   #copyright

Australia

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Countries; Geography of
Oceania (Australasia)

                         Commonwealth of Australia

   Flag of Australia Coat of arms of Australia
   Flag              Coat of arms
   Motto: None
   Anthem: Advance Australia Fair
   Royal anthem: God Save the Queen
   Location of Australia
            Capital          Canberra
                             35°15′S 149°28′E
         Largest city        Sydney
      Official languages     English (de facto ^1)
   Government                Constitutional monarchy (federal)
    - Queen                  Elizabeth II
    - Governor-General       Michael Jeffery
    - Prime Minister         John Howard
         Independence        from the UK
    - Constitution           1 January 1901
    - Statute of Westminster 11 December 1931
    - Australia Act          3 March 1986
                                   Area
    - Total                  7,741,220 km² ( 6th)
                             2,988,888 sq mi
    - Water (%)              1
                                Population
    - 2006 estimate          20,555,300^2 ( 53rd)
    - 2001 census            18,972,350
    - Density                2.6/km² ( 224th)
                             6.7/sq mi
          GDP ( PPP)         2006 estimate
    - Total                  $674.9 billion ( 17th)
    - Per capita             $32,220 (World Bank) ( 14th)
          HDI  (2006)        0.957 (high) ( 3rd)
           Currency          Australian dollar ( AUD)
           Time zone         various^3 ( UTC+8 to +10)
    - Summer ( DST)          various^3 ( UTC+8 to +11)
         Internet TLD        .au
         Calling code        ++61
   ^1 English does not have de jure official status ( source)
   ^2 mid-2006 population projection using Series B (medium variant) from
   ^3 There are minor variations from these three time zones, see Time in
   Australia.

   Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in
   the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the world's smallest
   continent and a number of islands in the Southern, Indian, and Pacific
   Oceans. Neighbouring countries include Indonesia, East Timor and Papua
   New Guinea to the north, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and the French
   dependency of New Caledonia to the northeast, and New Zealand to the
   southeast.

   The mainland of the continent of Australia has been inhabited for as
   long as 60 000 years by Indigenous Australians. After sporadic visits
   by fishermen from the north and by European explorers and merchants
   starting in the seventeenth century, the eastern half of the mainland
   was claimed by the British in 1770 and officially settled through penal
   transportation as the colony of New South Wales on 26 January 1788. As
   the population grew and new areas were explored, another five largely
   self-governing Crown Colonies were successively established over the
   course of the 19th century.

   On 1 January 1901, the six colonies became a Federation, and the
   Commonwealth of Australia was formed. Since federation, Australia has
   maintained a stable liberal democratic political system and remains a
   Commonwealth Realm. The capital city is Canberra, located in the
   Australian Capital Territory. The current national population is around
   20.6 million people, and is concentrated mainly in the large coastal
   cities of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, and Adelaide.

Origin and history of the name

   View of Port Jackson, the site where Sydney was established, taken from
   the South Head. (From A Voyage to Terra Australis.)
   Enlarge
   View of Port Jackson, the site where Sydney was established, taken from
   the South Head. (From A Voyage to Terra Australis.)

   The name Australia is derived from the Latin Australis, meaning of the
   South. Legends of an "unknown land of the south" ( terra australis
   incognita) dating back to Roman times were commonplace in mediaeval
   geography, but they were not based on any actual knowledge of the
   continent. The Dutch adjectival form Australische was used by Dutch
   officials in Batavia to refer to the newly discovered land to the south
   as early as 1638. The first use of the word "Australia" in the English
   language was a 1693 translation of Les Aventures de Jacques Sadeur dans
   la Découverte et le Voyage de la Terre Australe, a 1692 French novel by
   Gabriel de Foigny under the pen name Jacques Sadeur. Alexander
   Dalrymple then used it in An Historical Collection of Voyages and
   Discoveries in the South Pacific Ocean (1771), to refer to the entire
   South Pacific region. In 1793, George Shaw and Sir James Smith
   published Zoology and Botany of New Holland, in which they wrote of
   "the vast island, or rather continent, of Australia, Australasia or New
   Holland."

