Portal:Australia
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Introduction
Dawn at Swifts Creek, Victoria, Australia -
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Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. Australia has a total area of 7,688,287 km2 (2,968,464 sq mi), making it the sixth-largest country in the world and the largest country by area in Oceania. It is the world's oldest, flattest, and driest inhabited continent, with some of the least fertile soils. It is a megadiverse country, and its size gives it a wide variety of landscapes and climates including deserts in the interior and tropical rainforests along the coast.
The ancestors of Aboriginal Australians began arriving from south-east Asia 50,000 to 65,000 years ago, during the last glacial period. By the time of British settlement, Aboriginal Australians spoke 250 distinct languages and had the oldest living culture in the world. Australia's written history commenced with Dutch exploration of most of the coastline in the 17th-century. British colonisation began in 1788 with the establishment of the penal colony of New South Wales. By the mid-19th century, most of the continent had been explored by European settlers and five additional self-governing British colonies were established, each gaining responsible government by 1890. The colonies federated in 1901, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. This continued a process of increasing autonomy from the United Kingdom, highlighted by the Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942, and culminating in the Australia Acts of 1986.
Australia is a federal parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy comprising six states and ten territories. Its population of more than 28 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard. Canberra is the nation's capital, while its most populous cities are Sydney and Melbourne, both with a population of more than 5 million. Australia's culture is diverse, and the country has one of the highest foreign-born populations in the world. It has a highly developed market economy and one of the highest per capita incomes globally. Its abundant natural resources and well-developed international trade relations are crucial to the country's economy. It ranks highly for quality of life, health, education, economic freedom, civil liberties and political rights.
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Featured articles are displayed here, which represent some of the best content on English Wikipedia.
On 9 February 1945, a force of Allied Bristol Beaufighter aircraft suffered many losses during an attack on the German destroyer Z33 and its escorting vessels; the operation was called Black Friday by the survivors. The German ships were sheltering in a strong defensive position in Førde Fjord, Norway, forcing the Allied aircraft to attack through massed anti-aircraft fire (FlaK). (Full article...)
Selected biography -
Entries here consist of Good and Featured articles, which meet a core set of high editorial standards.
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Bronwyn Bancroft AM (born 1958) is an Aboriginal Australian artist, administrator, book illustrator, and among the first three Australian fashion designers to show their work in Paris. She was born in Tenterfield, New South Wales, and trained in Canberra and Sydney. (Full article...)
Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that Mark Hutton was the first Australian to be a starting pitcher in a Major League Baseball game?
- ... that Australian official Jack Emanuel was awarded the George Cross in 1971 after being stabbed to death whilst trying to resolve a land dispute with the Tolai people of New Guinea?
- ... that in the 1920s, Australian journalist E. George Marks predicted military conflict in the Pacific between Japan and the United States?
- ... that Australiformis semoni is a parasite that infests marsupials in Australia and New Guinea and whose infestation could cause debilitating ulcerative granulomatous gastritis?
- ... that indigenous Australian artist Daniel Boyd has depicted colonial figures including Captain James Cook and Governor Arthur Phillip as pirates?
- ... that Barcroft Boake, the author of one of Australia's most anthologised poems, hanged himself with a stockwhip a few months after it was published?
- ... that the dominant species in the Iron-grass Natural Temperate Grassland of South Australia are often not grasses at all?
- ... that a newspaper in Kentucky reported that the solar eclipse of November 22, 1900, would pass over Austria instead of Australia?
