism]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/facts/06evolution.htm|title=The Evolution of Australia's Multicultural Policy|accessdate=18 September 2007|year=2005|publisher=Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060219130703/http://www.immi.gov.au/facts/06evolution.htm|archivedate=19 February 2006}}</ref> In 2005–06, more than 131,000&nbsp;people emigrated to Australia, mainly from Asia and Oceania.<ref>{{cite web
 
|url=http://www.minister.immi.gov.au/media/media-releases/2006/v06297.htm
 
|url=http://www.minister.immi.gov.au/media/media-releases/2006/v06297.htm
 
|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070609123847/http://www.minister.immi.gov.au/media/media-releases/2006/v06297.htm
 
|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070609123847/http://www.minister.immi.gov.au/media/media-releases/2006/v06297.htm
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The Indigenous population—[[Aboriginal Australians|Aborigines]] and [[Torres Strait Islands|Torres Strait Islanders]]—was counted at 548,370 (2.5% of the total population) in 2011,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://abs.gov.au/websitedbs/censushome.nsf/home/CO-63?opendocument&navpos=620 |title=Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australia revealed as 2011 Census data is released |publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] |date=21 June 2012 |accessdate=21 June 2012}}</ref> a significant increase from 115,953 in the 1976 census.<ref name="Year Book 2004">{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Previousproducts/1301.0Feature%20Article52004?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=1301.0&issue=2004&num=&view=|title=1301.0&nbsp;– Year Book Australia, 2004
 
The Indigenous population—[[Aboriginal Australians|Aborigines]] and [[Torres Strait Islands|Torres Strait Islanders]]—was counted at 548,370 (2.5% of the total population) in 2011,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://abs.gov.au/websitedbs/censushome.nsf/home/CO-63?opendocument&navpos=620 |title=Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australia revealed as 2011 Census data is released |publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] |date=21 June 2012 |accessdate=21 June 2012}}</ref> a significant increase from 115,953 in the 1976 census.<ref name="Year Book 2004">{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Previousproducts/1301.0Feature%20Article52004?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=1301.0&issue=2004&num=&view=|title=1301.0&nbsp;– Year Book Australia, 2004
|date=27 February 2004|accessdate=24 April 2009|publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]]| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090515231152/http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/Previousproducts/1301.0Feature%20Article52004?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=1301.0&issue=2004&num=&view=| archivedate= 15 May 2009 | deadurl=no}}</ref> The increase is partly due to many people with Indigenous heritage previously having been overlooked by the census due to undercount and cases where their Indigenous status had not been recorded on the form. Indigenous Australians experience higher than average rates of imprisonment and unemployment, lower levels of education, and life expectancies for males and females that are, respectively, 11 and 17 years lower than those of non-indigenous Australians.<ref name="Year Book 2005"/><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/life-gap-figures-not-black-and-white/story-e6frg6nf-1111118141529 |title=Life gap figures not black and white |author=Lunn, Stephen |work=[[The Australian]] |date=26 November 2008 |accessdate=7 December 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.smh.com.au/national/indigenous-health-gap-closes-by-five-years-20090409-a27x.html |title=Indigenous health gap closes by five years |author=Gibson, Joel |work= [[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |date=10 April 2009 |accessdate=7 December 2010}}</ref><!-- The Australian and SMH refs should be replaced with the finalised ABS estimate when this becomes available. --> Some remote Indigenous communities have been described as having "[[failed state]]"-like conditions.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/australia-hides-a-failed-state/2006/12/07/1165081088385.html |title=Australia hides a 'failed state' |author=Grattan, Michelle |publisher=[[The Age]] |location=Melbourne |date=8 December 2006 |accessdate=17 October 2008 |authorlink=Michelle Grattan| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081119005946/http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/australia-hides-a-failed-state/2006/12/07/1165081088385.html| archivedate= 19 November 2008 | deadurl=no}}</ref>
+
|date=27 February 2004|accessdate=24 April 2009|publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]]| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090515231152/http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/Previousproducts/1301.0Feature%20Article52004?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=1301.0&issue=2004&num=&view=| archivedate= 15 May 2009 | deadurl=no}}</ref> The increase is partly due to many people with Indigenous heritage previously having been overlooked by the census due to undercount and cases where their Indigenous status had not been recorded on the form. Indigenous Australians experience higher than average rates of imprisonment and unemployment, lower levels of education, and life expectancies for males and females that are, respectively, 11 and 17 years lower than those of non-indigenous Australians.<ref name="Year Book 2005" /><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/life-gap-figures-not-black-and-white/story-e6frg6nf-1111118141529 |title=Life gap figures not black and white |author=Lunn, Stephen |work=[[The Australian]] |date=26 November 2008 |accessdate=7 December 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.smh.com.au/national/indigenous-health-gap-closes-by-five-years-20090409-a27x.html |title=Indigenous health gap closes by five years |author=Gibson, Joel |work= [[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |date=10 April 2009 |accessdate=7 December 2010}}</ref><!-- The Australian and SMH refs should be replaced with the finalised ABS estimate when this becomes available. --> Some remote Indigenous communities have been described as having "[[failed state]]"-like conditions.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/australia-hides-a-failed-state/2006/12/07/1165081088385.html |title=Australia hides a 'failed state' |author=Grattan, Michelle |publisher=[[The Age]] |location=Melbourne |date=8 December 2006 |accessdate=17 October 2008 |authorlink=Michelle Grattan| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081119005946/http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/australia-hides-a-failed-state/2006/12/07/1165081088385.html| archivedate= 19 November 2008 | deadurl=no}}</ref>
   
 
In common with many other developed countries, Australia is experiencing a demographic shift towards an older population, with more retirees and fewer people of working age. In 2004, the [[Population pyramid|average age]] of the civilian population was 38.8 years.<ref>Parliament of Australia, Parliamentary Library (7 March 2005). [https://web.archive.org/web/20090324202331/http://www.aph.gov.au/Library/pubs/rn/2004-05/05rn35.pdf Australia's aging workforce].</ref> A large number of Australians (759,849 for the period 2002–03;<ref>Parliament of Australia, Senate (2005). [https://web.archive.org/web/20090413130639/http://www.aph.gov.au/Senate/committee/legcon_ctte/completed_inquiries/2004-07/expats03/index.htm Inquiry into Australian Expatriates].</ref> 1 million or 5% of the total population in 2005<ref>{{cite book|title=Imagining Australia|author=Duncan, Macgregor; Leigh, Andrew; Madden, David and Tynan, Peter |publisher=Allen &amp; Unwin|year=2004|isbn=978-1-74114-382-9|url=http://books.google.com/?id=YeKqBMjrObIC&printsec=frontcover|page=44}}</ref>) live outside their home country.
 
In common with many other developed countries, Australia is experiencing a demographic shift towards an older population, with more retirees and fewer people of working age. In 2004, the [[Population pyramid|average age]] of the civilian population was 38.8 years.<ref>Parliament of Australia, Parliamentary Library (7 March 2005). [https://web.archive.org/web/20090324202331/http://www.aph.gov.au/Library/pubs/rn/2004-05/05rn35.pdf Australia's aging workforce].</ref> A large number of Australians (759,849 for the period 2002–03;<ref>Parliament of Australia, Senate (2005). [https://web.archive.org/web/20090413130639/http://www.aph.gov.au/Senate/committee/legcon_ctte/completed_inquiries/2004-07/expats03/index.htm Inquiry into Australian Expatriates].</ref> 1 million or 5% of the total population in 2005<ref>{{cite book|title=Imagining Australia|author=Duncan, Macgregor; Leigh, Andrew; Madden, David and Tynan, Peter |publisher=Allen &amp; Unwin|year=2004|isbn=978-1-74114-382-9|url=http://books.google.com/?id=YeKqBMjrObIC&printsec=frontcover|page=44}}</ref>) live outside their home country.
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===Language===
 
===Language===
 
{{Main|Languages of Australia}}
 
{{Main|Languages of Australia}}
Although Australia has no official language, English has always been entrenched as the ''[[de facto]]'' national language.<ref name=language>{{cite web|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/media/publications/multicultural/confer/04/speech18b.htm|title=Pluralist Nations: Pluralist Language Policies?|work=1995 Global Cultural Diversity Conference Proceedings, Sydney|publisher=[[Department of Immigration and Citizenship]]|accessdate=11 January 2009| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081220020910/http://www.immi.gov.au/media/publications/multicultural/confer/04/speech18b.htm| archivedate= 20 December 2008 | deadurl=no}} "English has no de jure status but it is so entrenched as the common language that it is de facto the official language as well as the national language."</ref> [[Australian English]] is a major variety of the language with a distinctive accent and lexicon,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nma.gov.au/libraries/attachments/exhibitions/vocabulary_of_australian_english/files/5471/Vocabulary%20of%20Australian%20English.pdf|title=The Vocabulary Of Australian English|last=Moore|first=Bruce|publisher=National Museum of Australia|accessdate=5 April 2010}}</ref> and differs slightly from other varieties of English in grammar and spelling.<ref name="Fourth Edition 2005">"The Macquarie Dictionary", Fourth Edition. The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd, 2005.</ref> [[General Australian]] serves as the standard dialect. According to the 2011 census, English is the only language spoken in the home for close to 81% of the population. The next most common languages spoken at home are [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]] (1.7%), [[Italian language|Italian]] (1.5%), [[Arabic language|Arabic]] (1.4%), [[Cantonese]] (1.3%), [[Greek language|Greek]] (1.3%), and [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]] (1.2%);<ref name="census2011"/> a considerable proportion of first- and second-generation migrants are bilingual. A 2010–2011 study by the Australia Early Development Index found the most common language spoken by children after English was Arabic, followed by Vietnamese, Greek, Chinese, and Hindi.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.rch.org.au/aedi/media/Snapshot_of_Early_Childhood_DevelopmentinAustralia_AEDI_National_Report.pdf |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110408162508/http://www.rch.org.au/aedi/media/Snapshot_of_Early_Childhood_DevelopmentinAustralia_AEDI_National_Report.pdf |archivedate=8 April 2011 |title=A Snapshot of Early Childhood Development in Australia| page= 8 |date=December 2009|isbn=978-0-9807246-0-8 |publisher=Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations}}</ref><ref>[[Agence France-Presse]]/[[Jiji Press]], "Arabic Australia's second language", ''[[The Japan Times]]'', 16 April 2011, p. 4.</ref>
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Although Australia has no official language, English has always been entrenched as the ''[[de facto]]'' national language.<ref name="language">{{cite web|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/media/publications/multicultural/confer/04/speech18b.htm|title=Pluralist Nations: Pluralist Language Policies?|work=1995 Global Cultural Diversity Conference Proceedings, Sydney|publisher=[[Department of Immigration and Citizenship]]|accessdate=11 January 2009| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081220020910/http://www.immi.gov.au/media/publications/multicultural/confer/04/speech18b.htm| archivedate= 20 December 2008 | deadurl=no}} "English has no de jure status but it is so entrenched as the common language that it is de facto the official language as well as the national language."</ref> [[Australian English]] is a major variety of the language with a distinctive accent and lexicon,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nma.gov.au/libraries/attachments/exhibitions/vocabulary_of_australian_english/files/5471/Vocabulary%20of%20Australian%20English.pdf|title=The Vocabulary Of Australian English|last=Moore|first=Bruce|publisher=National Museum of Australia|accessdate=5 April 2010}}</ref> and differs slightly from other varieties of English in grammar and spelling.<ref name="Fourth Edition 2005">"The Macquarie Dictionary", Fourth Edition. The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd, 2005.</ref> [[General Australian]] serves as the standard dialect. According to the 2011 census, English is the only language spoken in the home for close to 81% of the population. The next most common languages spoken at home are [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]] (1.7%), [[Italian language|Italian]] (1.5%), [[Arabic language|Arabic]] (1.4%), [[Cantonese]] (1.3%), [[Greek language|Greek]] (1.3%), and [[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]] (1.2%);<ref name="census2011" /> a considerable proportion of first- and second-generation migrants are bilingual. A 2010–2011 study by the Australia Early Development Index found the most common language spoken by children after English was Arabic, followed by Vietnamese, Greek, Chinese, and Hindi.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.rch.org.au/aedi/media/Snapshot_of_Early_Childhood_DevelopmentinAustralia_AEDI_National_Report.pdf |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110408162508/http://www.rch.org.au/aedi/media/Snapshot_of_Early_Childhood_DevelopmentinAustralia_AEDI_National_Report.pdf |archivedate=8 April 2011 |title=A Snapshot of Early Childhood Development in Australia| page= 8 |date=December 2009|isbn=978-0-9807246-0-8 |publisher=Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations}}</ref><ref>[[Agence France-Presse]]/[[Jiji Press]], "Arabic Australia's second language", ''[[The Japan Times]]'', 16 April 2011, p. 4.</ref>
   