   The name "Australia" was popularised by the 1814 work A Voyage to Terra
   Australis by the navigator Matthew Flinders, who was the first recorded
   person to circumnavigate Australia. Despite its title, which reflected
   the view of the British Admiralty, Flinders used the word "Australia"
   in the book, which was widely read and gave the term general currency.
   Governor Lachlan Macquarie of New South Wales subsequently used the
   word in his dispatches to England. In 1817, he recommended that it be
   officially adopted. In 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent
   should be known officially as Australia.

   The word "Australia" in Australian English is pronounced as
   /ə.ˈstɹæɪ.ljə/, /ə.ˈstɹæɪ.liː.ə/ or /ə.ˈstɹæɪ.jə/.

History

   The first human habitation of Australia is estimated to have occurred
   between 42,000 and 48,000 years ago. The first Australians were the
   ancestors of the current Indigenous Australians; they arrived via land
   bridges and short sea-crossings from present-day Southeast Asia. Most
   of these people were hunter-gatherers, with a complex oral culture and
   spiritual values based on reverence for the land and a belief in the
   Dreamtime. The Torres Strait Islanders, ethnically Melanesian,
   inhabited the Torres Strait Islands and parts of far-north Queensland;
   their cultural practices are distinct from those of the Aborigines.
   Lieutenant James Cook charted the East coast of Australia on HM Bark
   Endeavour, claiming the land for Britain in 1770. This replica was
   built in Fremantle in 1988; photographed in Cooktown harbour where Cook
   spent seven weeks.
   Enlarge
   Lieutenant James Cook charted the East coast of Australia on HM Bark
   Endeavour, claiming the land for Britain in 1770. This replica was
   built in Fremantle in 1988; photographed in Cooktown harbour where Cook
   spent seven weeks.

   The first undisputed recorded European sighting of the Australian
   mainland was made by the Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon, who sighted
   the coast of Cape York Peninsula in 1606. During the 17th century, the
   Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines of what
   they called New Holland, but made no attempt at settlement. In 1770,
   James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast of Australia, which
   he named New South Wales and claimed for Britain. The expedition's
   discoveries provided impetus for the establishment of a penal colony
   there.

   The British Crown Colony of New South Wales started with the
   establishment of a settlement at Port Jackson by Captain Arthur Phillip
   on 26 January 1788. This date was later to become Australia's national
   day, Australia Day. Van Diemen's Land, now known as Tasmania, was
   settled in 1803 and became a separate colony in 1825. The United
   Kingdom formally claimed the western part of Australia in 1829.
   Separate colonies were created from parts of New South Wales: South
   Australia in 1836, Victoria in 1851, and Queensland in 1859. The
   Northern Territory (NT) was founded in 1863 as part of the Province of
   South Australia. South Australia was founded as a "free province" —
   that is, it was never a penal colony. Victoria and Western Australia
   were also founded "free", but later accepted transported convicts. The
   transportation of convicts to Australia was phased out between 1840 and
   1864.
   Port Arthur, Tasmania was Australia's largest penal colony.
   Enlarge
   Port Arthur, Tasmania was Australia's largest penal colony.

   The Indigenous Australian population, estimated at about 350,000 at the
   time of European settlement, declined steeply for 150 years following
   settlement, mainly because of infectious disease combined with forced
   re-settlement and cultural disintegration. The removal of children,
   that some historians and Indigenous Australians have argued could be
   considered to constitute genocide by some definitions, may have made a
   contribution to the decline in the indigenous population. Such
   interpretations of Aboriginal history are disputed by some as being
   exaggerated or fabricated for political or ideological reasons. This
   debate is known within Australia as the History Wars. Following the
   1967 referendum, the Federal government gained the power to implement
   policies and make laws with respect to Aborigines. Traditional
   ownership of land — native title — was not recognised until the High
   Court case Mabo v Queensland (No 2) overturned the notion of Australia
   as terra nullius at the time of European occupation.
   The Last Post is played at an ANZAC Day ceremony in Port Melbourne,
   Victoria, 25 April 2005. Ceremonies such as this are held in virtually
   every suburb and town in Australia.
   Enlarge
   The Last Post is played at an ANZAC Day ceremony in Port Melbourne,
   Victoria, 25 April 2005. Ceremonies such as this are held in virtually
   every suburb and town in Australia.