In the news
- 25 November 2024 – 2024–25 Australian region cyclone season
- Sixteen people are killed and six others are missing in flash floods caused by Tropical Low 01U in Sumatra, Indonesia. (AP) (The Irish Examiner)
- 25 November 2024 – Censorship in Australia
- Australia withdraws a bill that would authorize the Australian Communications and Media Authority to implement detailed surveillance on digital platforms and enforce anti-misinformation punitive measures on them, which opposition politicians condemn as "censorship laws" and a betrayal to democracy. (AP)
- 22 November 2024 – 2024 Laos methanol poisoning
- A second Australian tourist dies of alcohol poisoning in Vang Vieng, Laos, bringing the death toll from the incident to six. Eight others remain hospitalized. (ABC News Australia)
- 21 November 2024 – 2024 Laos methanol poisoning
- An Australian and a British tourist die after consuming poisoned alcohol in Vang Vieng, Laos, bringing the death toll from the incident to five. Nine others are hospitalized. (BBC News) (AP)
- 30 September 2024 – Australia–Tuvalu relations, Climate change in Tuvalu
- Tuvalu's climate minister denounces the Australian Labor government's decision to expand three coal mines as an existential threat to the nation, due to the role of the mines in causing rising sea levels that have forced mass displacement across Tuvalu's low-lying islands. (The Guardian)
- 28 September 2024 – 2024 AFL premiership season
- The Brisbane Lions defeat the Sydney Swans 120–60 in the Australian Football League Grand Final to win their fourth AFL premiership title. (The Guardian Australia)
Selected pictures -
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Photo credit: Frank HurleyA group of Australian infantry wearing Small Box Respirators (SBRs) at the Third Battle of Ypres in September 1917. After the introduction of poison gas in World War I, countermeasures were developed. SBRs represented the pinnacle of gas mask development during the war, a mouthpiece connected via a hose to a box filter (hanging around the wearer's neck in this picture), which in turn contained granules of chemicals that neutralised the gas. The SBR was the prized possession of the ordinary infantryman; when the British were forced to retreat during the German Spring Offensive of 1918, it was found that while some troops had discarded their rifles, hardly any had left behind their respirators. -
Photo: John O'Neill; edit: JJ HarrisonBrian Nankervis (b. 1956), an Australian comedian and writer, shown here during a live performance. Nankervis rose to popularity while playing Raymond J. Bartholomeuz on Hey Hey It's Saturday; since 2005 he has been a host of the gameshow RocKwiz. -
Photo credit: Fir0002A female Metallic Ringtail (Austrolestes cingulatus), an Australian damselfly, eating its prey. Each abdominal segment is marked by a pale "ring"; this combined with its glossy metallic coloration give the insect its common name. -
Photo credit: John O'NeillA Common Grass Blue (Zizina labradus), a small Australian butterfly. This specimen, perched on a rose, is approximately 10 millimetres (0.4 in) in size. Females generally have a larger wingspan compared to males (23 and 20 mm or 0.9 and 0.8 in respectively). -
Photo: Steven Rasmussen; edit: KeraunoscopiaAustralian artistic gymnast Lauren Mitchell (b. 1991) performing a layout step-out on the balance beam during the 41st World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in London, United Kingdom, on 14 October 2009; at the Championships, Mitchell won two silver medals, one for the balance beam and another for floor exercises. Since her first medal in 2007, Mitchell has placed in the World Championships, World Cup, and Commonwealth Games, and competed in two Olympic Games. -
Photo credit: ChmouelThe Sydney Opera House in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Situated on Bennelong Point at Sydney Harbour, the Sydney Opera House is one of the most distinctive and famous 20th-century buildings, and one of the most famous performing arts venues in the world. -
Photo: JJ HarrisonThe Tasmanian Darner (Austroaeschna tasmanica) is an Australian species of dragonfly in the Aeshnidae family, which includes some of the largest of the dragonflies on the planet. Also referred to as "hawkers", the name "darner" derives from the fact that the female abdomens look like a sewing needle, as they cut into plant stem when they lay their eggs through the ovipositor. -
Photo credit: James Francis HurleySoldiers of an Australian 4th Division field artillery brigade on a duckboard track passing through Chateau Wood, near Hooge in the Ypres salient, October 29, 1917. The photo was taken in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele, also known as the Third Battle of Ypres, which was one of the major battles of World War I. -
Photo: JJ HarrisonThe Dusky Robin (Melanodryas vittata) is a small passerine bird native to Tasmania. A member of the Australian Robin family, it is not related to European or American Robins. It is a brown-plumaged bird of open woodland, measuring 16–17 cm (6.3–6.7 in) in length. -
Photo: JJ HarrisonThe Tawny Frogmouth (Podargus strigoides) is a nocturnal species of Australian frogmouth commonly mistaken for an owl. Males and females look similar, growing to 35–53 cm (14–21 in) long and up to 680 g (1.5 lb) in weight. The Tawny Frogmouth is almost exclusively insectivorous, feeding rarely on frogs and other small prey. It generally sits very still on a low perch and catches food with its beak. -
The cliffs looking down towards Loch Ard Gorge and the beach. Victoria, Australia.