Over 250 [[Indigenous Australian languages]] are thought to have existed at the time of first European contact, of which less than 20 are still in daily use by all age groups.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/news/2011/08/a-mission-to-save-indigenous-languages| title=A mission to save indigenous languages| publisher=Australian Geographic|accessdate=16 June 2014}}</ref><ref name=nilsr/> About 110 others are spoken exclusively by older people.<ref name=nilsr>{{cite web |url=http://arts.gov.au/sites/default/files/pdfs/nils-report-2005.pdf |title=National Indigenous Languages Survey Report 2005 |publisher=Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts |accessdate=5 September 2009 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090709141342/http://www.arts.gov.au/indigenous/national_indigenous_languages_survey_report_2005 <!-- Added by H3llBot --> |archivedate=9 July 2009}}</ref> At the time of the 2006 census, 52,000 Indigenous Australians, representing 12% of the Indigenous population, reported that they spoke an Indigenous language at home.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4713.0 |title=4713.0&nbsp;– Population Characteristics, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, 2006 |last=Australian Bureau of Statistics |date=4 May 2010 |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics |language=Canberra |accessdate=7 December 2010}}</ref> Australia has a [[sign language]] known as [[Auslan]], which is the main language of about 5,500 deaf people.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/ABSNavigation/prenav/ViewData?action=404&documentproductno=0&documenttype=Details&order=1&tabname=Details&areacode=0&issue=2006&producttype=Census%20Tables&javascript=true&textversion=false&navmapdisplayed=true&breadcrumb=POTLD&&collection=Census&period=2006&productlabel=Language%20Spoken%20at%20Home%20(full%20classification%20list)%20by%20Sex&producttype=Census%20Tables&method=Place%20of%20Usual%20Residence&topic=Language& |title=20680-Language Spoken at Home (full classification list) by Sex&nbsp;– Australia |last=Australian Bureau of Statistics |date=27 June 2007 |work=2006 Census Tables : Australia |location=Canberra |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics |accessdate=7 December 2010}}</ref>
+
Over 250 [[Indigenous Australian languages]] are thought to have existed at the time of first European contact, of which less than 20 are still in daily use by all age groups.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/news/2011/08/a-mission-to-save-indigenous-languages| title=A mission to save indigenous languages| publisher=Australian Geographic|accessdate=16 June 2014}}</ref><ref name="nilsr" /> About 110 others are spoken exclusively by older people.<ref name="nilsr">{{cite web |url=http://arts.gov.au/sites/default/files/pdfs/nils-report-2005.pdf |title=National Indigenous Languages Survey Report 2005 |publisher=Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts |accessdate=5 September 2009 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090709141342/http://www.arts.gov.au/indigenous/national_indigenous_languages_survey_report_2005 <!-- Added by H3llBot --> |archivedate=9 July 2009}}</ref> At the time of the 2006 census, 52,000 Indigenous Australians, representing 12% of the Indigenous population, reported that they spoke an Indigenous language at home.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4713.0 |title=4713.0&nbsp;– Population Characteristics, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, 2006 |last=Australian Bureau of Statistics |date=4 May 2010 |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics |language=Canberra |accessdate=7 December 2010}}</ref> Australia has a [[sign language]] known as [[Auslan]], which is the main language of about 5,500 deaf people.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/ABSNavigation/prenav/ViewData?action=404&documentproductno=0&documenttype=Details&order=1&tabname=Details&areacode=0&issue=2006&producttype=Census%20Tables&javascript=true&textversion=false&navmapdisplayed=true&breadcrumb=POTLD&&collection=Census&period=2006&productlabel=Language%20Spoken%20at%20Home%20(full%20classification%20list)%20by%20Sex&producttype=Census%20Tables&method=Place%20of%20Usual%20Residence&topic=Language& |title=20680-Language Spoken at Home (full classification list) by Sex&nbsp;– Australia |last=Australian Bureau of Statistics |date=27 June 2007 |work=2006 Census Tables : Australia |location=Canberra |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics |accessdate=7 December 2010}}</ref>
   
 
===Religion===
 
===Religion===
Line 330: Line 344:
 
School attendance, or registration for home schooling,<ref>{{cite news|title=Thousands of parents illegally home schooling|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-01-28/thousands-of-parents-illegally-home-schooling/3798008|accessdate=13 October 2013|newspaper=ABC News|date=30 January 2012|author=Ian Townsend}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.homeschoolingdownunder.com/homeschooling-australia/|title=Homeschool In Australia|publisher=Homeschooling DownUnder|accessdate=29 July 2014}} (Includes links to relevant page on each state's education department website.)</ref> is compulsory throughout Australia. Education is the responsibility of the individual states and territories<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deewr.gov.au/Schooling/Pages/overview.aspx|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110328132033/http://www.deewr.gov.au/Schooling/Pages/overview.aspx|archivedate=28 March 2011|title=Schooling Overview|publisher=Australian Government, Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations}}</ref> so the rules vary between states, but in general children are required to attend school from the age of about 5 up until about 16.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/living-in-australia/settle-in-australia/everyday-life/education/|title=Education|publisher=[[Department of Immigration and Citizenship]]|accessdate=14 January 2012}}{{Dead link|date=July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/education_in_australia.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514101140/http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/education_in_australia.html|archivedate=14 May 2011|title=Our system of education|publisher=Australian Government: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade|accessdate=13 January 2012}}</ref> In some states (e.g., Western Australia,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://det.wa.edu.au/schoolsandyou/detcms/navigation/parents-and-community/schooling/?oid=Category-id-3869597 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321204923/http://det.wa.edu.au/schoolsandyou/detcms/navigation/parents-and-community/schooling/?oid=Category-id-3869597 |archivedate=21 March 2012 |title=The Department of Education – Schools and You – Schooling |publisher=Det.wa.edu.au |accessdate=31 December 2011}}</ref> the Northern Territory<ref>{{cite web|title=Education Act (NT) – Section 20|url=http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nt/consol_act/ea104/s20.html|work=austlii.edu.au}}</ref> and New South Wales<ref>{{cite web|title=Education Act 1990 (NSW) – Section 21|url=http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/ea1990104/s21b.html|work=austlii.edu.au}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Minimum school leaving age jumps to 17|url=http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-national/minimum-school-leaving-age-jumps-to-17-20090128-7r4d.html|work=The Age|accessdate=30 May 2013|date=28 January 2009}}</ref>), children aged 16–17 are required to either attend school or participate in vocational training, such as an [[apprenticeship]].
 
School attendance, or registration for home schooling,<ref>{{cite news|title=Thousands of parents illegally home schooling|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-01-28/thousands-of-parents-illegally-home-schooling/3798008|accessdate=13 October 2013|newspaper=ABC News|date=30 January 2012|author=Ian Townsend}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.homeschoolingdownunder.com/homeschooling-australia/|title=Homeschool In Australia|publisher=Homeschooling DownUnder|accessdate=29 July 2014}} (Includes links to relevant page on each state's education department website.)</ref> is compulsory throughout Australia. Education is the responsibility of the individual states and territories<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deewr.gov.au/Schooling/Pages/overview.aspx|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110328132033/http://www.deewr.gov.au/Schooling/Pages/overview.aspx|archivedate=28 March 2011|title=Schooling Overview|publisher=Australian Government, Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations}}</ref> so the rules vary between states, but in general children are required to attend school from the age of about 5 up until about 16.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/living-in-australia/settle-in-australia/everyday-life/education/|title=Education|publisher=[[Department of Immigration and Citizenship]]|accessdate=14 January 2012}}{{Dead link|date=July 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/education_in_australia.html|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514101140/http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/education_in_australia.html|archivedate=14 May 2011|title=Our system of education|publisher=Australian Government: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade|accessdate=13 January 2012}}</ref> In some states (e.g., Western Australia,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://det.wa.edu.au/schoolsandyou/detcms/navigation/parents-and-community/schooling/?oid=Category-id-3869597 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321204923/http://det.wa.edu.au/schoolsandyou/detcms/navigation/parents-and-community/schooling/?oid=Category-id-3869597 |archivedate=21 March 2012 |title=The Department of Education – Schools and You – Schooling |publisher=Det.wa.edu.au |accessdate=31 December 2011}}</ref> the Northern Territory<ref>{{cite web|title=Education Act (NT) – Section 20|url=http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nt/consol_act/ea104/s20.html|work=austlii.edu.au}}</ref> and New South Wales<ref>{{cite web|title=Education Act 1990 (NSW) – Section 21|url=http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/ea1990104/s21b.html|work=austlii.edu.au}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Minimum school leaving age jumps to 17|url=http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-national/minimum-school-leaving-age-jumps-to-17-20090128-7r4d.html|work=The Age|accessdate=30 May 2013|date=28 January 2009}}</ref>), children aged 16–17 are required to either attend school or participate in vocational training, such as an [[apprenticeship]].
   
Australia has an adult literacy rate that was estimated to be 99% in 2003.<ref name=cialittab>{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2103.html#136|title=Literacy|work=[[CIA World Factbook]]|accessdate=10 October 2013}}</ref> However, a 2011–12 report for the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that Tasmania has a literacy and numeracy rate of only 50%.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/backgroundbriefing/2013-09-22/4962902|title=A literacy deficit|work=abc.net.au|date=22 September 2013|accessdate=10 October 2013}}</ref> In the [[Programme for International Student Assessment]], Australia regularly scores among the top five of thirty major developed countries (member countries of the [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]]). [[Catholic education in Australia|Catholic education]] accounts for the largest non-government sector.
+
Australia has an adult literacy rate that was estimated to be 99% in 2003.<ref name="cialittab">{{cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2103.html#136|title=Literacy|work=[[CIA World Factbook]]|accessdate=10 October 2013}}</ref> However, a 2011–12 report for the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that Tasmania has a literacy and numeracy rate of only 50%.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/backgroundbriefing/2013-09-22/4962902|title=A literacy deficit|work=abc.net.au|date=22 September 2013|accessdate=10 October 2013}}</ref> In the [[Programme for International Student Assessment]], Australia regularly scores among the top five of thirty major developed countries (member countries of the [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]]). [[Catholic education in Australia|Catholic education]] accounts for the largest non-government sector.
   
 
Australia has 37 government-funded universities and two private universities, as well as a number of other specialist institutions that provide approved courses at the higher education level.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ausitaleem.com.pk/australian-education-system.shtml |title=Australian Education &#124; Australian Education System &#124; Education &#124; Study in Australia |publisher=Ausitaleem.com.pk|accessdate=31 December 2011}}</ref> The [[University of Sydney]] is Australia's oldest university, having been founded in 1850. Other notable universities include those of the [[Group of Eight (Australian universities)|Group of Eight]] leading tertiary institutions. {{fact|date=May 2015}}
 
Australia has 37 government-funded universities and two private universities, as well as a number of other specialist institutions that provide approved courses at the higher education level.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ausitaleem.com.pk/australian-education-system.shtml |title=Australian Education &#124; Australian Education System &#124; Education &#124; Study in Australia |publisher=Ausitaleem.com.pk|accessdate=31 December 2011}}</ref> The [[University of Sydney]] is Australia's oldest university, having been founded in 1850. Other notable universities include those of the [[Group of Eight (Australian universities)|Group of Eight]] leading tertiary institutions. {{fact|date=May 2015}}
   
The OECD places Australia among the most expensive nations to attend university.<ref>[http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/44/35/37376068.pdf Education at a Glance 2006]. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development</ref> There is a state-based system of vocational training, known as [[Technical and further education|TAFE]], and many trades conduct apprenticeships for training new tradespeople.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.australianapprenticeships.gov.au/about/default.asp |title=About Australian Apprenticeships |publisher=Australian Government |accessdate=23 April 2010 |archiveurl=http://replay.web.archive.org/20091111234035/http://www.australianapprenticeships.gov.au/about/default.asp |archivedate=11 November 2009}}</ref> About 58% of Australians aged from 25 to 64 have vocational or tertiary qualifications,<ref name="Year Book 2005"/> and the tertiary graduation rate of 49% is the highest among OECD countries. The ratio of international to local students in tertiary education in Australia is the highest in the OECD countries.<ref>[http://www.ecs.org/html/offsite.asp?document=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Eoecd%2Eorg%2Fdataoecd%2F20%2F25%2F35345692%2Epdf Education at Glance 2005]{{Dead link|date=July 2014}} by OECD: Percentage of foreign students in tertiary education.</ref>
+
The OECD places Australia among the most expensive nations to attend university.<ref>[http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/44/35/37376068.pdf Education at a Glance 2006]. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development</ref> There is a state-based system of vocational training, known as [[Technical and further education|TAFE]], and many trades conduct apprenticeships for training new tradespeople.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.australianapprenticeships.gov.au/about/default.asp |title=About Australian Apprenticeships |publisher=Australian Government |accessdate=23 April 2010 |archiveurl=http://replay.web.archive.org/20091111234035/http://www.australianapprenticeships.gov.au/about/default.asp |archivedate=11 November 2009}}</ref> About 58% of Australians aged from 25 to 64 have vocational or tertiary qualifications,<ref name="Year Book 2005" /> and the tertiary graduation rate of 49% is the highest among OECD countries. The ratio of international to local students in tertiary education in Australia is the highest in the OECD countries.<ref>[http://www.ecs.org/html/offsite.asp?document=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Eoecd%2Eorg%2Fdataoecd%2F20%2F25%2F35345692%2Epdf Education at Glance 2005]{{Dead link|date=July 2014}} by OECD: Percentage of foreign students in tertiary education.</ref>
   
 
===Health===
 
===Health===
Line 340: Line 354:
 
Australia has the third and seventh highest life expectancy of males and females respectively in the world.<ref>[http://www.aihw.gov.au/life-expectancy-how-australia-compares/ How Australia compares]{{Dead link|date=July 2014}} Australian Institute of Health and Welfare</ref> Life expectancy in Australia in 2010 was 79.5 years for males and 84.0 years for females.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by+Subject/4125.0~Jan+2012~Main+Features~Life+expectancy~3110|title=Life expectancy |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics |accessdate=16 August 2012}}</ref> Australia has the highest rates of skin cancer in the world,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.health.gov.au/internet/skincancer/publishing.nsf/Content/fact-2 |title=Skin cancer&nbsp;– key statistics |year=2008 |publisher=[[Department of Health and Ageing]] }}{{dead link|date=March 2015}}</ref> while [[Tobacco smoking|cigarette smoking]] is the largest preventable cause of death and disease, responsible for 7.8% of the total mortality and disease. Ranked second in preventable causes is [[hypertension]] at 7.6%, with obesity third at 7.5%.<ref>[http://www.aihw.gov.au/publications/hwe/bodaiia03/bodaiia03-c05.pdf Risks to health in Australia]{{Dead link|date=July 2014}} [[Australian Institute of Health and Welfare]]</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110219073743/http://quitnow.info.au/internet/quitnow/publishing.nsf/Content/warnings-graph Smoking&nbsp;– A Leading Cause of Death]. The National Tobacco Campaign.</ref> Australia ranks 35th in the world<ref>[http://www.iaso.org/site_media/uploads/Global_prevalence_of_adult_obesity_Ranking_by_country_2012.pdf % Global prevalence of adult obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m²): country rankings 2012]{{dead link|date=March 2015}} IASO</ref> and near the top of [[Developed country|developed nations]] for its proportion of [[Obesity in Australia|obese]] adults.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/Publishing.nsf/Content/health-pubhlth-strateg-hlthwt-obesity.htm |title=About Overweight and Obesity |publisher=Department of Health and Ageing| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100507033011/http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/health-pubhlth-strateg-hlthwt-obesity.htm| archivedate= 7 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref>
 