   A gold rush began in Australia in the early 1850s, and the Eureka
   Stockade rebellion against mining licence fees in 1854 was an early
   expression of civil disobedience. Between 1855 and 1890, the six
   colonies individually gained responsible government, managing most of
   their own affairs while remaining part of the British Empire. The
   Colonial Office in London retained control of some matters, notably
   foreign affairs, defence and international shipping. On 1 January 1901,
   federation of the colonies was achieved after a decade of planning,
   consultation and voting, and the Commonwealth of Australia was born, as
   a Dominion of the British Empire. The Australian Capital Territory
   (ACT) was formed from New South Wales in 1911 to provide a location for
   the proposed new federal capital of Canberra (Melbourne was the capital
   from 1901 to 1927). The Northern Territory was transferred from the
   control of the South Australian government to the Commonwealth in 1911.
   Australia willingly participated in World War I; 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. Much like Gallipoli, the Kokoda Track Campaign is regarded by
   many as a nation-defining battle from World War II.

   The Statute of Westminster 1931 formally ended most of the
   constitutional links between Australia and the United Kingdom when
   Australia adopted it in 1942. The shock of the United Kingdom's defeat
   in Asia in 1942 and the threat of Japanese invasion caused Australia to
   turn to the United States as a new ally and protector. Since 1951,
   Australia has been a formal military ally of the US under the auspices
   of the ANZUS treaty. After World War II, Australia encouraged mass
   immigration from Europe; since the 1970s and the abolition of the White
   Australia policy, immigration from Asia and other parts of the world
   was also encouraged. As a result, Australia's demography, culture and
   image of itself were radically transformed. Final constitutional ties
   between Australia and the United Kingdom were severed in 1986 with the
   passing of the Australia Act 1986, ending any British role in the
   Australian States, and ending judicial appeals to the UK Privy Council
   Australian voters rejected a move to become a republic in 1999 by a 55%
   majority. Since the election of the Whitlam Government in 1972, there
   has been an increasing focus on the nation's future as a part of the
   Asia-Pacific region.

Politics

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

   The Commonwealth of Australia is a constitutional monarchy with a
   parliamentary system of government. Queen Elizabeth II is the Queen of
   Australia, a role that is distinct from her position as monarch of the
   other Commonwealth Realms. The Queen is nominally represented by the
   Governor-General at Federal level and by the Governors at State level.
   Although the Constitution gives extensive executive powers to the
   Governor-General, these are normally exercised only on the advice of
   the Prime Minister. The most notable exercise of the Governor-General's
   reserve powers outside the Prime Minister's direction was the dismissal
   of the Whitlam Government in the constitutional crisis of 1975.

   There are three branches of government:
     * The legislature: the Commonwealth Parliament, comprising the Queen,
       the Senate, and the House of Representatives; the Queen is
       represented by the Governor-General, who in practice exercises
       constitutional power only on the advice of the Prime Minister.
     * The executive: the Federal Executive Council (the Governor-General
       as advised by the Executive Councillors); in practice, the
       councillors are the Prime Minister and Ministers of State.
     * The judiciary: the High Court of Australia and other federal
       courts. The State courts became formally independent from the
       Judicial Committee of the Privy Council when the Australia Act was
       passed in 1986.

   The bicameral Commonwealth Parliament consists of the Queen, the Senate
   (the upper house) of 76 senators, and a House of Representatives (the
   lower house) of 150 members. Members of the lower house are elected
   from single-member constituencies, commonly known as 'electorates' or
   'seats'. Seats in the House of Representatives are allocated to states
   on the basis of population. In the Senate, each state, regardless of
   population, is represented by 12 senators, while the territories (the
   ACT and the NT) are each represented by two. Elections for both
   chambers are held every three years; typically only half of the Senate
   seats are put to each election, because senators have overlapping
   six-year terms. The party with majority support in the House of
   Representatives forms Government, with its leader becoming Prime
   Minister.