Loch Ard Gorge (
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38°38′S 143°04′E / 38.633°S 143.067°E) is part of Port Campbell National Park in the Australian state of Victoria. It is situated beside the Great Ocean Road, west of the popular The Twelve Apostles limestone formations. The gorge is a visible example of the process of erosion in action. It is named after the clipper ship Loch Ard, which ran aground on nearby Muttonbird Island on 1 June 1878 killing all aboard but two survivors who were washed into the gorge and found shelter.
Photo credit: Diliff -
The western part of the Park. To the right is the rock formation known as The Fortress.
The Grampians is a mountain range and national park in Victoria, located 235 kilometres west of Melbourne. The ranges were named in 1836 by Surveyor-General of New South Wales, Sir Thomas Mitchell, after the Grampian Mountains in his native Scotland, but are also known by the name Gariwerd, from one of the local Australian Aboriginal languages.
Photo credit: Stevage -
Photo credit: Noodle snacksThe Tasmanian Native-hen (Gallinula mortierii) is a flightless rail between 43 to 51 cm (17 to 20 in) in length, one of twelve species of birds endemic to the Australian island of Tasmania. Although flightless, it is capable of running quickly and has been recorded running at speeds up to 30 miles per hour (48 km/h). -
Ben Chifley, standing outside the Old Parliament House, was one of Australia's most influential Prime Ministers and responsible for many social reforms.
Joseph Benedict Chifley (September 22, 1885 - June 13, 1951), Australian politician and 16th Prime Minister of Australia, was one of Australia's most influential Prime Ministers. Among his government's accomplishments were the post-war immigration scheme under Arthur Calwell, the establishment of Australian citizenship in 1949, the Snowy Mountains scheme, the national airline Trans Australia Airlines, a social security scheme for the unemployed, and the founding of the Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO). One of the few successful referendums to modify the Australian Constitution took place during his term. -
Sturt's Desert Pea, at Melbourne Zoo
Sturt's Desert Pea is an Australian plant in the genus Swainsona. One of Australia's best-known wildflowers, it is known for its distinctive blood-red leaf-like flowers, each with a bulbous black centre, or "boss". It is native to the arid regions of central and north-western Australia, and its range extends into all mainland Australian states with the exception of Victoria. It is the floral emblem of South Australia.
Photo credit: Fir0002 -
Perth Mint
The Perth Mint is Australia's oldest operating mint. After the foundation stone was laid in 1896 by John Forrest, the Mint opened on June 20, 1899 as a branch of the Royal Mint in London to refine gold and manufacture gold sovereigns and half sovereigns to be used as currency in the colony.
Photo credit: Moondyne -
Photo credit: LiquidGhoulThe head of a Coastal Carpet Python, the largest subspecies of Morelia spilota, a non-venomous Australian python, showing its forked tongue, a feature common to many reptiles, who smell using the tip of their tongue. Having a forked tongue allows them to tell which direction a smell is coming from. -
The Australian War Memorial is the national memorial in Australia for the members of all its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died in wars. The memorial includes an extensive national military museum and is located in the capital Canberra. It is the northern terminus of the city's ceremonial land axis, which stretches from Parliament House on Capital Hill along a line passing through the summit of the cone-shaped Mt Ainslie to the northeast.