Australia has the third and seventh highest life expectancy of males and females respectively in the world.<ref>[http://www.aihw.gov.au/life-expectancy-how-australia-compares/ How Australia compares]{{Dead link|date=July 2014}} Australian Institute of Health and Welfare</ref> Life expectancy in Australia in 2010 was 79.5 years for males and 84.0 years for females.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by+Subject/4125.0~Jan+2012~Main+Features~Life+expectancy~3110|title=Life expectancy |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics |accessdate=16 August 2012}}</ref> Australia has the highest rates of skin cancer in the world,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.health.gov.au/internet/skincancer/publishing.nsf/Content/fact-2 |title=Skin cancer&nbsp;– key statistics |year=2008 |publisher=[[Department of Health and Ageing]] }}{{dead link|date=March 2015}}</ref> while [[Tobacco smoking|cigarette smoking]] is the largest preventable cause of death and disease, responsible for 7.8% of the total mortality and disease. Ranked second in preventable causes is [[hypertension]] at 7.6%, with obesity third at 7.5%.<ref>[http://www.aihw.gov.au/publications/hwe/bodaiia03/bodaiia03-c05.pdf Risks to health in Australia]{{Dead link|date=July 2014}} [[Australian Institute of Health and Welfare]]</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110219073743/http://quitnow.info.au/internet/quitnow/publishing.nsf/Content/warnings-graph Smoking&nbsp;– A Leading Cause of Death]. The National Tobacco Campaign.</ref> Australia ranks 35th in the world<ref>[http://www.iaso.org/site_media/uploads/Global_prevalence_of_adult_obesity_Ranking_by_country_2012.pdf % Global prevalence of adult obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m²): country rankings 2012]{{dead link|date=March 2015}} IASO</ref> and near the top of [[Developed country|developed nations]] for its proportion of [[Obesity in Australia|obese]] adults.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/Publishing.nsf/Content/health-pubhlth-strateg-hlthwt-obesity.htm |title=About Overweight and Obesity |publisher=Department of Health and Ageing| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100507033011/http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/health-pubhlth-strateg-hlthwt-obesity.htm| archivedate= 7 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref>
   
Total expenditure on health (including private sector spending) is around 9.8% of GDP.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/healthcare.html |title=Health care in Australia |year=2008 |work=About Australia |publisher=Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100404084746/http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/healthcare.html <!-- Added by H3llBot --> |archivedate=4 April 2010}}</ref> Australia introduced [[universal health care]] in 1975.<ref name="medicbrief">{{cite web |url=http://www.aph.gov.au/library/intguide/SP/medicare.htm |title=Medicare&nbsp;– Background Brief |last=Biggs |first=Amanda |date=29 October 2004 |work=Parliament of Australia: Parliamentary Library |publisher=Commonwealth of Australia |accessdate=16 April 2010 |location=Canberra, ACT| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100414012007/http://www.aph.gov.au/library/intguide/SP/medicare.htm| archivedate= 14 April 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Known as [[Medicare (Australia)|Medicare]], it is now nominally funded by an income tax surcharge known as the [[Medicare levy]], currently set at 1.5%.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/content.asp?doc=/content/17482.htm&pc=001/002/030/003/001&mnu=&mfp=&st=&cy=1 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080610171946/http://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/content.asp?doc=/content/17482.htm&pc=001/002/030/003/001&mnu=&mfp=&st=&cy=1 |archivedate=10 June 2008 |title=What is the Medicare levy? |accessdate=17 April 2010 |author=Australian Taxation Office |work=Australian Taxation Office website |publisher=Australian Government |date=19 June 2007}}</ref> The states manage hospitals and attached outpatient services, while the Commonwealth funds the [[Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme]] (subsidising the costs of medicines) and general practice.<ref name="medicbrief"/>
+
Total expenditure on health (including private sector spending) is around 9.8% of GDP.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/healthcare.html |title=Health care in Australia |year=2008 |work=About Australia |publisher=Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100404084746/http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/healthcare.html <!-- Added by H3llBot --> |archivedate=4 April 2010}}</ref> Australia introduced [[universal health care]] in 1975.<ref name="medicbrief">{{cite web |url=http://www.aph.gov.au/library/intguide/SP/medicare.htm |title=Medicare&nbsp;– Background Brief |last=Biggs |first=Amanda |date=29 October 2004 |work=Parliament of Australia: Parliamentary Library |publisher=Commonwealth of Australia |accessdate=16 April 2010 |location=Canberra, ACT| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100414012007/http://www.aph.gov.au/library/intguide/SP/medicare.htm| archivedate= 14 April 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Known as [[Medicare (Australia)|Medicare]], it is now nominally funded by an income tax surcharge known as the [[Medicare levy]], currently set at 1.5%.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/content.asp?doc=/content/17482.htm&pc=001/002/030/003/001&mnu=&mfp=&st=&cy=1 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080610171946/http://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/content.asp?doc=/content/17482.htm&pc=001/002/030/003/001&mnu=&mfp=&st=&cy=1 |archivedate=10 June 2008 |title=What is the Medicare levy? |accessdate=17 April 2010 |author=Australian Taxation Office |work=Australian Taxation Office website |publisher=Australian Government |date=19 June 2007}}</ref> The states manage hospitals and attached outpatient services, while the Commonwealth funds the [[Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme]] (subsidising the costs of medicines) and general practice.<ref name="medicbrief" />
   
 
==Culture==
 
==Culture==
 
{{Main|Culture of Australia}}
 
{{Main|Culture of Australia}}
 
[[File:Royal exhibition building tulips straight.jpg|thumb|right|alt=Ornate white building with an elevated dome in the middle, fronted by a golden fountain and orange flowers|The [[Royal Exhibition Building]] in Melbourne was the first building in Australia to be listed as a UNESCO [[World Heritage Site]] in 2004.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/world_heritage.html |title=About Australia: World Heritage properties|publisher=Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade |accessdate=14 June 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100725033040/http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/world_heritage.html| archivedate= 25 July 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref>]]
 
[[File:Royal exhibition building tulips straight.jpg|thumb|right|alt=Ornate white building with an elevated dome in the middle, fronted by a golden fountain and orange flowers|The [[Royal Exhibition Building]] in Melbourne was the first building in Australia to be listed as a UNESCO [[World Heritage Site]] in 2004.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/world_heritage.html |title=About Australia: World Heritage properties|publisher=Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade |accessdate=14 June 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100725033040/http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/world_heritage.html| archivedate= 25 July 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref>]]
Since 1788, the basis of Australian culture has been strongly influenced by [[Anglo-Celtic]] [[Western culture]].<ref>[[#Jupp|Jupp]], pp. 796–802.</ref><ref>[[#Teo|Teo and White]], pp. 118–20.</ref> Distinctive cultural features have also arisen from Australia's natural environment and Indigenous cultures.<ref name=bush>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 98–99.</ref><ref>[[#Teo|Teo and White]], pp. 125–27.</ref> Since the mid-20th century, [[Culture of the United States|American popular culture]] has strongly influenced Australia, particularly through television and cinema.<ref name=tw>[[#Teo|Teo and White]], pp. 121–23.</ref> Other cultural influences come from neighbouring Asian countries, and through large-scale immigration from non-English-speaking nations.<ref name=tw/><ref>[[#Jupp|Jupp]], pp. 808–12, 74–77.</ref>
+
Since 1788, the basis of Australian culture has been strongly influenced by [[Anglo-Celtic]] [[Western culture]].<ref>[[#Jupp|Jupp]], pp. 796–802.</ref><ref>[[#Teo|Teo and White]], pp. 118–20.</ref> Distinctive cultural features have also arisen from Australia's natural environment and Indigenous cultures.<ref name="bush">Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 98–99.</ref><ref>[[#Teo|Teo and White]], pp. 125–27.</ref> Since the mid-20th century, [[Culture of the United States|American popular culture]] has strongly influenced Australia, particularly through television and cinema.<ref name="tw">[[#Teo|Teo and White]], pp. 121–23.</ref> Other cultural influences come from neighbouring Asian countries, and through large-scale immigration from non-English-speaking nations.<ref name="tw" /><ref>[[#Jupp|Jupp]], pp. 808–12, 74–77.</ref>
   
 
===Arts===
 
===Arts===
 
{{Main|Australian art|Australian literature|Theatre of Australia|Dance in Australia}}
 
{{Main|Australian art|Australian literature|Theatre of Australia|Dance in Australia}}
The [[rock art]] of Australia's Indigenous peoples is the oldest and richest in the world, dating as far back as 60,000 years and spread across hundreds of thousands of sites.<ref>Taçon, Paul S. C. (2001). "Australia". In Whitely, David S.. ''Handbook of Rock Art Research''. [[Rowman & Littlefield]]. pp. 531–575. ISBN 978-0-7425025-6-7</ref> Traditional designs, patterns and stories infuse [[contemporary Indigenous Australian art]], "the last great art movement of the 20th century";<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/06/arts/06iht-aborigine.html |title=Powerful growth of Aboriginal art |last=Henly |first=Susan Gough |date=6 November 2005 |work=The New York Times }}</ref> its exponents include [[Emily Kame Kngwarreye]].<ref>Smith, Terry (1996) "Kngwarreye Woman, Abstract Painter", p. 24 in ''Emily Kngwarreye – Paintings'', North Ryde NSW: Craftsman House / G + B Arts International. ISBN 90-5703-681-9.</ref> During the first century of European settlement, colonial artists, trained in Europe, showed a fascination with the unfamiliar land.<ref name=art/> The [[realism (arts)|naturalistic]], sun-filled works of [[Arthur Streeton]], [[Tom Roberts]] and others associated with the 19th-century [[Heidelberg School]]—the first "distinctively Australian" movement in Western art—gave expression to a burgeoning Australian nationalism in the lead-up to Federation.<ref name=art>[http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/discover-art/learn-more/australian-art/ Australian art], [[Art Gallery of New South Wales]]. Retrieved 27 August 2014.</ref> While the school remained influential into the new century, [[modern art|modernists]] such as [[Margaret Preston]], and, later, [[Sidney Nolan]] and [[Arthur Boyd]], explored new artistic trends.<ref name=art/> The landscape remained a central subject matter for [[Fred Williams]], [[Brett Whiteley]] and other post-World War II artists whose works, eclectic in style yet uniquely Australian, moved between the [[figurative art|figurative]] and the [[abstract art|abstract]].<ref name=art/><ref>[http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/brett-whiteley-nature/ Brett Whiteley: Nature], Art Gallery of New South Wales. Retrieved 15 April 2015.</ref> The [[National Gallery of Australia]] and state galleries maintain collections of Australian and international art.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Artists & Galleries of Australia|publisher=Craftsman House|location=Roseville, Vic.|year=1990|isbn=976-8097-02-7|author=Germaine, Max|pages=756–58, 796–97, 809–10, 814–15, 819–20, 826–27, 829–30}}</ref> Australia has one of the world's highest attendances of art galleries and museums per head of population.<ref>Ron Radford, Director of the [[National Gallery of Australia]], quoted in {{cite news|last=Blake|first=Elissa|title=The art of persuasion|newspaper=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] (Spectrum section)|date=4–5 February 2012}}</ref>
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The [[rock art]] of Australia's Indigenous peoples is the oldest and richest in the world, dating as far back as 60,000 years and spread across hundreds of thousands of sites.<ref>Taçon, Paul S. C. (2001). "Australia". In Whitely, David S.. ''Handbook of Rock Art Research''. [[Rowman & Littlefield]]. pp. 531–575. ISBN 978-0-7425025-6-7</ref> Traditional designs, patterns and stories infuse [[contemporary Indigenous Australian art]], "the last great art movement of the 20th century";<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/06/arts/06iht-aborigine.html |title=Powerful growth of Aboriginal art |last=Henly |first=Susan Gough |date=6 November 2005 |work=The New York Times }}</ref> its exponents include [[Emily Kame Kngwarreye]].<ref>Smith, Terry (1996) "Kngwarreye Woman, Abstract Painter", p. 24 in ''Emily Kngwarreye – Paintings'', North Ryde NSW: Craftsman House / G + B Arts International. ISBN 90-5703-681-9.</ref> During the first century of European settlement, colonial artists, trained in Europe, showed a fascination with the unfamiliar land.<ref name="art" /> The [[realism (arts)|naturalistic]], sun-filled works of [[Arthur Streeton]], [[Tom Roberts]] and others associated with the 19th-century [[Heidelberg School]]—the first "distinctively Australian" movement in Western art—gave expression to a burgeoning Australian nationalism in the lead-up to Federation.<ref name="art">[http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/discover-art/learn-more/australian-art/ Australian art], [[Art Gallery of New South Wales]]. Retrieved 27 August 2014.</ref> While the school remained influential into the new century, [[modern art|modernists]] such as [[Margaret Preston]], and, later, [[Sidney Nolan]] and [[Arthur Boyd]], explored new artistic trends.<ref name="art" /> The landscape remained a central subject matter for [[Fred Williams]], [[Brett Whiteley]] and other post-World War II artists whose works, eclectic in style yet uniquely Australian, moved between the [[figurative art|figurative]] and the [[abstract art|abstract]].<ref name="art" /><ref>[http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/brett-whiteley-nature/ Brett Whiteley: Nature], Art Gallery of New South Wales. Retrieved 15 April 2015.</ref> The [[National Gallery of Australia]] and state galleries maintain collections of Australian and international art.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Artists & Galleries of Australia|publisher=Craftsman House|location=Roseville, Vic.|year=1990|isbn=976-8097-02-7|author=Germaine, Max|pages=756–58, 796–97, 809–10, 814–15, 819–20, 826–27, 829–30}}</ref> Australia has one of the world's highest attendances of art galleries and museums per head of population.<ref>Ron Radford, Director of the [[National Gallery of Australia]], quoted in {{cite news|last=Blake|first=Elissa|title=The art of persuasion|newspaper=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] (Spectrum section)|date=4–5 February 2012}}</ref>
   
 
[[File:Sidney Nolan Snake.jpg|thumb|[[Sidney Nolan]]'s ''Snake'' mural (1970), held at the [[Museum of Old and New Art]] in Hobart, Tasmania, is inspired by the Aboriginal creation myth of the [[Rainbow Serpent]], as well as desert flowers in bloom after a drought.<ref>"Sidney Nolan's Rainbow Serpent is larger than life" (16 June 2012), ''The Australasian''.</ref>]]
 