   There are three major political parties: the Labor Party, the Liberal
   Party and the National Party. Independent members and several minor
   parties — including the Greens and the Australian Democrats — have
   achieved representation in Australian parliaments, mostly in upper
   houses, although their influence has been marginal. Since the 1996
   election, the Liberal/National Coalition led by the Prime Minister,
   John Howard, has been in power in Canberra. In the 2004 election, the
   Coalition won control of the Senate, the first time that a party (or
   coalition of governing parties) has done so while in government in more
   than 20 years. The Labor Party is in power in every state and
   territory. Voting is compulsory for all enrolled citizens 18 years and
   over in each state and territory and at the federal level.

States and territories

   Western
   Australia
   Northern
   Territory
   South
   Australia
   Queensland
   New
   South
   Wales
   Australian
   Capital
   Territory
   Victoria
   Tasmania
   Indian Ocean
   Timor
   Sea
   Gulf of
   Carpentaria
   Arafura Sea
   Great
   Australian
   Bight
   Tasman
   Sea
   Bass Strait
   Coral
   Sea
   ●
   ●
   ●
   ●
   ●
   ●
   South
   Pacific
   Ocean
   Southern Ocean
   ●
   ●
   Great
   Barrier
   Reef

   Australia consists of six states, two major mainland territories, and
   other minor territories. The states are New South Wales, Queensland,
   South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. The two
   major mainland territories are the Northern Territory and the
   Australian Capital Territory. In most respects, the territories
   function similarly to the states, but the Commonwealth Parliament can
   override any legislation of their parliaments. By contrast, federal
   legislation overrides state legislation only with respect to certain
   areas as set out in Section 51 of the Constitution; all residual
   legislative powers are retained by the state parliaments, including
   powers over hospitals, education, police, the judiciary, roads, public
   transport and local government.

   Each state and territory has its own legislature ( unicameral in the
   case of the Northern Territory, the ACT and Queensland, and bicameral
   in the remaining states). The lower house is known as the Legislative
   Assembly ( House of Assembly in South Australia and Tasmania) and the
   upper house is known as the Legislative Council. The heads of the
   governments in each state and territory are called premiers and chief
   ministers, respectively. The Queen is represented in each state by a
   governor; an administrator in the Northern Territory, and the
   Governor-General in the ACT, have analogous roles.

   Australia also has several minor territories; the federal government
   administers a separate area within New South Wales, the Jervis Bay
   Territory, as a naval base and sea port for the national capital. In
   addition Australia has the following, inhabited, external territories:
   Norfolk Island, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and several
   largely uninhabited external territories: Ashmore and Cartier Islands,
   Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands and the Australian
   Antarctic Territory.

Foreign relations and the 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. Australia is a
   member of the Commonwealth of Nations, in which the Commonwealth Heads
   of Government meetings provide the main forum for co-operation. Much of
   Australia's diplomatic energy is focused on international trade
   liberalisation. Australia led the formation of the Cairns Group and
   APEC, and is a member of the OECD and the WTO. Australia has pursued
   several major bilateral free trade agreements, most recently the
   Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement. Australia is a founding
   member of the United Nations, and maintains an international aid
   programme under which some 60 countries receive assistance. The 2005 –
   06 budget provides A$2.5 bn for development assistance; as a percentage
   of GDP, this contribution is less than that of the UN Millennium
   Development Goals.

   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), numbering about 51,000 . All
   branches of the ADF have been involved in UN and regional peacekeeping
   (most recently in East Timor, the Solomon Islands and Sudan), disaster
   relief, and armed conflict, including the 2003 Invasion of Iraq. The
   government appoints the chief of the Defence Force from one of the
   armed services; the current chief is Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston.
   In the 2006-07 Budget, defence spending is $19.6 billion.

Geography

   Climatic zones in Australia.
   Enlarge
   Climatic zones in Australia.

   Australia's 7,686,850 square kilometres (2,967,909 sq. mi) landmass is
   on the Indo-Australian Plate. Surrounded by the Indian, Southern and
   Pacific oceans, Australia is separated from Asia by the Arafura and
   Timor seas. Australia has a total 25,760 kilometres (16,007 mi) of
   coastline and claims an extensive Exclusive Economic Zone of
   8,148,250 square kilometres (3,146,057 sq. mi). This exclusive economic
   zone does not include the Australian Antarctic Territory.