Photo credit: Fir0002 -
A view of Manly Beach looking North from above the Manly Surf Lifesaving Club at the Southern end of the beach.
Photo credit: Petesmiles -
Photo credit: John O'NeillA panoramic view across the interior of the Australian Synchrotron (a subatomic particle accelerator) in Clayton, Victoria. Dominating the image is the storage ring, showing the optical diagnostic beamline at front right. In the middle of the storage ring is the booster synchrotron and linac. The yellow, green and red magnets on the trolley (front left) are a demonstration of the bending and focusing magnets used in the storage ring to produce the synchrotron radiation and maintain the electron beam. -
A Beautiful Firetail (Stagonopleura bella) male (top) and female. In this common Australian species of estrildid finch, nest-building and raising children is done collaboratively. -
Photo credit: Fir0002Two whole Cripps Pink apples and a cross-section of a third. More commonly known by the trademarked name "Pink Lady", this apple cultivar was originally bred by John Cripps by crossing the Australian apple Lady Williams with a Golden Delicious. The apple shape is ellipsoid, it has a distinctive pink hue mixed with a green "background," and taste is tart.
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On this day
- 1883 – An Australasian Inter-Colonial Conference is held in Sydney. Federation and annexation of surrounding islands are discussed by the Australian colonies, New Zealand and Fiji.
- 1942 – The Battle of Brisbane riot between US and Australian servicemen stationed in Brisbane.
- 1970 – Stand-up comedian Dave Hughes is born in Warrnambool, Victoria.
- 1984 – Former NSW Corrective Services Minister Rex Jackson appears in Court on conspiracy charges for the early release of prisoners.
- 1987 – The National Party deposes Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen as party leader, but he refuses to resign as Premier of Queensland. He was not present at the caucus meeting.
- 2004 – Riots take place on Palm Island in the Torres Strait following the death of an Aboriginal man in Police custody.
General images
The following are images from various Australia-related articles on Wikipedia.
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Didgeridoo performers (from Culture of Australia) -
Parliament House, Canberra (from Culture of Australia) -
Hyde Park Barracks, Sydney (from Culture of Australia) -
Historical image of Aboriginal Australian women and children, Maloga, New South Wales around 1900 (in European dress) (from Aboriginal Australians) -
Skiing in Australia began in Kiandra, a goldmining town in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, in the 1860s. (from Culture of Australia) -
An Eastern Arrernte man of the Arltunga district, Northern Territory, in 1923. His hut is decked with porcupine grass. (from Aboriginal Australians) -
Statue in Fremantle of an Australian rules footballer taking a spectacular mark (from Culture of Australia) -
A billycan used for heating water (from Culture of Australia) -
Noongar traditional dancers in Perth (from Aboriginal Australians) -
Corroboree at Newcastle by convict artist Joseph Lycett, ca. 1818. Aboriginal Australian religious practices associated with the Dreamtime have been practised for tens of thousands of years. (from Culture of Australia) -
A swagman in bushman's apparel, wearing a brimmed hat and carrying swag and billy can (from Culture of Australia) -
Kylie Minogue, one of Australia's most successful pop musicians (from Culture of Australia) -
Countries of birth of Australian estimated resident population, 2006 (from Culture of Australia) -
Men from Bathurst Island, 1939 (from Aboriginal Australians) -
The initial human settlement of Oceania is estimated to have been between 60,000 and 40,000 years ago. Archaeogenetic results indicate a colonisation of southern Sahul (Australia) before 37,000 years ago and an incubation period in northern Sahul (Papua New Guinea), followed by westward expansions within Australia after about 28,000 years ago. (from Aboriginal Australians) -
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The verandah is the dominant feature of this Federation Filigree-style pub in Ravenswood. (from Culture of Australia) -
Anzac Day dawn services are held throughout Australia every April. (from Culture of Australia) -
House in Killara, New South Wales (from Culture of Australia) -
Dwellings accommodating Aboriginal families at Hermannsburg Mission, Northern Territory, 1923 (from Aboriginal Australians) -