[[File:Sidney Nolan Snake.jpg|thumb|[[Sidney Nolan]]'s ''Snake'' mural (1970), held at the [[Museum of Old and New Art]] in Hobart, Tasmania, is inspired by the Aboriginal creation myth of the [[Rainbow Serpent]], as well as desert flowers in bloom after a drought.<ref>"Sidney Nolan's Rainbow Serpent is larger than life" (16 June 2012), ''The Australasian''.</ref>]]
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''[[The Story of the Kelly Gang]]'' (1906), the world's first [[feature length]] film, spurred a boom in [[cinema of Australia|Australian cinema]] during the [[silent film]] era.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php-URL_ID=37899&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html |title=Return of the Kelly Gang |work=[[UNESCO Courier]] |author=Chichester, Jo |publisher=[[UNESCO]] |year=2007 |accessdate=1 February 2009}}</ref> After World War I, [[Hollywood]] monopolised the industry,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:a0bny9r0rpkJ:www.afc.gov.au/downloads/policies/early%2520history_final1.pdf+australian+film+production+%2B+hollywood+%2B+1920s&hl=en&gl=au&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESgSRefiOTOyLQEmeKt6CgCdo2vNSCscav9DLNNt0yc9iUfLnuc0S02qForlyo3T0wLCj_8Hnw2kRlN8jZxyZer_9QXlngel05Rr8NDnAsZWP-8UqmzB0kWW9T4yVDlWQYmhsm7-&sig=AHIEtbRziGrWdip9B8rYLyNLrH02b8IYuQ |title=The first wave of Australian feature film production |publisher=Docs.google.com |accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref> and by the 1960s Australian film production had effectively ceased.<ref>{{cite web |work=Australian Government: Culture Portal |url=http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/film/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110327002350/http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/film/ |archivedate=27 March 2011 |title=Culture.gov.au&nbsp;– "Film in Australia" |publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Commonwealth of Australia |date=22 November 2007 }}</ref> With the benefit of government support, the [[Australian New Wave]] of the 1970s brought provocative and successful films, many exploring the nation's colonial past, such as ''[[Picnic at Hanging Rock]]'' and ''[[Breaker Morant (film)|Breaker Morant]]'',<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 252–53.</ref> while the so-called [[Ozploitation]] genre produced international blockbusters, including the ''[[Mad Max (franchise)|Mad Max]]'' series.<ref>{{cite interview |last=Sowada |first=Richard | interviewer=Patricia Karvelas |title=Mad Max |callsign=[[Radio National|RN Drive]] |date=6 February 2013 |program=Historyonics | url=http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/drive/historyonics3a-mad-max/4504578 |accessdate=31 January 2015}}</ref> More recent successes included ''[[Shine (film)|Shine]]'' and ''[[Rabbit-Proof Fence (film)|Rabbit-Proof Fence]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://aso.gov.au/titles/features/shine/notes/|title=Shine|publisher=[[National Film and Sound Archive]]|accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://aso.gov.au/titles/features/rabbit-proof-fence/notes/|title=Rabbit-Proof Fence |publisher=[[National Film and Sound Archive]]|accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref> Notable Australian actors include [[Errol Flynn]], [[Judith Anderson]], [[Geoffrey Rush]], [[Nicole Kidman]], [[Heath Ledger]] and [[Cate Blanchett]].<ref>[http://www.portrait.gov.au/exhibitions/australians-in-hollywood-2003 Australians in Hollywood], [[National Portrait Gallery (Australia)|National Portrait Gallery]]. Retrieved 15 April 2015.</ref>
 
''[[The Story of the Kelly Gang]]'' (1906), the world's first [[feature length]] film, spurred a boom in [[cinema of Australia|Australian cinema]] during the [[silent film]] era.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php-URL_ID=37899&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html |title=Return of the Kelly Gang |work=[[UNESCO Courier]] |author=Chichester, Jo |publisher=[[UNESCO]] |year=2007 |accessdate=1 February 2009}}</ref> After World War I, [[Hollywood]] monopolised the industry,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:a0bny9r0rpkJ:www.afc.gov.au/downloads/policies/early%2520history_final1.pdf+australian+film+production+%2B+hollywood+%2B+1920s&hl=en&gl=au&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESgSRefiOTOyLQEmeKt6CgCdo2vNSCscav9DLNNt0yc9iUfLnuc0S02qForlyo3T0wLCj_8Hnw2kRlN8jZxyZer_9QXlngel05Rr8NDnAsZWP-8UqmzB0kWW9T4yVDlWQYmhsm7-&sig=AHIEtbRziGrWdip9B8rYLyNLrH02b8IYuQ |title=The first wave of Australian feature film production |publisher=Docs.google.com |accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref> and by the 1960s Australian film production had effectively ceased.<ref>{{cite web |work=Australian Government: Culture Portal |url=http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/film/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110327002350/http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/film/ |archivedate=27 March 2011 |title=Culture.gov.au&nbsp;– "Film in Australia" |publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Commonwealth of Australia |date=22 November 2007 }}</ref> With the benefit of government support, the [[Australian New Wave]] of the 1970s brought provocative and successful films, many exploring the nation's colonial past, such as ''[[Picnic at Hanging Rock]]'' and ''[[Breaker Morant (film)|Breaker Morant]]'',<ref>Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 252–53.</ref> while the so-called [[Ozploitation]] genre produced international blockbusters, including the ''[[Mad Max (franchise)|Mad Max]]'' series.<ref>{{cite interview |last=Sowada |first=Richard | interviewer=Patricia Karvelas |title=Mad Max |callsign=[[Radio National|RN Drive]] |date=6 February 2013 |program=Historyonics | url=http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/drive/historyonics3a-mad-max/4504578 |accessdate=31 January 2015}}</ref> More recent successes included ''[[Shine (film)|Shine]]'' and ''[[Rabbit-Proof Fence (film)|Rabbit-Proof Fence]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://aso.gov.au/titles/features/shine/notes/|title=Shine|publisher=[[National Film and Sound Archive]]|accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://aso.gov.au/titles/features/rabbit-proof-fence/notes/|title=Rabbit-Proof Fence |publisher=[[National Film and Sound Archive]]|accessdate=23 April 2010}}</ref> Notable Australian actors include [[Errol Flynn]], [[Judith Anderson]], [[Geoffrey Rush]], [[Nicole Kidman]], [[Heath Ledger]] and [[Cate Blanchett]].<ref>[http://www.portrait.gov.au/exhibitions/australians-in-hollywood-2003 Australians in Hollywood], [[National Portrait Gallery (Australia)|National Portrait Gallery]]. Retrieved 15 April 2015.</ref>
   
Australia has two public broadcasters (the [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] and the multicultural [[Special Broadcasting Service]]), three commercial television networks, several pay-TV services,<ref name=bbc>{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/1250188.stm|work=BBC News|title=Country profile: Australia|date=13 October 2009|accessdate=7 April 2010}}</ref> and numerous public, non-profit television and radio stations. Each major city has at least one daily newspaper,<ref name=bbc/> and there are two national daily newspapers, ''[[The Australian]]'' and ''[[The Australian Financial Review]]''.<ref name=bbc/> In 2010, [[Reporters Without Borders]] placed Australia 18th on a list of 178 countries ranked by [[freedom of the press|press freedom]], behind New Zealand (8th) but ahead of the United Kingdom (19th) and United States (20th).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.rsf.org/press-freedom-index-2010,1034.html|title=Press Freedom Index 2010|publisher=[[Reporters Without Borders]] |author=Reporters Without Borders |year=2010|accessdate=22 November 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101124050702/http://en.rsf.org/press-freedom-index-2010,1034.html| archivedate= 24 November 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> This relatively low ranking is primarily because of the limited diversity of commercial media ownership in Australia;<ref>Barr, Trevor. "[http://www.australianpolitics.com/issues/media-ownership/1999ownership.shtml Media Ownership in Australia]", australianpolitics.com. Retrieved 2 January 2008.</ref> most print media are under the control of [[News Corporation]] and [[Fairfax Media]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aph.gov.au/library/INTGUIDE/SP/Media_Regulation.htm|title=Media Ownership Regulation in Australia|publisher=[[Parliament of Australia]] |author=Gardiner-Garden, John and Chowns, Jonathan |date=30 May 2006| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100328020533/http://www.aph.gov.au/library/intguide/SP/Media_Regulation.htm| archivedate= 28 March 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref>
+
Australia has two public broadcasters (the [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]] and the multicultural [[Special Broadcasting Service]]), three commercial television networks, several pay-TV services,<ref name="bbc">{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/1250188.stm|work=BBC News|title=Country profile: Australia|date=13 October 2009|accessdate=7 April 2010}}</ref> and numerous public, non-profit television and radio stations. Each major city has at least one daily newspaper,<ref name="bbc" /> and there are two national daily newspapers, ''[[The Australian]]'' and ''[[The Australian Financial Review]]''.<ref name="bbc" /> In 2010, [[Reporters Without Borders]] placed Australia 18th on a list of 178 countries ranked by [[freedom of the press|press freedom]], behind New Zealand (8th) but ahead of the United Kingdom (19th) and United States (20th).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.rsf.org/press-freedom-index-2010,1034.html|title=Press Freedom Index 2010|publisher=[[Reporters Without Borders]] |author=Reporters Without Borders |year=2010|accessdate=22 November 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101124050702/http://en.rsf.org/press-freedom-index-2010,1034.html| archivedate= 24 November 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> This relatively low ranking is primarily because of the limited diversity of commercial media ownership in Australia;<ref>Barr, Trevor. "[http://www.australianpolitics.com/issues/media-ownership/1999ownership.shtml Media Ownership in Australia]", australianpolitics.com. Retrieved 2 January 2008.</ref> most print media are under the control of [[News Corporation]] and [[Fairfax Media]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aph.gov.au/library/INTGUIDE/SP/Media_Regulation.htm|title=Media Ownership Regulation in Australia|publisher=[[Parliament of Australia]] |author=Gardiner-Garden, John and Chowns, Jonathan |date=30 May 2006| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100328020533/http://www.aph.gov.au/library/intguide/SP/Media_Regulation.htm| archivedate= 28 March 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref>
   
 
===Cuisine===
 
===Cuisine===
 
{{Main|Australian cuisine}}
 
{{Main|Australian cuisine}}
Most Indigenous Australian tribal groups subsisted on a simple [[hunter-gatherer diet]] of native fauna and flora, otherwise called [[bushfood|bush tucker]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/bushtucker/ |title=Bush Tucker Plants, or Bush Food |publisher=Teachers.ash.org.au |accessdate=26 April 2011| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511094258/http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/bushtucker/| archivedate= 11 May 2011 | deadurl=no}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theepicentre.com/Australia/aufood2.html |title=Bush Tucker |publisher=Theepicentre.com |accessdate=26 April 2011| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110513084614/http://www.theepicentre.com/Australia/aufood2.html| archivedate= 13 May 2011 | deadurl=no}}</ref> The first settlers introduced [[British cuisine|British food]] to the continent, much of which is now considered typical Australian food, such as the [[Sunday roast]].<ref name=food>{{cite web|url=http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/foodanddrink/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100326134155/http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/foodanddrink/|archivedate=26 March 2010|title=Australian food and drink|publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts |date=23 September 2008}}</ref><ref name=f2>{{cite web|url=http://www.sbs.com.au/food/cuisineindex/RecipeByCuisineMain/383|title=Modern Australian recipes and Modern Australian cuisine|publisher=[[Special Broadcasting Service]]|accessdate=23 April 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100503111747/http://www.sbs.com.au/food/cuisineindex/RecipeByCuisineMain/383| archivedate= 3 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Multicultural immigration transformed Australian cuisine; post-World War II European migrants, particularly from the Mediterranean, helped to build a thriving Australian [[coffee culture]], and the influence of [[Culture of Asia|Asian cultures]] has led to Australian variants of their staple foods, such as the [[Chinese cuisine|Chinese]]-inspired [[dim sim]] and [[Chiko Roll]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Jonsen|first=Helen|title=Kangaroo's Comments and Wallaby's Words: The Aussie Word Book|publisher=[[Hippocrene Books]]|year=1999|isbn=978-0-7818-0737-1|page=23}}</ref> [[Vegemite]], [[pavlova]], [[lamington]]s and [[meat pie (Australia and New Zealand)|meat pie]]s are regarded as iconic Australian foods.<ref>{{cite book|last=Santich|first=Barbara|title=Bold Palates: Australia's Gastronomic Heritage|publisher=[[Wakefield Press]]|year=2012|isbn=978-1-74305-094-1|page=290}}</ref> [[Australian wine]] is produced mainly in the southern, cooler parts of the country.
+
Most Indigenous Australian tribal groups subsisted on a simple [[hunter-gatherer diet]] of native fauna and flora, otherwise called [[bushfood|bush tucker]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/bushtucker/ |title=Bush Tucker Plants, or Bush Food |publisher=Teachers.ash.org.au |accessdate=26 April 2011| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511094258/http://www.teachers.ash.org.au/bushtucker/| archivedate= 11 May 2011 | deadurl=no}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theepicentre.com/Australia/aufood2.html |title=Bush Tucker |publisher=Theepicentre.com |accessdate=26 April 2011| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110513084614/http://www.theepicentre.com/Australia/aufood2.html| archivedate= 13 May 2011 | deadurl=no}}</ref> The first settlers introduced [[British cuisine|British food]] to the continent, much of which is now considered typical Australian food, such as the [[Sunday roast]].<ref name="food">{{cite web|url=http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/foodanddrink/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100326134155/http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/foodanddrink/|archivedate=26 March 2010|title=Australian food and drink|publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts |date=23 September 2008}}</ref><ref name="f2">{{cite web|url=http://www.sbs.com.au/food/cuisineindex/RecipeByCuisineMain/383|title=Modern Australian recipes and Modern Australian cuisine|publisher=[[Special Broadcasting Service]]|accessdate=23 April 2010| archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100503111747/http://www.sbs.com.au/food/cuisineindex/RecipeByCuisineMain/383| archivedate= 3 May 2010 | deadurl=no}}</ref> Multicultural immigration transformed Australian cuisine; post-World War II European migrants, particularly from the Mediterranean, helped to build a thriving Australian [[coffee culture]], and the influence of [[Culture of Asia|Asian cultures]] has led to Australian variants of their staple foods, such as the [[Chinese cuisine|Chinese]]-inspired [[dim sim]] and [[Chiko Roll]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Jonsen|first=Helen|title=Kangaroo's Comments and Wallaby's Words: The Aussie Word Book|publisher=[[Hippocrene Books]]|year=1999|isbn=978-0-7818-0737-1|page=23}}</ref> [[Vegemite]], [[pavlova]], [[lamington]]s and [[meat pie (Australia and New Zealand)|meat pie]]s are regarded as iconic Australian foods.<ref>{{cite book|last=Santich|first=Barbara|title=Bold Palates: Australia's Gastronomic Heritage|publisher=[[Wakefield Press]]|year=2012|isbn=978-1-74305-094-1|page=290}}</ref> [[Australian wine]] is produced mainly in the southern, cooler parts of the country.
   