   The Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef, lies a short
   distance off the north-east coast and extends for over 2,000 kilometres
   (1,250 mi). The world's largest monolith, Mount Augustus, 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, although Mawson Peak on the remote Australian territory of
   Heard Island is taller at 2,745 metres (9,006 ft).

   By far the largest part of Australia is desert or semi-arid. Australia
   is the driest inhabited continent, the flattest, and has the oldest and
   least fertile soils. Only the south-east and south-west corners of the
   continent have a temperate climate. The majority of the population
   lives along the temperate south-eastern coastline. The northern part of
   the country, with a tropical climate, has a vegetation consisting of
   rainforest, woodland, grassland, mangrove swamps and desert. Climate is
   highly influenced by ocean currents, including the El Niño southern
   oscillation, which is correlated with periodic drought, and the
   seasonal tropical low pressure system that produces cyclones in
   northern Australia.

Flora and fauna

   The koala and the eucalyptus forming an iconic Australian pair.
   Enlarge
   The koala and the eucalyptus forming an iconic Australian pair.

   Although most of Australia is semi- arid or desert, it covers a diverse
   range of habitats, from alpine heaths to tropical rainforests. Because
   of the great age and consequent low levels of fertility of the
   continent, its extremely variable weather patterns, and its 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. Many of
   Australia's ecoregions, and the species within those regions, are
   threatened by human activities and introduced plant and animal species.
   The federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act
   1999 is a legal framework used for the protection of threatened
   species. Numerous protected areas have been created under the country's
   Biodiversity Action Plan to protect and preserve Australia's unique
   ecosystems, 64 wetlands are registered under the Ramsar Convention, and
   16 World Heritage Sites have been established. Australia was ranked
   thirteenth in the World on the 2005 Environmental Sustainability Index.

   Most Australian woody plant species are evergreen and many are adapted
   to fire and drought, including many eucalyptus and acacias. Australia
   has a rich variety of endemic legume species that thrive in
   nutrient-poor soils because of their symbiosis with Rhizobia bacteria
   and mycorrhizal fungi. Well-known Australian fauna include monotremes
   (the platypus and echidna); a host of marsupials, including the
   kangaroo, koala, wombat; and birds such as the emu, and kookaburra. The
   dingo was introduced by Austronesian people that traded with Indigenous
   Australians around 4000 BCE. Many plant and animal species became
   extinct soon after human settlement, including the Australian
   megafauna; others have become extinct since European settlement, among
   them the Thylacine.

Economy

   The Super Pit in Kalgoorlie, Australia's largest open cast gold mine
   Enlarge
   The Super Pit in Kalgoorlie, Australia's largest open cast gold mine

   Australia has a prosperous, Western-style mixed economy, with a per
   capita GDP slightly higher than the UK, Germany and France in terms of
   purchasing power parity. The country was ranked third in the United
   Nations' 2005 Human Development Index and sixth in The Economist
   worldwide quality-of-life index 2005. In recent years, the Australian
   economy has been resilient in the face of global economic downturn.
   Rising output in the domestic economy has been offsetting the global
   slump, and business and consumer confidence remains robust. Current
   areas of concern to some economists include Australia's high current
   account deficit and also the high levels of net foreign debt owed by
   the private sector.

   In the 1980s, the Hawke Government started the process of economic
   reform by floating the Australian dollar in 1983, and deregulating the
   financial system. Since 1996, the Howard government has continued the
   process of micro-economic reform, including partial deregulation of the
   labour market and the privatisation of state-owned businesses, most
   notably in the telecommunications industry. Substantial reform of the
   indirect tax system was implemented in July 2000 with the introduction
   of a 10% Goods and Services Tax, which has slightly reduced the heavy
   reliance on personal and company income tax that still characterises
   Australia's tax system.

   The Australian economy has not suffered a recession since the early
   1990s. As of July 2006, unemployment was 4.8% with 10,223,300 persons
   employed. The service sector of the economy, including tourism,
   education, and financial services, comprises 69% of GDP. Agriculture
   and natural resources comprise 3% and 5% of GDP but contribute
   substantially to Australia's export performance. Australia's largest
   export markets include Japan, China, the United States, South Korea and
   New Zealand.