The SBS building in Melbourne's Federation Square. SBS is Australia's multicultural broadcaster. (from Culture of Australia) -
Cover of Old Bush Songs, Banjo Paterson's 1905 collection of bush ballads (from Culture of Australia) -
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Sheep grazing in rural Australia. Early British settlers introduced Western stock and crops and Australian agriculture now produces an abundance of fresh produce. (from Culture of Australia) -
The Wiggles performing in the United States in 2007 (from Culture of Australia) -
Convict architecture at Port Arthur, Tasmania (from Culture of Australia) -
A commemorative statue of John Simpson Kirkpatrick, a famous stretcher bearer who was killed in the Gallipoli Campaign. (from Culture of Australia) -
Nan Tien Temple, a Buddhist temple in Wollongong. Multicultural immigration has increased Australia's religious diversity. (from Culture of Australia) -
Interior of St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney (from Culture of Australia) -
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Singer-songwriter Paul Kelly (from Culture of Australia) -
Portrait of Madame Melba by Rupert Bunny (from Culture of Australia) -
The Matildas, Australia's national women's football team (from Culture of Australia) -
The first State of Origin shield (from Culture of Australia) -
Founded in 1993, Sydney's Tropfest is the world's largest short film festival. (from Culture of Australia) -
The Princess Theatre in Melbourne (from Culture of Australia) -
An Aboriginal encampment near the Adelaide foothills in an 1854 painting by Alexander Schramm (from Aboriginal Australians) -
A typical Queenslander house in Brisbane (from Culture of Australia) -
Governor Arthur Phillip hoists the British flag over the new colony at Sydney Cove in 1788 (from Culture of Australia) -
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PCA of Orang Asli (Semang) and Andamanese, with worldwide populations in HGDP. (from Aboriginal Australians) -
Actor playing the bushranger Ned Kelly in The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906), the world's first feature film (from Culture of Australia) -
The University of Sydney (from Culture of Australia) -
A group of Australian men wearing speedos (from Culture of Australia) -
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St Mary Mackillop established an extensive network of schools and is Australia's first canonised saint of the Catholic Church. (from Culture of Australia) -
The Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne (from Culture of Australia) -
The Bulletin, founded by J. F. Archibald (left), nurtured bush poets such as Henry Lawson (right). (from Culture of Australia) -
Cricket match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, 1860s (from Culture of Australia) -
Golden Wattle, Australia's floral emblem and the source of Australia's national colours, green and gold (from Culture of Australia) -
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A Luritja man demonstrating method of attack with boomerang under cover of shield (1920) (from Culture of Australia) -
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William Wentworth (1790–1872) was among the first to articulate a vision of Australian nationhood. (from Culture of Australia) -
The surf lifesaving movement originated in Australia. (Pictured: surf lifesavers, Bondi Beach, 1930s). (from Culture of Australia) -
South Australian suffragette Catherine Helen Spence (1825–1910). The Australian colonies established democratic parliaments from the 1850s and began to grant women the vote in the 1890s. -
Donald Bradman is often cited as statistically the greatest sportsman of any major sport. (from Culture of Australia)
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Consider joining WikiProject Australia, a WikiProject dedicated to improving Wikipedia's coverage of topics related to Australia. The project page and its subpages contain suggestions on formatting and style of articles, which can be discussed at the project's notice board. To participate, simply add your name to the project members page.
As of 26 November 2024, there are 205,820 articles within the scope of WikiProject Australia, of which 594 are featured and 887 are good articles. This makes up 2.98% of the articles on Wikipedia, 5.33% of all featured articles and lists, and 2.19% of all good articles (see WP:AUSFG). Including non-article pages, such as talk pages, redirects, categories, etc., there are 526,568 pages in the project.
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