 
===Sport and recreation===
 
===Sport and recreation===

Latest revision as of 06:48, 25 March 2021

Main Births etc
Commonwealth of Australia
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. Coat of Arms of Australia
Anthem: "Advance Australia Fair"[N 1]
Australia (orthographic projection)
CapitalCanberra
35°18.48′S 149°7.47′E / -35.308, 149.1245
Largest city Sydney
Official languages None[N 2]
National language English[N 2]
Demonym
Government Federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy
 -  Monarch Elizabeth II
 -  Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove
 -  Prime Minister Tony Abbott
 -  Chief Justice Robert French
Legislature Parliament
 -  Upper house Senate
 -  Lower house House of Representatives
Independence from the United Kingdom
 -  Federation, Constitution 1 January 1901 
 -  Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 9 October 1942 (with effect
from 3 September 1939)
 
 -  Australia Act 3 March 1986 
Area
 -  Total 7,692,024 km2 (6th)
2,969,907 sq mi 
Population
 -  2024 estimate Template:Data Australia[5] (51st)
 -  2011 census 21,507,717[6]
 -  Density 2.8/km2 (233rd)
7.3/sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2015 estimate
 -  Total $1.137 trillion[7] (19th)
 -  Per capita $47,608[7] (17th)
GDP (nominal) 2015 estimate
 -  Total $1.252 trillion[7] (12th)
 -  Per capita $52,454[7] (9th)
Gini (2012)33.6[8]
medium · 19th
HDI (2013)steady 0.933[9]
very high · 2nd
Currency Australian dollar (AUD)
Time zone various[N 3] (UTC+8 to +10.5)
 -  Summer (DST) various[N 3] (UTC+8 to +11.5)
Date format dd-mm-yyyy
Drives on the left
Calling code +61
Internet TLD .au

Australia ( /ɒˈstrliə/, /əʔ/, colloquially /ʔjə/),[10][11] officially the Commonwealth of Australia,[12] is an Oceanian country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area. Neighbouring countries include Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and East Timor to the north; the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east; and New Zealand to the south-east.

For at least 40,000 years[13] before the first British settlement in the late 18th century,[14][15] Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians,[16] who spoke languages grouped into roughly 250 language groups.[17][18]

After the European discovery of the continent by Dutch explorers in 1606, Australia's eastern half was claimed by Great Britain in 1770 and initially settled through penal transportation to the colony of New South Wales from 26 January 1788. The population grew steadily in subsequent decades; the continent was explored and an additional five self-governing crown colonies were established. On 1 January 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. Since Federation, Australia has maintained a stable liberal democratic political system that functions as a federal parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy comprising six states and several territories. The population of 23.6 million[5] is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated in the eastern states and on the coast.[19]

Australia is a developed country and one of the wealthiest in the world, with the world's 12th-largest economy. In 2014 Australia had the world's fifth-highest per capita income.[20] Australia's military expenditure is the world's 13th-largest. With the second-highest human development index globally, Australia ranks highly in many international comparisons of national performance, such as quality of life, health, education, economic freedom, and the protection of civil liberties and political rights.[21] Australia is a member of the United Nations, G20, Commonwealth of Nations, ANZUS, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), World Trade Organization, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, and the Pacific Islands Forum.

Etymology[]

Pronounced [əˈstɹæɪljə, -liə] in Australian English,[22] the name Australia is derived from the Latin australis, meaning "southern". The country has been referred to colloquially as Oz since the early 20th century.[N 4] Aussie is a common colloquial term for "Australian". In neighbouring New Zealand, and less commonly in Australia itself, the noun "Aussie" is also used to refer to the nation, as distinct from its residents.[27][28][29] The sporting anthem C'mon Aussie C'mon is an example of the use of Aussie as a synonym for Australia.[28][30]

Austrialia First use of word Quiros

The name "Austrialia" was used for the first time by Quiros – in May 1606.[31][32][33]

Austrialia changed to Australia

Austrialia was altered or 'corrected' to Australia over time (one example shown).[34]

Australia First use of word Shaw Zoology

The name Australia was specifically applied to the continent for the first time in 1794.[35]

Legends of Terra Australis Incognita—an "unknown land of the South"—date back to Roman times and were commonplace in medieval geography, although not based on any documented knowledge of the continent. Following European discovery, names for the Australian landmass were often references to the famed Terra Australis.

The earliest recorded use of the word Australia in English was in 1625 in "A note of Australia del Espíritu Santo, written by Sir Richard Hakluyt", published by Samuel Purchas in Hakluytus Posthumus, a corruption of the original Spanish name "Tierra Austral del Espíritu Santo" (Southern Land of the Holy Spirit)[36] for an island in Vanuatu.[37] The Dutch adjectival form Australische was used in a Dutch book in Batavia (Jakarta) in 1638, to refer to the newly discovered lands to the south.[38] Australia was later used in a 1693 translation of Les Aventures de Jacques Sadeur dans la Découverte et le Voyage de la Terre Australe, a 1676 French novel by Gabriel de Foigny, under the pen-name Jacques Sadeur.[39] Referring to the entire South Pacific region, Alexander Dalrymple used it in An Historical Collection of Voyages and Discoveries in the South Pacific Ocean in 1771. By the end of the 18th century, the name was being used to refer specifically to Australia, with the botanists George Shaw and Sir James Smith writing of "the vast island, or rather continent, of Australia, Australasia or New Holland" in their 1793 Zoology and Botany of New Holland,[40] and James Wilson including it on a 1799 chart.[41]

The name Australia was popularised by the explorer Matthew Flinders, who pushed for it to be formally adopted as early as 1804.[42] When preparing his manuscript and charts for his 1814 A Voyage to Terra Australis, he was persuaded by his patron, Sir Joseph Banks, to use the term Terra Australis as this was the name most familiar to the public. Flinders did so, and published the following rationale:

There is no probability, that any other detached body of land, of nearly equal extent, will ever be found in a more southern latitude; the name Terra Australis will, therefore, remain descriptive of the geographical importance of this country, and of its situation on the globe: it has antiquity to recommend it; and, having no reference to either of the two claiming nations, appears to be less objectionable than any other which could have been selected.*[43]

In the footnote Flinders wrote:

*  Had I permitted myself any innovation on the original term, it would have been to convert it to AUSTRALIA; as being more agreeable to the ear, and an assimilation to the names of the other great portions of the earth.[44]

This is the only occurrence of the word Australia in that text; but in Appendix III, Robert Brown's General remarks, geographical and systematical, on the botany of Terra Australis, Brown makes use of the adjectival form Australian throughout,[45]—the first known use of that form.[46] Despite popular conception, the book was not instrumental in the adoption of the name: the name came gradually to be accepted over the following ten years.[47]

The first time that the name Australia appears to have been officially used was in a despatch to Lord Bathurst of 4 April 1817 in which Governor Lachlan Macquarie acknowledges the receipt of Capt. Flinders' charts of Australia.[48] On 12 December 1817, Macquarie recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted.[49] In 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially as Australia.[50]

History[]

Prehistory[]

Bradshaw rock paintings

Aboriginal rock art in the Kimberley region of Western Australia

Human habitation of the Australian continent is known to have begun at least 65,000 years ago,[51][52] with the migration of people by land bridges and short sea-crossings from what is now Southeast Asia.[53] The Madjedbebe rock shelter in Arnhem Land is recognised as the oldest site showing the presence of humans in Australia.[54] The oldest human remains found are the Lake Mungo remains, which have been dated to around 41,000 years ago.[55][56] These people were the ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians.[57] Aboriginal Australian culture is one of the oldest continual cultures on earth.[58]

At the time of first European contact, most Indigenous Australians were hunter-gatherers with complex economies and societies.[59][60] Recent archaeological finds suggest that a population of 750,000 could have been sustained.[61][62] Indigenous Australians have an oral culture with spiritual values based on reverence for the land and a belief in the Dreamtime.[63] The Torres Strait Islanders, ethnically Melanesian, obtained their livelihood from seasonal horticulture and the resources of their reefs and seas.[64] The northern coasts and waters of Australia were visited sporadically by Makassan fishermen from what is now Indonesia.[65]

European arrival[]

A painting of Captain James Cook in uniform sitting down in front of a map

Portrait of Captain James Cook, the first European to map the eastern coastline of Australia in 1770

The first recorded European sighting of the Australian mainland, and the first recorded European landfall on the Australian continent, are attributed to the Dutch.[66] The first ship and crew to chart the Australian coast and meet with Aboriginal people was the Duyfken captained by Dutch navigator, Willem Janszoon.[67] He sighted the coast of Cape York Peninsula in early 1606, and made landfall on 26 February at the Pennefather River near the modern town of Weipa on Cape York.[68] Later that year, Spanish explorer Luís Vaz de Torres sailed through, and navigated, Torres Strait islands.[69] The Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines and named the island continent "New Holland" during the 17th century, and although no attempt at settlement was made,[68] a number of shipwrecks left men either stranded or, as in the case of the Batavia in 1629, marooned for mutiny and murder, thus becoming the first Europeans to permanently inhabit the continent.[70] William Dampier, an English explorer and privateer, landed on the north-west coast of New Holland in 1688 (while serving as a crewman under pirate Captain John Read[71]) and again in 1699 on a return trip.[72] In 1770, James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast, which he named New South Wales and claimed for Great Britain.[73]

With the loss of its American colonies in 1783, the British Government sent a fleet of ships, the "First Fleet", under the command of Captain Arthur Phillip, to establish a new penal colony in New South Wales. A camp was set up and the Union flag raised at Sydney Cove, Port Jackson, on 26 January 1788,[74][75] a date which later became Australia's national day, Australia Day. Most early convicts were transported for petty crimes and assigned as labourers or servants upon arrival. While the majority settled into colonial society once emancipated, convict rebellions and uprisings were also staged, but invariably suppressed under martial law. The 1808 Rum Rebellion, the only successful armed takeover of government in Australia, instigated a two-year period of military rule.[76]

The indigenous population declined for 150 years following settlement, mainly due to infectious disease.[77] Thousands more died as a result of frontier conflict with settlers.[78] A government policy of "assimilation" beginning with the Aboriginal Protection Act 1869 resulted in the removal of many Aboriginal children from their families and communities—referred to as the Stolen Generations—a practice which also contributed to the decline in the indigenous population.[79] As a result of the 1967 referendum, the Federal government's power to enact special laws with respect to a particular race was extended to enable the making of laws with respect to Aboriginals.[80] Traditional ownership of land ("native title") was not recognised in law until 1992, when the High Court of Australia held in Mabo v Queensland (No 2) that the legal doctrine that Australia had been terra nullius ("land belonging to no one") did not apply to Australia at the time of British settlement.[81]

Colonial expansion[]

A calm body of water is in the foreground. The shoreline is about 200 metres away. To the left, close to the shore, are three tall gum trees; behind them on an incline are ruins, including walls and watchtowers of light-coloured stone and brick, what appear to be the foundations of walls, and grassed areas. To the right lie the outer walls of a large rectangular four-storey building dotted with regularly spaced windows. Forested land rises gently to a peak several kilometres back from the shore.

Tasmania's Port Arthur penal settlement is one of eleven UNESCO World Heritage-listed Australian Convict Sites.

The expansion of British control over other areas of the continent began in the early 19th century, initially confined to coastal regions. A settlement was established in Van Diemen's Land (present-day Tasmania) in 1803, and it became a separate colony in 1825.[82] In 1813, Gregory Blaxland, William Lawson and William Wentworth crossed the Blue Mountains west of Sydney, opening the interior to European settlement.[83] The British claim was extended to the whole Australian continent in 1827 when Major Edmund Lockyer established a settlement on King George Sound (modern-day Albany, Western Australia).[84] The Swan River Colony was established in 1829, evolving into the largest Australian colony by area, Western Australia.[85] In accordance with population growth, separate colonies were carved from parts of New South Wales: South Australia in 1836, New Zealand in 1841, Victoria in 1851, and Queensland in 1859.[86] The Northern Territory was excised from South Australia in 1911.[87] South Australia was founded as a "free province"—it was never a penal colony.[88] Western Australia was also founded "free" but later accepted transported convicts, the last of which arrived in 1868, decades after transportation had ceased to the other colonies.[89] By 1850, Europeans still had not entered large areas of the inland. Explorers remained ambitious to discover new lands for agriculture or answers to scientific enquiries.[90]

A series of gold rushes beginning in the early 1850s led to an influx of new migrants from China, North America and mainland Europe,[91] and also spurred outbreaks of bushranging and civil unrest. The latter peaked in 1854 when Ballarat miners launched the Eureka Rebellion against gold license fees.[92] Between 1855 and 1890, the six colonies individually gained responsible government, managing most of their own affairs while remaining part of the British Empire.[93] The Colonial Office in London retained control of some matters, notably foreign affairs,[94] defence,[95] and international shipping.

Nationhood[]

Photo of an ANZAC memorial with an elderly man playing a bugle. Rows of people are seated behind the memorial. Many small white crosses with red poppies have been stuck into the lawn in rows on either side of the memorial.

The Last Post is played at an Anzac Day ceremony in Port Melbourne, Victoria. Similar ceremonies are held in many suburbs and towns.

On 1 January 1901, federation of the colonies was achieved after a decade of planning, consultation and voting.[96] After the 1907 Imperial Conference, Australia and the other self-governing British colonies were given the status of "dominion" within the British Empire.[97][98] The Federal Capital Territory (later renamed the Australian Capital Territory) was formed in 1911 as the location for the future federal capital of Canberra. Melbourne was the temporary seat of government from 1901 to 1927 while Canberra was being constructed.[99] The Northern Territory was transferred from the control of the South Australian government to the federal parliament in 1911.[100] Australia became the colonial ruler of the Territory of Papua (which had initially been annexed by Queensland in 1888) in 1902 and of the Territory of New Guinea (formerly German New Guinea) in 1920. The two were unified as the Territory of Papua and New Guinea in 1949 and gained independence from Australia in 1975.

In 1914, Australia joined Britain in fighting World War I, with support from both the outgoing Commonwealth Liberal Party and the incoming Australian Labor Party.[101][102] Australians took part in many of the major battles fought on the Western Front.[103] Of about 416,000 who served, about 60,000 were killed and another 152,000 were wounded.[104] Many Australians regard the defeat of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) at Gallipoli as the birth of the nation—its first major military action.[105][106] The Kokoda Track campaign is regarded by many as an analogous nation-defining event during World War II.[107]

Britain's Statute of Westminster 1931 formally ended most of the constitutional links between Australia and the UK. Australia adopted it in 1942,[108] but it was backdated to 1939 to confirm the validity of legislation passed by the Australian Parliament during World War II.[109][110] The shock of Britain's defeat in Asia in 1942, followed soon after by the bombing of Darwin and other Japanese attacks, led to a widespread belief in Australia that an invasion was imminent, and a shift towards the United States as a new ally and protector.[111] Since 1951, Australia has been a formal military ally of the US, under the ANZUS treaty.[112]

After World War II, Australia encouraged immigration from mainland Europe. Since the 1970s and following the abolition of the White Australia policy, immigration from Asia and elsewhere was also promoted.[113] As a result, Australia's demography, culture, and self-image were transformed.[114] The Australia Act 1986 severed the remaining constitutional ties between Australia and the UK.[115] In a 1999 referendum, 55% of voters and a majority in every state rejected a proposal to become a republic with a president appointed by a two-thirds vote in both Houses of the Australian Parliament. There has been an increasing focus in foreign policy on ties with other Pacific Rim nations, while maintaining close ties with Australia's traditional allies and trading partners.[116]

Government[]

A large white and cream coloured building with grass on its roof. The building is topped with a large flagpole.

Parliament House, Canberra was opened in 1988, replacing the provisional Parliament House building opened in 1927.

