Introduction To Australia

Australia (officially called Commonwealth of Australia , in English: Commonwealth of Australia ) is a sovereign country in Oceania , whose form of government is the federal constitutional parliamentary monarchy.

Summary

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• 1 Etymology
• 2 History
  • 1 Prehistory
  • 2 Contact with Asians
  • 3 European exploration
  • 4 Settlement and colonization
• 3 Foundation of the colonies
• 4 Own colonial government and discovery of gold
• 5 Federation and world wars
  • 1 Prosperity in the postwar period
• 6 Politics
• 7 Territorial organization
• 8 Foreign relations and military affairs
• 9 Geography
• 10 Flora and fauna
  • 1 Flora
  • 2 Fauna
• 11 Economy
• 12 Demographics
• 13 Languages
• 14 Religion
• 15 Education
• 16 Culture
• 17 Sport
• 18 Sources

Etymology

Its name has a double etymology. On the one hand it derives from the Latin australis , from the south: legends of an unknown land of the south ( terra australis incognita ), dating from Roman times, were frequent in medieval geography, but uncertain. On the other hand, Pedro Fernández de Quirós discovered an island in the archipelago of the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu ) named Austrialia del Espíritu Santo, mixing the words Austral, from the legend, and Austria, the dynasty at that time reigning in Spain , originating thus the name by which in the future the lands to the south of New Guinea would be known .

The Dutch adjective Australische was used in the 17th century by Dutch officials in Batavia (present-day Jakarta ) to refer to the southern land discovered recently, in 1638 . The name “Australia” is due to the work A voyage to Terra Australis (A voyage to Terra Australis) , of 1814, by the navigator Matthew Flinders , the first to circumnavigate it. Despite the title, which reflected the admiral’s view of legitimate place names, Flinders used the word Australia, and the success of the notebook popularized the word. The Governor of New South Wales, Lachlan Macquarie, later used it in messages sent to England. In 1817 it recommended official adoption and in 1825, the British Admiralty rejected it.

History

Prehistory

Paintings.

The history of Australia began when man came to the Australian continent from the north more than 42,000 years ago (and even 68,000, according to some studies). However, its written history did not begin until it was spotted by Dutch explorers in the 17th century . Despite having been seen since the 16th century by Portuguese and Spanish sailors, who for strategic reasons had kept its discovery secret. However, they implied that the southern land was uninhabitable and therefore did not colonize it, thus leaving the way open for subsequent British expeditions. The interpretation of Australian history is still a matter of discussion today, particularly with regard to the treatment ofAustralian aborigines by European colonizers.

With regard to Australia, prehistory is understood to be the period from the immigration of the original inhabitants to the first confirmed European sighting, in 1606 , which can be included as part of its early history. Australian prehistory is considered to be a few thousand years longer than in other parts of the world because there are no records of human events on the continent prior to contact with Europeans. Recent studies have concluded that the first Europeans who sighted the island were the Spanish when they were sailing through the Pacific .

Helmets belonging to 16th century Spanish soldiers and mortars have been found in Australia , which were used to make flour. The exact date of the first human settlements in Australia is still up for debate. However, the southern land is believed to have been inhabited by humans for between 42,000 and 48,000 years; at that time there was a period of massive ecological change that is believed to have resulted from human actions.

The earliest Australians were the ancestors of today’s Aboriginal Australians; They came across land bridges and short sea crossings from Southeast Asia. Most of these people were hunter-gatherers with a complex oral tradition and spiritual values ​​based on the worship of the land and the belief in dreamtime. The islanders of the Torres Strait, ethnically Melanesian, from that time inhabited the islands of the Torres Strait and parts of the extreme north of Queensland; they have cultural practices different from those of other Australian aboriginal groups.

Contact with Asians

For at least the last few centuries, Makassar (an Indonesian city, on today’s island of Sulawesi) had been trading with the aborigines of the north coast, particularly with the Yolngu of Arnhem Land. In 1603 , Father Matteo Ricci, an Italian Jesuit who spent a long time in China , made a map of the world known at the time. In the space where Australia would be located, he noted: No one has been to this southern land, therefore we know nothing about it. He also wrote Tierra del Fuego and Tierra de Loros in Chinese characters, suggesting that the Chinese knew about or perhaps had even visited Australia.

