Portal:Australia
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Introduction
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. Australia is the largest country by area in Oceania and the world's sixth-largest country. Australia is the oldest, flattest, and driest inhabited continent, with the least fertile soils. It is a megadiverse country, and its size gives it a wide variety of landscapes and climates, with deserts in the centre, tropical rainforests in the north-east, tropical savannas in the north, and mountain ranges in the south-east.
The ancestors of Aboriginal Australians began arriving from south-east Asia 50,000 to 65,000 years ago, during the last glacial period. They settled the continent and had formed approximately 250 distinct language groups by the time of European settlement, maintaining some of the longest known continuing artistic and religious traditions in the world. Australia's written history commenced with European maritime exploration. The Dutch were the first known Europeans to reach Australia, in 1606. 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 constitutional monarchy comprising six states and ten territories: the states of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, South Australia and Western Australia; the major mainland Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory; and other minor or external territories. Its population of nearly 27 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard. Canberra is the nation's capital, while its most populous cities are Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. Australian governments have promoted multiculturalism since the 1970s. Australia is culturally diverse and has one of the highest foreign-born populations in the world. Its abundant natural resources and well-developed international trade relations are crucial to the country's economy, which generates its income from various sources: predominantly services (including banking, real estate and international education) as well as mining, manufacturing and agriculture. It ranks highly for quality of life, health, education, economic freedom, civil liberties and political rights.
Featured article -
The Adelaide leak was the revelation to the press of a dressing-room incident during the third Test, a cricket match played during the 1932–33 Ashes series between Australia and England, more commonly known as the Bodyline series. During the course of play on 14 January 1933, the Australian Test captain Bill Woodfull was struck over the heart by a ball delivered by Harold Larwood. Although not badly hurt, Woodfull was shaken and dismissed shortly afterwards. On his return to the Australian dressing room, Woodfull was visited by the managers of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) team, Pelham Warner and Richard Palairet. Warner enquired after Woodfull's health, but the latter dismissed his concerns in brusque fashion. He said he did not want to speak to the Englishman owing to the Bodyline tactics England were using, leaving Warner embarrassed and shaken. The matter became public knowledge when someone present leaked the exchange to the press and it was widely reported on 16 January. Such leaks to the press were practically unknown at the time, and the players were horrified that the confrontation became public knowledge. (Full article...)
Selected biography -
Donald Tallon (17 February 1916 – 7 September 1984) was an Australian cricketer who played 21 Test matches as a wicket-keeper between 1946 and 1953. He was widely regarded by his contemporaries as Australia's finest ever wicket-keeper and one of the best in Test history, with an understated style, an ability to anticipate the flight, length and spin of the ball and an efficient stumping technique. Tallon toured England as part of Don Bradman's Invincibles of 1948 and was recognised as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1949 for his performances during that season. During his Test career, Tallon made 58 dismissals comprising 50 catches and 8 stumpings. (Full article...)
Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that the search for a lost radioactive capsule along a 1,400-kilometre (870 mi) stretch of road in Western Australia was likened to looking for a needle in a haystack?
- ... that the Australian government tried to censor a film of Quail Island's starving koalas?
- ... that Tom Eastick was the first Australian artillery officer to use survey procedures to accurately engage targets without ranging?
- ... that Scottish painter Gordon Coutts left Australia without paying maintenance to his estranged wife, but was arrested in New Zealand?
- ... that the specific epithet of Platycephalus endrachtensis is from an old word for Australia?
- ... that in 2010, Lauren Mitchell became the first Australian female artistic gymnast to win a world title?
- ... that before Arthur Phillip commanded the first fleet of convicts to settle Australia, he was employed to spy on France?
- ... that Australian senator Ben Small had been a ship's officer, bar owner, paramedic, ambulance trainer, and logistician before entering politics?
In the news
- 19 April 2024 – 2024 Iran–Israel conflict
- The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade tells its citizens to leave Israel, citing a high threat of military reprisals and terrorist attacks. (Times of Israel)
- 16 April 2024 – 2024 Wakeley church stabbing
- Australian police say that the stabbing attack at an Assyrian church in Sydney was an Islamic terrorist act. (Reuters)
- 15 April 2024 – 2021 Australian Parliament House sexual misconduct allegations
- Former Australian political staffer Bruce Lehrmann loses his defamation case against Network 10 and journalist Lisa Wilkinson for broadcasting an interview with Lehrmann's former coworker Brittany Higgins in which she claimed that Lehrmann raped her. (The Guardian)
- 15 April 2024 – 2024 Wakeley church stabbing
- Four people are injured, including bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel, in a mass stabbing at a church in Sydney, Australia. The perpetrator is arrested. A mob clashes with police outside the church while trying to attack the detained suspect. (Sky News Australia)
- 13 April 2024 – 2024 Bondi Junction stabbings
- Six people are killed and seven others are injured in a mass stabbing at a shopping center in Sydney, Australia. The perpetrator is shot and killed by police. (The Guardian) (The Sydney Morning Herald)
- 13 April 2024 – 2024 Cook by-election
- Simon Kennedy of the Liberal Party of Australia wins the by-election in the seat of Cook, succeeding former Prime Minister Scott Morrison. (ABC News Australia)
Selected pictures -
On this day
- 1890 – A. B. "Banjo" Paterson's poem The Man from Snowy River is first published.
- 1916 – Writer Morris West, the author of The Devil's Advocate and The Shoes of the Fisherman, is born in St Kilda, Victoria.
- 1924 – An explosion on the SS Singapore, berthed in Port Adelaide, South Australia, kills 13 people.
- 1939 – Robert Menzies becomes Prime Minister of Australia, succeeding interim prime minister Sir Earle Page, who served for three weeks after the death of Joseph Lyons.
- 1970 – Queen Elizabeth II opens the National Carillon (pictured) in Canberra, a gift of the British government commemorating the establishment of the national capital.
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WikiProject
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 April 2024, there are 202,673 articles within the scope of WikiProject Australia, of which 593 are featured and 881 are good articles. This makes up 2.97% of the articles on Wikipedia, 5.49% of all featured articles and lists, and 2.23% of all good articles (see WP:AUSFG). Including non-article pages, such as talk pages, redirects, categories, etcetera, there are 517,110 pages in the project.
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