Australia is a constitutional monarchy with a federal division of powers. It uses a parliamentary system of government[117] with Queen Elizabeth II at its apex as the Queen of Australia, a role that is distinct from her position as monarch of the other Commonwealth realms. The Queen resides in the United Kingdom, and she is represented by her viceroys in Australia (the Governor-General at the federal level and by the Governors at the state level), who by convention act on the advice of her ministers. Supreme executive authority is vested by the Constitution of Australia in the sovereign, but the power to exercise it is conferred by the Constitution specifically on the Governor-General.[118][119] The most notable exercise to date of the Governor-General's reserve powers outside the Prime Minister's request was the dismissal of the Whitlam Government in the constitutional crisis of 1975.[120]

The federal government is separated into three branches:

  • The legislature: the bicameral Parliament, defined in section 1 of the constitution as comprising the Queen (represented by the Governor-General), the Senate, and the House of Representatives;
  • The executive: the Federal Executive Council, in practice the Governor-General as advised by the Prime Minister and Ministers of State;[121]
  • The judiciary: the High Court of Australia and other federal courts, whose judges are appointed by the Governor-General on advice of the Council.


Scott Morrison 2019
Scott Morrison, Prime Minister of Australia
David Hurley official photo
David Hurley, Governor-General of Australia

In the Senate (the upper house), there are 76 senators: twelve each from the states and two each from the mainland territories (the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory).[122] The House of Representatives (the lower house) has 150 members elected from single-member electoral divisions, commonly known as "electorates" or "seats", allocated to states on the basis of population,[123] with each original state guaranteed a minimum of five seats.[124] Elections for both chambers are normally held every three years, simultaneously; senators have overlapping six-year terms except for those from the territories, whose terms are not fixed but are tied to the electoral cycle for the lower house; thus only 40 of the 76 places in the Senate are put to each election unless the cycle is interrupted by a double dissolution.[122]

Australia's electoral system uses preferential voting for all lower house elections with the exception of Tasmania and the ACT which, along with the Senate and most state upper houses, combine it with proportional representation in a system known as the single transferable vote. Voting is compulsory for all enrolled citizens 18 years and over in every jurisdiction,[125] as is enrolment (with the exception of South Australia).[126] The party with majority support in the House of Representatives forms the government and its leader becomes Prime Minister. In cases where no party has majority support, the Governor-General has the constitutional power to appoint the Prime Minister and, if necessary, dismiss one that has lost the confidence of Parliament.[127]

There are two major political groups that usually form government, federally and in the states: the Australian Labor Party and the Coalition which is a formal grouping of the Liberal Party and its minor partner, the National Party.[128][129] Within Australian political culture, the Coalition is considered centre-right and the Labor Party is considered centre-left.[130] Independent members and several minor parties have achieved representation in Australian parliaments, mostly in upper houses.

Following a partyroom leadership challenge, Julia Gillard became the first female Prime Minister in June 2010.[131] The most recent federal election was held on 18 May 2019 and resulted in a minority government for the Coalition. Liberal Party leader Scott Morrison was sworn into office as Prime Minister by the Governor-General of Australia on 24 August.

States and territories[]

PerthAdelaideMelbourneCanberraSydneyBrisbaneDarwinHobartTasmaniaAustralian Capital TerritoryAustralian Capital TerritoryWestern AustraliaNorthern TerritorySouth AustraliaQueenslandNew South WalesVictoriaTasmaniaGreat Australian BightTasman SeaIndian OceanCoral SeaIndonesiaPapua New GuineaGulf of CarpentariaArafura SeaEast TimorTimor SeaGreat Barrier ReefMap of Australia
About this image

A clickable map of Australia's states and mainland territories

Australia has six statesNew South Wales (NSW), Queensland (QLD), South Australia (SA), Tasmania (TAS), Victoria (VIC) and Western Australia (WA)—and two major mainland territories—the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and the Northern Territory (NT). In most respects these two territories function as states, but the Commonwealth Parliament can override any legislation of their parliaments. By contrast, federal legislation overrides state legislation only in areas that are set out in Section 51 of the Australian Constitution; state parliaments retain all residual legislative powers, including those over schools, state police, the state judiciary, roads, public transport and local government, since these do not fall under the provisions listed in Section 51.[132]

Each state and major mainland territory has its own parliamentunicameral in the Northern Territory, the ACT and Queensland—and bicameral in the other states. The states are sovereign entities, although subject to certain powers of the Commonwealth as defined by the Constitution. The lower houses are known as the Legislative Assembly (the House of Assembly in South Australia and Tasmania); the upper houses are known as the Legislative Council. The head of the government in each state is the Premier and in each territory the Chief Minister. The Queen is represented in each state by a Governor; and in the Northern Territory, the Administrator.[133] In the Commonwealth, the Queen's representative is the Governor-General.[134]

The federal parliament directly administers the following territories:[121]

  • Ashmore and Cartier Islands
  • Australian Antarctic Territory
  • Christmas Island
  • Cocos (Keeling) Islands
  • Coral Sea Islands
  • Heard Island and McDonald Islands
  • Jervis Bay Territory, a naval base and sea port for the national capital in land that was formerly part of New South Wales

Norfolk Island is also technically an external territory; however, under the Norfolk Island Act 1979 it has been granted more autonomy and is governed locally by its own legislative assembly. The Queen is represented by an Administrator.[135]

Macquarie Island is administered by Tasmania, and Lord Howe Island by New South Wales.

Foreign relations and military[]

Over recent decades, Australia's foreign relations have been driven by a close association with the United States through the ANZUS pact, and by a desire to develop relationships with Asia and the Pacific, particularly through ASEAN and the Pacific Islands Forum. In 2005 Australia secured an inaugural seat at the East Asia Summit following its accession to the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia, and in 2011 attended the Sixth East Asia Summit in Indonesia. Australia is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, in which the Commonwealth Heads of Government meetings provide the main forum for co-operation.[136]

A group of Australian soldiers with rifles moving along a path in a wooded area

Australian Army soldiers conducting a foot patrol during a joint training exercise with US forces in Shoalwater Bay (2007).

Australia has pursued the cause of international trade liberalisation.[137] It led the formation of the Cairns Group and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation.[138][139] Australia is a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the World Trade Organization,[140][141] and has pursued several major bilateral free trade agreements, most recently the Australia – United States Free Trade Agreement[142] and Closer Economic Relations with New Zealand,[143] with another free trade agreement being negotiated with China—the Australia–China Free Trade Agreement—and Japan,[144] South Korea in 2011,[145][146] Australia–Chile Free Trade Agreement, ASEAN – Australia – New Zealand Free Trade Area, and the Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership.

Along with New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Malaysia and Singapore, Australia is party to the Five Power Defence Arrangements, a regional defence agreement. A founding member country of the United Nations, Australia is strongly committed to multilateralism[147] and maintains an international aid program under which some 60 countries receive assistance. The 2005–06 budget provides A$2.5 billion for development assistance.[148] Australia ranks seventh overall in the Center for Global Development's 2008 Commitment to Development Index.[149]

Australia's armed forces—the Australian Defence Force (ADF)—comprise the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), the Australian Army and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), in total numbering 80,561 personnel (including 55,068 regulars and 25,493 reservists).[150] The titular role of Commander-in-Chief is vested in the Governor-General, who appoints a Chief of the Defence Force from one of the armed services on the advice of the government.[151] Day-to-day force operations are under the command of the Chief, while broader administration and the formulation of defence policy is undertaken by the Minister and Department of Defence.

In the 2010–11 budget, defence spending was A$25.7 billion,[152] representing the 13th largest defence budget.[153] Australia has been involved in UN and regional peacekeeping, disaster relief and armed conflict, including the 2003 invasion of Iraq; it currently has deployed about 3,330 defence force personnel in varying capacities to 12 international operations in areas including East Timor, Solomon Islands and Afghanistan.[154]

Geography and climate[]

Australia divided into different colours indicating its climatic zones

Climatic zones in Australia, based on the Köppen climate classification.

Australia's landmass of 7,617,930 square kilometres (2,941,300 sq mi)[155] is on the Indo-Australian Plate. Surrounded by the Indian and Pacific oceans,[N 5] it is separated from Asia by the Arafura and Timor seas, with the Coral Sea lying off the Queensland coast, and the Tasman Sea lying between Australia and New Zealand. The world's smallest continent[157] and sixth largest country by total area,[158] Australia—owing to its size and isolation—is often dubbed the "island continent",[159] and is sometimes considered the world's largest island.[160] Australia has 34,218 kilometres (21,262 mi) of coastline (excluding all offshore islands),[161] and claims an extensive Exclusive Economic Zone of 8,148,250 square kilometres (3,146,060 sq mi). This exclusive economic zone does not include the Australian Antarctic Territory.[162] Apart from Macquarie Island, Australia lies between latitudes and 44°S, and longitudes 112° and 154°E.

The Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef,[163] lies a short distance off the north-east coast and extends for over 2,000 kilometres (1,240 mi). Mount Augustus, claimed to be the world's largest monolith,[164] is located in Western Australia. At 2,228 metres (7,310 ft), Mount Kosciuszko on the Great Dividing Range is the highest mountain on the Australian mainland. Even taller are Mawson Peak (at 2,745 metres or 9,006 ft), on the remote Australian territory of Heard Island, and, in the Australian Antarctic Territory, Mount McClintock and Mount Menzies, at 3,492 metres (11,457 ft) and 3,355 metres (11,007 ft) respectively.[165]

Coral Outcrop Flynn Reef

Coral of the Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef system.

Australia's size gives it a wide variety of landscapes, with tropical rainforests in the north-east, mountain ranges in the south-east, south-west and east, and dry desert in the centre.[166] It is the flattest continent,[167] with the oldest and least fertile soils;[168][169] desert or semi-arid land commonly known as the outback makes up by far the largest portion of land.[170] The driest inhabited continent, its annual rainfall averaged over continental area is less than 500 mm.[171] The population density, 2.8 inhabitants per square kilometre, is among the lowest in the world,[172] although a large proportion of the population lives along the temperate south-eastern coastline.[173]

Eastern Australia is marked by the Great Dividing Range, which runs parallel to the coast of Queensland, New South Wales and much of Victoria. The name is not strictly accurate, because parts of the range consist of low hills, and the highlands are typically no more than 1,600 metres (5,249 ft) in height.[174] The coastal uplands and a belt of Brigalow grasslands lie between the coast and the mountains, while inland of the dividing range are large areas of grassland.[174][175] These include the western plains of New South Wales, and the Einasleigh Uplands, Barkly Tableland, and Mulga Lands of inland Queensland. The northernmost point of the east coast is the tropical-rainforested Cape York Peninsula.[176][177][178][179]

Map showing the topography of Australia, showing some elevation in the west and very high elevation in mountains in the southeast

Topographic map of Australia

The landscapes of the Top End and the Gulf Country – with their tropical climate – include forest, woodland, wetland, grassland, rainforest and desert.[180][181][182] At the north-west corner of the continent are the sandstone cliffs and gorges of The Kimberley, and below that the Pilbara. To the south of these and inland, lie more areas of grassland: the Ord Victoria Plain and the Western Australian Mulga shrublands.[183][184][185] At the heart of the country are the uplands of central Australia. Prominent features of the centre and south include Uluru (also known as Ayers Rock), the famous sandstone monolith, and the inland Simpson, Tirari and Sturt Stony, Gibson, Great Sandy, Tanami, and Great Victoria deserts, with the famous Nullarbor Plain on the southern coast.[186][187][188][189]

The climate of Australia is significantly influenced by ocean currents, including the Indian Ocean Dipole and the El Niño–Southern Oscillation, which is correlated with periodic drought, and the seasonal tropical low-pressure system that produces cyclones in northern Australia.[190][191] These factors cause rainfall to vary markedly from year to year. Much of the northern part of the country has a tropical, predominantly summer-rainfall (monsoon) climate.[192] The southwest corner of the country has a Mediterranean climate.[193] Much of the southeast (including Tasmania) is temperate.[192]

Environment[]

A koala holding onto a eucalyptus tree with its head turned so both eyes are visible

The koala and the eucalyptus form an iconic Australian pair.

Although most of Australia is semi-arid or desert, it includes a diverse range of habitats from alpine heaths to tropical rainforests, and is recognised as a megadiverse country. Fungi typify that diversity; an estimated 250,000 species—of which only 5% have been described—occur in Australia.[194] Because of the continent's great age, extremely variable weather patterns, and long-term geographic isolation, much of Australia's biota is unique and diverse. About 85% of flowering plants, 84% of mammals, more than 45% of birds, and 89% of in-shore, temperate-zone fish are endemic.[195] Australia has the greatest number of reptiles of any country, with 755 species.[196]

Australian forests are mostly made up of evergreen species, particularly eucalyptus trees in the less arid regions, wattles replace them in drier regions and deserts as the most dominant species.[197] Among well-known Australian animals are the monotremes (the platypus and echidna); a host of marsupials, including the kangaroo, koala, and wombat, and birds such as the emu and the kookaburra.[197] Australia is home to many dangerous animals including some of the most venomous snakes in the world.[198] The dingo was introduced by Austronesian people who traded with Indigenous Australians around 3000 BCE.[199] Many animal and plant species became extinct soon after first human settlement,[200] including the Australian megafauna; others have disappeared since European settlement, among them the thylacine.[201][202]

Many of Australia's ecoregions, and the species within those regions, are threatened by human activities and introduced animal, chromistan, fungal and plant species.[203] All these factors have led to Australia having the highest mammal extinction rate of any country in the world.[204] The federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 is the legal framework for the protection of threatened species.[205] Numerous protected areas have been created under the National Strategy for the Conservation of Australia's Biological Diversity to protect and preserve unique ecosystems;[206][207] 65 wetlands are listed under the Ramsar Convention,[208] and 16 natural World Heritage Sites have been established.[209] Australia was ranked 3rd out of 178 countries in the world on the 2014 Environmental Performance Index.[210]

Environmental issues[]

Lake Hume on the Upper Murray

Drought affecting Lake Hume on the Upper Murray River.

Protection of the environment is a major political issue in Australia.[211][212] In 2007, the First Rudd Government signed the instrument of ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. Nevertheless, Australia's carbon dioxide emissions per capita are among the highest in the world, lower than those of only a few other industrialised nations.[213] Rainfall in Australia has slightly increased over the past century, both nationwide and for two quadrants of the nation.[214]

According to the Bureau of Meteorology's 2011 Australian Climate Statement, Australia had lower than average temperatures in 2011 as a consequence of a La Niña weather pattern, however, "the country's 10-year average continues to demonstrate the rising trend in temperatures, with 2002–2011 likely to rank in the top two warmest 10-year periods on record for Australia, at 0.52 °C above the long-term average".[215] Furthermore, 2014 was Australia's third warmest year since national temperature observations commenced in 1910.[216][217] Water restrictions are frequently in place in many regions and cities of Australia in response to chronic shortages due to urban population increases and localised drought.[218][219] Throughout much of the continent, major flooding regularly follows extended periods of drought, flushing out inland river systems, overflowing dams and inundating large inland flood plains, as occurred throughout Eastern Australia in 2010, 2011 and 2012 after the 2000s Australian drought.