European exploration

The first writings on the discovery of the Australian continent by European explorers date from the early 17th century . The first European sighting of the continent was made in 1606 by the Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon , who sailed through the Gulf of Carpentaria in his ship Duyfken, sighting and landing on the west coast of the Cape York peninsula. However, some historians claim that the Spanish expedition of Pedro Fernández de Quirós sighted the Australian continent a few months earlier. In fact, the navigator Luis Váez de Torresbelonging to the Quirós expedition, he was the first to map the strait that bears his name: Strait of Torres. On the other hand, the name of the country and continent “Australia” comes from the toponym “La Austrialia del Espíritu Santo” that Quirós gave to Isla Espíritu Santo, today part of Vanuatu. Other writers have argued that Portuguese browsers may have discovered Australia even earlier, in the 16th century .

The journalist Peter Trickett has recently written the book Beyond Capricorn , where he states that the Portuguese Cristovão de Mendonça arrived at Botany Bay in 1522 , that is, 84 years before the Dutch and Spanish, and 250 years before the English. In this book there is a fragment of an exact map of part of the Australian coast, written in Portuguese, leaving no doubt that the Portuguese were the first to arrive in Australia. Other European travelers (predominantly Dutch, but also French and English) were supposed to have later arrived in the newly discovered land. By the early seventeenth century , the western and northern shores of what had been called New Hollandhad been fully mapped and sailed by the Dutch in 1770 , the Endeavor expedition under the command of British Royal Navy Lieutenant James Cook sailed and charted the eastern coast of Australia, landing on the mainland for the first time at Botany Bay on April 29 , 1770.

Cook then headed north and, before leaving, landed on Possession Island, in the Torres Strait, on August 22 , 1770 . There he formally claimed the east coast of Australia for the Kingdom of Great Britain and named it New South Wales (Australia) . Since Cook’s discoveries made possible the first European settlement on the continent, he is often popularly thought of as the discoverer of the southern land, although the true discovery occurred more than 160 years before Cook’s voyage. On returning to england, the reports made during the expedition generated interest on the continent as it was considered as a solution to the problem of British penal overcrowding, aggravated by the loss of the American colonies. Accordingly, the 13 of maypole of 1787 , they left Portsmouth eleven ships captained by Ar. Phillip to Botany Bay with about 1500 people on board including sailors and officers, in addition to 772 cows. The fleet reached Botany Bay and, as the place was inhospitable, they moved to Port Jackson, the current site of Sydney . The captain became the first colonial governor and the landing date, January 26 , 1788 , is the first national day.

Settlement and colonization

Population settlement.

New South Wales ( 1788 ), Van Diemen’s Land present-day Tasmania ( 1825 ), Western Australia ( 1832 ), South Australia ( 1836 ), Victoria ( 1851 ), and Queensland ( 1859 ). The Northern Territory was founded in 1863as part of the colony of South Australia. Victoria and South Australia had been founded as “free”, meaning that they were never penal colonies, although they had previously received some prisoners from Tasmania, never from the United Kingdom. Western Australia was also founded free, but later accepted transport due to severe labor shortages. New Zealand belonged to New South Wales until 1840 , when it became a colony of its own. Convict transport was not progressively abolished throughout Australia until between 1840 and 1864 . From the 1 of February of 1827 until June 12 ofIn 1831 , the Northern Territory was divided by the 20 ° S parallel into Northern Australia and Central Australia. From a small portion of New South Wales, the Jervis Bay Territory was founded in 1915 , which covers only 6677 hectares; it belonged to the Australian Capital Territory until 1989 , when the latter acquired a government of its own, after which Jervis Bay became a separate territory administered by the Ministry of Territories. The native population, estimated at three hundred and fifty thousand inhabitants towards the settlement, was reduced considerably in the next 150 years, due to infectious diseases together with cultural disintegration and resettlement that the colonizers forced them to advance.