   Traditionally, the absence of an export oriented manufacturing industry
   has been considered a key weakness of the Australian economy. More
   recently, rising prices for Australia's commodity exports and
   increasing tourism has to some extent alleviated this criticism.
   Nevertheless, Australia has developed the world's third largest current
   account deficit in absolute terms (in relative terms over 7% of GDP).
   This has been considered problematic by some economists, especially as
   it has coincided with high prices for Australia's exports and low
   interest rates which keeps the cost of servicing the foreign debt
   unusually low.

Demographics

   Most Australians live in urban areas; Sydney is the most populous city
   in Australia. The trend towards urbanisation is also stronger in
   Australia than many other parts of the world
   Enlarge
   Most Australians live in urban areas; Sydney is the most populous city
   in Australia. The trend towards urbanisation is also stronger in
   Australia than many other parts of the world

   Most of the estimated 20.6 million Australians are descended from
   nineteenth- and twentieth-century settlers, the majority from Great
   Britain and Ireland. Australia's population has quadrupled since the
   end of World War I, spurred by an ambitious immigration program. In
   2001, the five largest groups of the 23.1% of Australians who were born
   overseas were from the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Italy, Vietnam and
   China. 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.

   The indigenous population — mainland Aborigines and Torres Strait
   Islanders — was 410,003 (2.2% of the total population) in 2001, a
   significant increase from the 1976 census, which showed an indigenous
   population of 115,953. Indigenous Australians have higher rates of
   imprisonment and unemployment, lower levels of education and life
   expectancies for males and females that are 17 years lower than those
   of other Australians. Perceived racial inequality is an ongoing
   political and human rights issue for Australians.
   Fewer than 15% of Australians live in rural areas. This picture shows
   the Barossa Valley wine producing region of South Australia.
   Enlarge
   Fewer than 15% of Australians live in rural areas. This picture shows
   the Barossa Valley wine producing region of South Australia.

   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. A large number of Australians
   (759,849 for the period 2002–03) live outside their home country.
   Australia has maintained one of the most active immigration programmes
   in the world to boost population growth. Most immigrants are skilled,
   but the immigration quota includes categories for family members and
   refugees.

   English is the official language, and is spoken and written in a
   distinct variety known as Australian English. According to the 2001
   census, English is the only language spoken in the home for around 80%
   of the population. The next most common languages spoken at home are
   Chinese languages (2.1%), Italian (1.9%) and Greek (1.4%). A
   considerable proportion of first- and second-generation migrants are
   bilingual. It is believed that there were between 200 and 300
   Australian Aboriginal languages at the time of first European contact.
   Only about 70 of these languages have survived, and all but 20 of these
   are now endangered. An indigenous language remains the main language
   for about 50,000 (0.25%) people. Australia has a sign language known as
   Auslan, which is the main language of about 6,500 deaf people.

   Australia has no state religion. The 2001 census identified that 68% of
   Australians call themselves Christian: 27% identifying themselves as
   Roman Catholic and 21% as Anglican. Australians who identify themselves
   as followers of non-Christian religions number 5%. A total of 16% were
   categorised as having "No Religion" (which includes non-theistic
   beliefs such as humanism, atheism, agnosticism and rationalism) and a
   further 12% declined to answer or did not give a response adequate for
   interpretation. As in many Western countries, the level of active
   participation in church worship is much lower than this; weekly
   attendance at church services is about 1.5 million, about 7.5% of the
   population.

   School attendance is compulsory throughout Australia between the ages
   of 6–15 years (16 years in South Australia and Tasmania, and 17 years
   in Western Australia), contributing to an adult literacy rate that is
   assumed to be 99%. Government grants have supported the establishment
   of Australia's 38 universities, and although several private
   universities have been established, the majority receive government
   funding. There is a state-based system of vocational training colleges,
   known as TAFE Institutes, and many trades conduct apprenticeships for
   training new tradespeople. Approximately 58% of Australians between the
   ages of 25 and 64 have vocational or tertiary qualifications and the
   tertiary graduation rate of 49% is highest of OECD countries. The ratio
   of international to local students in tertiary education in Australia
   is the highest in OECD countries.