A carbon tax was introduced in 2012 and helped to reduce Australia's emissions but was scrapped in 2014 under the Liberal Government.[220] Since the carbon tax was repealed, emissions have again continued to rise.[221]

Economy[]

Aerial view of farming fields interspersed with roads, a small forest near the front of the photo

Australia is the world's fourth largest exporter of wine. The Barossa Valley is a major wine-producing region in South Australia.

Australia is a wealthy country; it generates its income from various sources including mining-related exports, telecommunications, banking and manufacturing.[222][223][224] It has a market economy, a relatively high GDP per capita, and a relatively low rate of poverty. In terms of average wealth, Australia ranked second in the world after Switzerland in 2013, although the nation's poverty rate increased from 10.2% to 11.8%, from 2000/01 to 2013.[225][226] It was identified by the Credit Suisse Research Institute as the nation with the highest median wealth in the world and the second-highest average wealth per adult in 2013.[225]

The Australian dollar is the currency for the nation, including Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru, and Tuvalu. With the 2006 merger of the Australian Stock Exchange and the Sydney Futures Exchange, the Australian Securities Exchange became the ninth largest in the world.[227]

Ranked third in the Index of Economic Freedom (2010),[228] Australia is the world's twelfth largest economy and has the fifth highest per capita GDP (nominal) at $66,984. The country was ranked second in the United Nations 2011 Human Development Index and first in Legatum's 2008 Prosperity Index.[229] All of Australia's major cities fare well in global comparative livability surveys;[230] Melbourne reached top spot for the fourth year in a row on The Economist's 2014 list of the world's most liveable cities, followed by Adelaide, Sydney, and Perth in the fifth, seventh, and ninth places respectively.[231] Total government debt in Australia is about $190 billion[232] – 20% of GDP in 2010.[233] Australia has among the highest house prices and some of the highest household-debt levels in the world.[234]

World map showing the distribution of Australian goods

Destination and value of Australian exports in 2006[235]

An emphasis on exporting commodities rather than manufactured goods has underpinned a significant increase in Australia's terms of trade since the start of the 21st century, due to rising commodity prices. Australia has a balance of payments that is more than 7% of GDP negative, and has had persistently large current account deficits for more than 50 years.[236] Australia has grown at an average annual rate of 3.6% for over 15 years, in comparison to the OECD annual average of 2.5%.[236] Australia was the only advanced economy not to experience a recession due to the global financial downturn in 2008–2009.[237] However, the economies of six of Australia's major trading partners have been in recession, which in turn has affected Australia, significantly hampering its economic growth in recent years.[238][239] From 2012 to early 2013, Australia's national economy grew, but some non-mining states and Australia's non-mining economy experienced a recession.[240][241][242]

The Hawke Government floated the Australian dollar in 1983 and partially deregulated the financial system.[243] The Howard Government followed with a partial deregulation of the labour market and the further privatisation of state-owned businesses, most notably in the telecommunications industry.[244] The indirect tax system was substantially changed in July 2000 with the introduction of a 10% Goods and Services Tax (GST).[245] In Australia's tax system, personal and company income tax are the main sources of government revenue.[246]

A deep opencut mine in which some roads can be seen, the dirt is a rusty colour

The Super Pit gold mine in Kalgoorlie, Australia's largest open cut mine.[247]

In May 2012, there were 11,537,900 people employed (either full- or part-time), with an unemployment rate of 5.1%.[248] Youth unemployment (15–24) stood at 11.2%.[248] Data released in mid-November 2013 showed that the number of welfare recipients had grown by 55%. In 2007 228,621 Newstart unemployment allowance recipients were registered, a total that increased to 646,414 in March 2013.[249] According to the Graduate Careers Survey, full-time employment for newly qualified professionals from various occupations has declined since 2011 but it increases for graduates three years after graduation.[250][251]

Over the past decade, inflation has typically been 2–3% and the base interest rate 5–6%. The service sector of the economy, including tourism, education, and financial services, accounts for about 70% of GDP.[252] Rich in natural resources, Australia is a major exporter of agricultural products, particularly wheat and wool, minerals such as iron-ore and gold, and energy in the forms of liquified natural gas and coal. Although agriculture and natural resources account for only 3% and 5% of GDP respectively, they contribute substantially to export performance. Australia's largest export markets are Japan, China, the US, South Korea, and New Zealand.[253] Australia is the world's fourth largest exporter of wine, and the wine industry contributes $5.5 billion per year to the nation's economy.[254]

Demographics[]

A beach populated by people; a city can be seen in the horizon

Australia has one of the world's most highly urbanised populations with the majority living in metropolitan cities on the coast.

For generations, the vast majority of immigrants came from the British Isles, and the people of Australia are still mainly of British and/or Irish ethnic origin. In the 2011 Australian census, the most commonly nominated ancestry was English (36.1%), followed by Australian (35.4%),[255] Irish (10.4%), Scottish (8.9%), Italian (4.6%), German (4.5%), Chinese (4.3%), Indian (2.0%), Greek (1.9%), and Dutch (1.7%).[256]

Australia's population has quadrupled since the end of World War I,[257] much of this increase from immigration. Following World War II and through to 2000, almost 5.9 million of the total population settled in the country as new immigrants, meaning that nearly two out of every seven Australians were born in another country.[258] Most immigrants are skilled,[259] but the immigration quota includes categories for family members and refugees.[259] By 2050, Australia's population is currently projected to reach around 42 million.[260] Nevertheless, its population density, 2.8 inhabitants per square kilometre, remains among the lowest in the world.[172] As such, Australians have more living space per person than the inhabitants of any other nation.[261]

In 2011, 24.6% of Australians were born elsewhere and 43.1% of people had at least one overseas-born parent;[262] the five largest immigrant groups were those from the United Kingdom, New Zealand, China, India, and Vietnam.[263] Following the abolition of the White Australia policy in 1973, numerous government initiatives have been established to encourage and promote racial harmony based on a policy of multiculturalism.[264] In 2005–06, more than 131,000 people emigrated to Australia, mainly from Asia and Oceania.[265] The migration target for 2012–13 is 190,000,[266] compared to 67,900 in 1998–99.[267]

The Indigenous population—Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders—was counted at 548,370 (2.5% of the total population) in 2011,[268] a significant increase from 115,953 in the 1976 census.[269] The increase is partly due to many people with Indigenous heritage previously having been overlooked by the census due to undercount and cases where their Indigenous status had not been recorded on the form. Indigenous Australians experience higher than average rates of imprisonment and unemployment, lower levels of education, and life expectancies for males and females that are, respectively, 11 and 17 years lower than those of non-indigenous Australians.[253][270][271] Some remote Indigenous communities have been described as having "failed state"-like conditions.[272]

In common with many other developed countries, Australia is experiencing a demographic shift towards an older population, with more retirees and fewer people of working age. In 2004, the average age of the civilian population was 38.8 years.[273] A large number of Australians (759,849 for the period 2002–03;[274] 1 million or 5% of the total population in 2005[275]) live outside their home country.

Language[]

Although Australia has no official language, English has always been entrenched as the de facto national language.[2] Australian English is a major variety of the language with a distinctive accent and lexicon,[278] and differs slightly from other varieties of English in grammar and spelling.[279] General Australian serves as the standard dialect. According to the 2011 census, English is the only language spoken in the home for close to 81% of the population. The next most common languages spoken at home are Mandarin (1.7%), Italian (1.5%), Arabic (1.4%), Cantonese (1.3%), Greek (1.3%), and Vietnamese (1.2%);[263] a considerable proportion of first- and second-generation migrants are bilingual. A 2010–2011 study by the Australia Early Development Index found the most common language spoken by children after English was Arabic, followed by Vietnamese, Greek, Chinese, and Hindi.[280][281]

Over 250 Indigenous Australian languages are thought to have existed at the time of first European contact, of which less than 20 are still in daily use by all age groups.[282][283] About 110 others are spoken exclusively by older people.[283] At the time of the 2006 census, 52,000 Indigenous Australians, representing 12% of the Indigenous population, reported that they spoke an Indigenous language at home.[284] Australia has a sign language known as Auslan, which is the main language of about 5,500 deaf people.[285]

Religion[]

Religion in Australia[263]
Religion Percent
Roman Catholic
  
25.3%
Anglican
  
17.1%
Other Christian
  
18.7%
Buddhism
  
2.5%
Islam
  
2.2%
Hinduism
  
1.3%
Judaism
  
0.5%
Other
  
0.8%
No religion
  
22.3%
Undefined or not stated
  
9.4%

Australia has no state religion; Section 116 of the Australian Constitution prohibits the federal government from making any law to establish any religion, impose any religious observance, or prohibit the free exercise of any religion.[286] In the 2011 census, 61.1% of Australians were counted as Christian, including 25.3% as Roman Catholic and 17.1% as Anglican; 22.3% of the population reported having "no religion"; 7.2% identify with non-Christian religions, the largest of these being Buddhism (2.5%), followed by Islam (2.2%), Hinduism (1.3%) and Judaism (0.5%). The remaining 9.4% of the population did not provide an adequate answer.[263]

Before European settlement, the animist beliefs of Australia's indigenous people had been practised for many thousands of years. Mainland Aboriginal Australians', spirituality is known as the Dreamtime and it places a heavy emphasis on belonging to the land. The collection of stories that it contains shaped Aboriginal law and customs. Aboriginal art, story and dance continue to draw on these spiritual traditions. The spirituality and customs of Torres Strait Islanders, who inhabit the islands between Australia and New Guinea, reflected their Melanesian origins and dependence on the sea. The 1996 Australian census counted more than 7000 respondents as followers of a traditional Aboriginal religion.[287]

Since the arrival of the First Fleet of British ships in 1788, Christianity has grown to be the major religion practised in Australia. Christian churches have played an integral role in the development of education, health and welfare services in Australia. For much of Australian history the Church of England (now known as the Anglican Church of Australia) was the largest religious affiliation. However, multicultural immigration has contributed to a decline in its relative position, and the Roman Catholic Church has benefitted from recent immigration to become the largest group. Similarly, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and Judaism have all grown in Australia over the past half-century.[288]

Australia has one of the lowest levels of religious adherence in the world.[289] It was reported in 2001 that only 7% of Australians attended church on a weekly basis.[290]

Education[]

Main Quadrangle, University of Sydney

The University of Sydney is the oldest university in Australia.

School attendance, or registration for home schooling,[291][292] is compulsory throughout Australia. Education is the responsibility of the individual states and territories[293] so the rules vary between states, but in general children are required to attend school from the age of about 5 up until about 16.[294][295] In some states (e.g., Western Australia,[296] the Northern Territory[297] and New South Wales[298][299]), children aged 16–17 are required to either attend school or participate in vocational training, such as an apprenticeship.

Australia has an adult literacy rate that was estimated to be 99% in 2003.[300] However, a 2011–12 report for the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that Tasmania has a literacy and numeracy rate of only 50%.[301] In the Programme for International Student Assessment, Australia regularly scores among the top five of thirty major developed countries (member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development). Catholic education accounts for the largest non-government sector.

Australia has 37 government-funded universities and two private universities, as well as a number of other specialist institutions that provide approved courses at the higher education level.[302] The University of Sydney is Australia's oldest university, having been founded in 1850. Other notable universities include those of the Group of Eight leading tertiary institutions.

The OECD places Australia among the most expensive nations to attend university.[303] There is a state-based system of vocational training, known as TAFE, and many trades conduct apprenticeships for training new tradespeople.[304] About 58% of Australians aged from 25 to 64 have vocational or tertiary qualifications,[253] and the tertiary graduation rate of 49% is the highest among OECD countries. The ratio of international to local students in tertiary education in Australia is the highest in the OECD countries.[305]

Health[]

Australia has the third and seventh highest life expectancy of males and females respectively in the world.[306] Life expectancy in Australia in 2010 was 79.5 years for males and 84.0 years for females.[307] Australia has the highest rates of skin cancer in the world,[308] while cigarette smoking is the largest preventable cause of death and disease, responsible for 7.8% of the total mortality and disease. Ranked second in preventable causes is hypertension at 7.6%, with obesity third at 7.5%.[309][310] Australia ranks 35th in the world[311] and near the top of developed nations for its proportion of obese adults.[312]

Total expenditure on health (including private sector spending) is around 9.8% of GDP.[313] Australia introduced universal health care in 1975.[314] Known as Medicare, it is now nominally funded by an income tax surcharge known as the Medicare levy, currently set at 1.5%.[315] The states manage hospitals and attached outpatient services, while the Commonwealth funds the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (subsidising the costs of medicines) and general practice.[314]

Culture[]

Ornate white building with an elevated dome in the middle, fronted by a golden fountain and orange flowers

The Royal Exhibition Building in Melbourne was the first building in Australia to be listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004.[316]

Since 1788, the basis of Australian culture has been strongly influenced by Anglo-Celtic Western culture.[317][318] Distinctive cultural features have also arisen from Australia's natural environment and Indigenous cultures.[319][320] Since the mid-20th century, American popular culture has strongly influenced Australia, particularly through television and cinema.[321] Other cultural influences come from neighbouring Asian countries, and through large-scale immigration from non-English-speaking nations.[321][322]

Arts[]

The rock art of Australia's Indigenous peoples is the oldest and richest in the world, dating as far back as 60,000 years and spread across hundreds of thousands of sites.[323] Traditional designs, patterns and stories infuse contemporary Indigenous Australian art, "the last great art movement of the 20th century";[324] its exponents include Emily Kame Kngwarreye.[325] During the first century of European settlement, colonial artists, trained in Europe, showed a fascination with the unfamiliar land.[326] The naturalistic, sun-filled works of Arthur Streeton, Tom Roberts and others associated with the 19th-century Heidelberg School—the first "distinctively Australian" movement in Western art—gave expression to a burgeoning Australian nationalism in the lead-up to Federation.[326] While the school remained influential into the new century, modernists such as Margaret Preston, and, later, Sidney Nolan and Arthur Boyd, explored new artistic trends.[326] The landscape remained a central subject matter for Fred Williams, Brett Whiteley and other post-World War II artists whose works, eclectic in style yet uniquely Australian, moved between the figurative and the abstract.[326][327] The National Gallery of Australia and state galleries maintain collections of Australian and international art.[328] Australia has one of the world's highest attendances of art galleries and museums per head of population.[329]