Culture

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

   The primary basis of Australian culture until the mid-20th century was
   Anglo-Celtic, although distinctive Australian features had been
   evolving from the environment and indigenous culture. Over the past 50
   years, Australian culture has been strongly influenced by American
   popular culture (particularly television and cinema), large-scale
   immigration from non-English-speaking countries, and Australia's Asian
   neighbours. The vigour and originality of the arts in Australia —
   films, opera, music, painting, theatre, dance, and crafts — achieve
   international recognition.

   Australia has a long history of visual arts, starting with the cave and
   bark paintings of its indigenous peoples. From the time of European
   settlement, a common theme in Australian art has been the Australian
   landscape, seen in the works of Arthur Streeton, Arthur Boyd and Albert
   Namatjira, among others. The traditions of indigenous Australians are
   largely transmitted orally and are closely tied to ceremony and the
   telling of the stories of the Dreamtime. Australian Aboriginal music,
   dance and art have a palpable influence on contemporary Australian
   visual and performing arts. Australia has an active tradition of music,
   ballet and theatre; many of its performing arts companies receive
   public funding through the federal government's Australia Council.
   There is a symphony orchestra in each capital city, and a national
   opera company, Opera Australia, first made prominent by the renowned
   diva Dame Joan Sutherland; Australian music includes classical, jazz,
   and many popular music genres.

   Australian literature has also been influenced by the landscape; the
   works of writers such as Banjo Paterson and Henry Lawson, captured the
   experience of the Australian bush. The character of colonial Australia,
   as embodied in early literature, resonates with modern Australia and
   its perceived emphasis on egalitarianism, mateship, and
   anti-authoritarianism. In 1973, Patrick White was awarded the Nobel
   Prize in Literature, the only Australian to have achieved this; he is
   recognised as one of the great English-language writers of the
   twentieth century. Australian English is a major variety of the
   language; its grammar and spelling are largely based on those of
   British English, overlaid with a rich vernacular of unique lexical
   items and phrases, some of which have found their way into standard
   English.
   Australian rules football was developed in Victoria, Australia in the
   late 1850s and is played at amateur and professional levels. It is the
   most popular spectator sport in Australia in terms of annual
   attendances and club memberships.
   Enlarge
   Australian rules football was developed in Victoria, Australia in the
   late 1850s and is played at amateur and professional levels. It is the
   most popular spectator sport in Australia in terms of annual
   attendances and club memberships.

   Australia has two public broadcasters (the ABC and the multi-cultural
   SBS), three commercial television networks, several pay TV services,
   and numerous public, non-profit television and radio stations.
   Australia's film industry has achieved critical and commercial
   successes. Each major city has daily newspapers, and there are two
   national daily newspapers, The Australian and The Australian Financial
   Review. According to Reporters Without Borders in 2006, Australia was
   in thirty fifth position on a list of countries ranked by press
   freedom, behind New Zealand (19th) and the United Kingdom (27th) but
   ahead of the United States. This ranking is primarily because of the
   limited diversity of commercial media ownership in Australia. Most
   Australian print media in particular is under the control of either
   News Corporation or John Fairfax Holdings.

   Sport plays an important part in Australian culture, assisted by a
   climate that favours outdoor activities; 23.5% Australians over the age
   of 15 regularly participate in organised sporting activities. At an
   international level, Australia has particularly strong teams in
   cricket, hockey, netball, rugby league, rugby union, and performs well
   in cycling, rowing and swimming. Nationally, other popular sports
   include Australian rules football, horse racing, soccer and motor
   racing. Australia has participated in every summer Olympic Games of the
   modern era, and every Commonwealth Games. Australia has hosted the 1956
   and 2000 Summer Olympics, and has ranked among the top five
   medal-takers since 2000. Australia has also hosted the 1938, 1962, 1982
   and 2006 Commonwealth Games. Other major international events held
   regularly in Australia include the Australian Open, one of the four
   Grand Slam tennis tournaments, annual international cricket matches and
   the Formula One Australian Grand Prix. Corporate and government
   sponsorship of many sports and elite athletes is common in Australia.
   Televised sport is popular; some of the highest rating television
   programs include the summer Olympic Games and the grand finals of local
   and international football (various codes) competitions.

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia"
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