Sidney Nolan Snake

Sidney Nolan's Snake mural (1970), held at the Museum of Old and New Art in Hobart, Tasmania, is inspired by the Aboriginal creation myth of the Rainbow Serpent, as well as desert flowers in bloom after a drought.[330]

Australian literature grew slowly in the decades following European settlement though Indigenous oral traditions, many of which have since been recorded in writing, are much older.[331] Writers of the 19th-century Bulletin School, such as Henry Lawson and Banjo Paterson, captured the experience of the bush using a distinctive Australian vocabulary. Their works are still very popular; Paterson's bush poem "Waltzing Matilda" (1895) is regarded as Australia's unofficial national anthem.[332] Miles Franklin is the namesake of Australia's most prestigious literary prize, awarded to the best novel about Australian life.[333] Its first recipient, Patrick White, went on to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1973.[334] Australian winners of the Man Booker Prize include Peter Carey, Thomas Keneally and Richard Flanagan.[335] David Malouf and David Williamson are also renowned writers[336] and Les Murray is regarded as "one of the leading poets of his generation".[337]

Many of Australia's performing arts companies receive funding through the federal government's Australia Council.[338] There is a symphony orchestra in each state,[339] and a national opera company, Opera Australia,[340] well known for its famous soprano Joan Sutherland.[341] At the beginning of the 20th century, Nellie Melba was one of the world's leading opera singers.[342] Ballet and dance are represented by The Australian Ballet and various state companies. Each state has a publicly funded theatre company.[343]

Media[]

The Story of the Kelly Gang 1906

Actor playing the bushranger Ned Kelly in The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906), the world's first feature film

The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906), the world's first feature length film, spurred a boom in Australian cinema during the silent film era.[344] After World War I, Hollywood monopolised the industry,[345] and by the 1960s Australian film production had effectively ceased.[346] With the benefit of government support, the Australian New Wave of the 1970s brought provocative and successful films, many exploring the nation's colonial past, such as Picnic at Hanging Rock and Breaker Morant,[347] while the so-called Ozploitation genre produced international blockbusters, including the Mad Max series.[348] More recent successes included Shine and Rabbit-Proof Fence.[349][350] Notable Australian actors include Errol Flynn, Judith Anderson, Geoffrey Rush, Nicole Kidman, Heath Ledger and Cate Blanchett.[351]

Australia has two public broadcasters (the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and the multicultural Special Broadcasting Service), three commercial television networks, several pay-TV services,[352] and numerous public, non-profit television and radio stations. Each major city has at least one daily newspaper,[352] and there are two national daily newspapers, The Australian and The Australian Financial Review.[352] In 2010, Reporters Without Borders placed Australia 18th on a list of 178 countries ranked by press freedom, behind New Zealand (8th) but ahead of the United Kingdom (19th) and United States (20th).[353] This relatively low ranking is primarily because of the limited diversity of commercial media ownership in Australia;[354] most print media are under the control of News Corporation and Fairfax Media.[355]

Cuisine[]

Most Indigenous Australian tribal groups subsisted on a simple hunter-gatherer diet of native fauna and flora, otherwise called bush tucker.[356][357] The first settlers introduced British food to the continent, much of which is now considered typical Australian food, such as the Sunday roast.[358][359] Multicultural immigration transformed Australian cuisine; post-World War II European migrants, particularly from the Mediterranean, helped to build a thriving Australian coffee culture, and the influence of Asian cultures has led to Australian variants of their staple foods, such as the Chinese-inspired dim sim and Chiko Roll.[360] Vegemite, pavlova, lamingtons and meat pies are regarded as iconic Australian foods.[361] Australian wine is produced mainly in the southern, cooler parts of the country.

Sport and recreation[]

AFL Grand Final 2010 on the Melbourne Cricket Ground

The Melbourne Cricket Ground is strongly associated with the history and development of cricket and Australian rules football, Australia's two most popular spectator sports.[362]

About 24% of Australians over the age of 15 regularly participate in organised sporting activities.[253] At an international level, Australia has excelled at cricket, field hockey, netball, rugby league and rugby union.[363] The majority of Australians live within the coastal zone, making the beach a popular recreation spot and an integral part of the nation's identity.[364] Australia is a powerhouse in water-based sports, such as swimming and surfing.[365] The surf lifesaving movement originated in Australia, and the volunteer lifesaver is one of the country's icons.[366] Nationally, other popular sports include Australian rules football, horse racing, squash, surfing, soccer, and motor racing. The annual Melbourne Cup horse race and the Sydney to Hobart yacht race attract intense interest.[367]

Australia is one of five nations to have participated in every Summer Olympics of the modern era,[368] and has hosted the Games twice: 1956 in Melbourne and 2000 in Sydney.[369] Australia has also participated in every Commonwealth Games,[370] hosting the event in 1938, 1962, 1982, 2006 and will host the 2018 Commonwealth Games.[371] As well as being a regular FIFA World Cup participant, Australia has won the OFC Nations Cup four times and the AFC Asian Cup once – the only country to have won championships in two different FIFA confederations.[372] Other major international events held in Australia include the Australian Open tennis grand slam tournament, international cricket matches, and the Australian Formula One Grand Prix. Australia hosted the 2003 Rugby World Cup and the annual Australia–New Zealand Bledisloe Cup is keenly watched. The highest-rating television programs include sports telecasts such as the Summer Olympics, FIFA World Cup, The Ashes, Rugby League State of Origin, and the grand finals of the National Rugby League and Australian Football League.[373] Skiing in Australia began in the 1860s and snow sports take place in the Australian Alps and parts of Tasmania.

See also[]

Flag of Australia Australia
大洋 Oceania
Portal Commonwealth realms
  • Transport in Australia
  • Tourism in Australia
  • Visa policy of Australia
  • Outline of Australia
  • Book:Australia

Notes[]

  1. ^ Australia's royal anthem is "God Save the Queen", played in the presence of a member of the Royal family when they are in Australia. In all other appropriate contexts, the national anthem of Australia, "Advance Australia Fair", is played.[1]
  2. ^ a b English does not have de jure status.[2]
  3. ^ a b There are minor variations from three basic time zones; see Time in Australia.
  4. ^ The Oxford English Dictionary records a first occurrence in 1908, in the form Oss. Oz is often taken as an oblique reference to the fictional Land of Oz in the film The Wizard of Oz (1939), based on L. Frank Baum's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900).[23] Australians' "image of Australia as a 'Land of Oz' is not new, and dedication to it runs deep".[24] The spelling Oz is likely to have been influenced by the 1939 film, though the pronunciation was probably always with a /z/, as it is also for Aussie, sometimes spelt Ozzie.[25] The Baz Luhrmann film Australia (2008) makes repeated reference to The Wizard of Oz, which appeared just before the wartime action of Australia. Some critics have even speculated that Baum was inspired by Australia, in naming the Land of Oz: "In Ozma of Oz (1907), Dorothy gets back to Oz as the result of a storm at sea while she and Uncle Henry are travelling by ship to Australia. So, like Australia, Oz is somewhere to the west of California. Like Australia, Oz is an island continent. Like Australia, Oz has inhabited regions bordering on a great desert. One might almost imagine that Baum intended Oz to be Australia, or perhaps a magical land in the center of the great Australian desert."[26]
  5. ^ Australia describes the body of water south of its mainland as the Southern Ocean, rather than the Indian Ocean as defined by the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO). In 2000, a vote of IHO member nations defined the term "Southern Ocean" as applying only to the waters between Antarctica and 60 degrees south latitude.[156]

References[]

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  2. ^ a b "Pluralist Nations: Pluralist Language Policies?". 1995 Global Cultural Diversity Conference Proceedings, Sydney. Department of Immigration and Citizenship. Archived from the original on 20 December 2008. http://www.immi.gov.au/media/publications/multicultural/confer/04/speech18b.htm. Retrieved 11 January 2009.  "English has no de jure status but it is so entrenched as the common language that it is de facto the official language as well as the national language."
  3. ^ See entry in the Macquarie Dictionary.
  4. ^ Collins English Dictionary. Bishopbriggs, Glasgow: HarperCollins. 2009. p. 18. ISBN 978-0-00-786171-2. 
  5. ^ a b "Population clock". Australian Bureau of Statistics website. Commonwealth of Australia. http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/1647509ef7e25faaca2568a900154b63?OpenDocument. Retrieved 29 June 2015.  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.
  6. ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics (31 October 2012). "Australia". 2011 Census QuickStats. http://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/census_services/getproduct/census/2011/quickstat/0?opendocument&navpos=220. Retrieved 21 June 2012. 
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  15. ^ Davison, Hirst and Macintyre, pp. 157, 254.
  16. ^ "Both Australian Aborigines and Europeans Rooted in Africa – 50,000 years ago". News.softpedia.com. http://news.softpedia.com/news/Both-Aborigines-and-Europeans-Rooted-in-Africa-54225.shtml. Retrieved 27 April 2013. 
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  18. ^ Walsh, Michael (1991) "Overview of indigenous languages of Australia" in Suzanne Romaine (1991). Language in Australia. Cambridge University Press. p. 27. ISBN 978-0-521-33983-4. https://books.google.com/books?ei=LQjdVLuJC8K-ggSYk4HYCg&id=odXuIsxHaOYC&dq=Suzanne+Romaine+%28ed.%29+Language+in+Australia&q=Overview+of+indigenous+languages+of+Australia#v=snippet&q=Overview%20of%20indigenous%20languages%20of%20Australia&f=false. 
  19. ^ "Geographic Distribution of the Population". http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by%20Subject/1301.0~2012~Main%20Features~Geographic%20distribution%20of%20the%20population~49. Retrieved 1 December 2012. 
  20. ^ Data refer mostly to the year 2014. World Economic Outlook Database-April 2015, International Monetary Fund. Accessed on 25 April 2015.
  21. ^ "Australia: World Audit Democracy Profile". WorldAudit.org. Archived from the original on 13 December 2007. http://www.worldaudit.org/countries/australia.htm. Retrieved 5 January 2008. 
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  23. ^ Jacobson, H. (1988) In the Land of Oz, Penguin, ISBN 0-14-010966-8.
  24. ^ The Americana Annual: 1988, Americana Corporation, vol. 13, 1989, p. 66, ISBN 0-7172-0220-8.
  25. ^ Partridge, Eric, et al., The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English, Taylor & Francis, 2006, ISBN 0-415-25938-X, entries "Oz" and "Ozzie", p. 1431.
  26. ^ Algeo, J., "Australia as the Land of Oz", American Speech, Vol. 65, No. 1, 1990, pp. 86–89.
  27. ^ Macquarie Dictionary (5th ed.). Macmillan Publishers Australia. 2010. ISBN 9781876429669. 
  28. ^ a b Kennett, Jeff (11 November 2011). "C'mon Aussie, let's grow up". Herald Sun. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/opinion/cmon-aussie-lets-grow-up/story-e6frfhqf-1226185129838. Retrieved 22 February 2014. 
  29. ^ Claire Harvey, Aussie farewell to life in "Kiwi". Retrieved 29 December 2011.
  30. ^ Lee, Julian (27 November 2009). "C'mon Aussie: cricket anthem reprised to get bums on seats". The Sydney Morning Herald. http://www.smh.com.au/business/cmon-aussie-cricket-anthem-reprised-to-get-bums-on-seats-20091126-jum2.html#ixzz2pZNyvOwR. Retrieved 22 February 2014. 
  31. ^ "He named it Austrialia del Espiritu Santo and claimed it for Spain" The Spanish quest for Terra Australis | State Library of New South Wales Page 1.
  32. ^ "before reaching the New Hebrides or what he called Austrialis del Espiritu Santo on 3 May 1606" Quiros, Pedro Fernandez de (1563–1615) Para 4 | Australian Dictionary of Biography.
  33. ^ Cartouche of La Gran Baya de S. Philippe y S. Santiago, Prado y Tovar ca.1606-1614 (España. Ministerio de Cultura. Archivo General de Simancas).
  34. ^ "A note on 'Austrialia' or 'Australia' Rupert Gerritsen - Journal of The Australian and New Zealand Map Society Inc.- The Globe, Number 72, 2013 " Posesion en nombre de Su Magestad (Archivo del Museo Naval, Madrid, MS 951) Page 3.
  35. ^ http://archive.org/details/ZoologyNewHolla1Shaw "First Instance of the Word Australia being applied specifically to the Continent - in 1794"] Zoology of New Holland - Shaw, George,1751-1813; Sowerby, James,1757-1822 Page 2.
  36. ^ "THE ILLUSTRATED SYDNEY NEWS". Illustrated Sydney News (National Library of Australia): p. 2. 26 January 1888. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article63620938. Retrieved 29 January 2012. 
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  43. ^ Matthew Flinders, A voyage to Terra Australis (Introduction). Retrieved 25 January 2013.
  44. ^ Flinders, Matthew (1814). A Voyage to Terra Australis. G. and W. Nicol. 
  45. ^ Bennett, J. J., ed (1866–68). "General remarks, geographical and systematical, on the botany of Terra Australis". The Miscellaneous Botanical Works of Robert Brown, Esq., D.C.L., F.R.S.. 2. pp. 1–89. http://archive.org/details/generalremarksge00brow. 
  46. ^ Mabberley, David (1985). Jupiter botanicus: Robert Brown of the British Museum. British Museum (Natural History). ISBN 3-7682-1408-7. 
  47. ^ Estensen, p. 450
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Bibliography[]

  • Davison, Graeme; Hirst, John; Macintyre, Stuart (1999). The Oxford Companion to Australian History. Melbourne: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-553597-9. 
  • Jupp, James (2001). The Australian people: an encyclopedia of the nation, its people, and their origins. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-80789-1. 
  • Smith, Bernard; Smith, Terry (1991). Australian painting 1788–1990. Melbourne: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-554901-5. 
  • Teo, Hsu-Ming; White, Richard (2003). Cultural history in Australia. University of New South Wales Press. ISBN 0-86840-589-2. 


Further reading[]

  • Denoon, Donald, et al. (2000). A History of Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific. Oxford: Blackwell. ISBN 0-631-17962-3
  • Goad, Philip and Julie Willis (eds) (2011). The Encyclopedia of Australian Architecture Cambridge University Press, Port Melbourne, Victoria. ISBN 978-0-521-88857-8
  • Hughes, Robert (1986). The Fatal Shore: The Epic of Australia's Founding. Knopf. ISBN 0-394-50668-5.
  • Powell JM (1988). An Historical Geography of Modern Australia: The Restive Fringe. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-25619-4
  • Robinson GM, Loughran RJ, and Tranter PJ (2000) Australia and New Zealand: economy, society and environment. London: Arnold; NY: OUP; 0340720336 paper 0-340720328 hard.


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