Foundation of the colonies

• 1788 : New South Wales is founded, extending west to the 135th meridian and including all adjacent islands in the Pacific Ocean . New Zealand was contemplated within those islands and was administered as part of New South Wales.
• 1825 : The western border of New South Wales extends to the 129 ° E meridian. In the same year, Van Diemen’s Land is founded.
• 1829 : The Swan River Colony is claimed by Charles Fremantle for the United Kingdom.
• 1832 : The Swan River Colony changes its name to Western Australia .
• 1836 : South Australia is founded with 132 ° E as its western border.
• 1840 : New Zealand is founded.
• 1846 : Northern Australia (which included what is now the Northern Territory and most of Queensland) is founded with the meridian 26 ° S as its southern limit. Although abolished in December of the same year, the colony formally existed for a brief period.
• 1851 : Victoria is founded.
• 1856 : Van Diemen’s Land changes its name to Tasmania .
• 1859 : Queensland is founded with parallel 141 ° E as its western limit.
• 1860 : The western boundary of South Australia changes from parallel 132 ° E to 129 ° E.

1862 : The western limit of Queensland changes from parallel 141 ° E to 139 ° E.

• 1863 : Control over the Northern Territory passes from New South Wales to South Australia.
• 1911 : The Australian Capital Territory is founded. Control over the Northern Territory is transferred to the national government.

Own colonial government and discovery of gold

A gold rush started in Australia in the early 1850s . The 1854 Eureka Stockade rebellion was an early expression of nationalist sentiment – the flag used to represent that rebellion was seen as an alternative to the Australian flag. The gold rushes attracted many immigrants from Great Britain , Ireland , Europe , North America, and China . Between 1855 and 1890, the six colonies individually obtained a responsible government, administering most of their internal affairs even though they were part of the British Empire. The London Colonial Office maintained control over certain matters, mainly international relations, defense and international maritime traffic. Gold brought a period of great prosperity, but finally, the economic expansion ended, turning the 1890s into a period of depression.

Federation and world wars

The 1 of January of 1901 , the federation of the colonies was done after a decade of planning and votes, and thus the Commonwealth of Australia as a dominion of the British Empire. The Australian Capital Territory was founded in 1911 in an area formerly belonging to New South Wales in order to delineate the exact location of the proposed new federal capital, Canberra (Melbourne was the capital from 1901 to 1927 ). Control over the Northern Territory was transferred from South Australia to the Commonwealth in 1911 . Australia participated in the First World Warwillingly; Many Australians saw the victory of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) at the Battle of Gallipoli as the birth of the nation, this being their first major military performance. On the other hand, the Australian intervention in the Kokoda Road campaign (in WWII ) is considered by many to be self-defense action.

Postwar prosperity

With World War II over , the Australian government instigated a massive program to attract European immigration. Having narrowly prevented the Japanese invasion and suffered attacks on Australian soil for the first time, it was believed that the country must ‘populate or perish’. Immigration attracted traditional emigrants from the United Kingdom along with, for the first time, large numbers of southern and eastern Europeans. The growing Australian economy did not degrade unlike Europe, which had been ravaged by war. In Australia, immigrant newcomers found employment in government-assisted programs. Two million people arrived in the burgeoning southern nation between 1948 and 1975 .

The Liberal Party, founded in 1944 , dominated the situation in the immediate postwar period, its president and founder, Robert Menzies , defeating in 1949 the then president of the Labor Party, Ben Chifley , who had already held the position of Prime Minister from 1945 to 1949. . Menzies oversaw expansion in the postwar period; he would become the national leader to spend the longest in that position. Manufacturing, which had previously played a minor role in an economy dominated by primary production, expanded enormously.

Since the 1970s and the abolition of White Australia policy, immigration from Asia and other parts of the world has also been encouraged; As a result, national demographics, culture, and image have been radically transformed. Since 1951 , Australia has been a military ally of the United States under the auspices of the ANZUS Treaty. The last constitutional links between the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth were removed in 1986 by the Australia Act, ending any British role in the Australian states and abolishing judicial appeals to the Privy Council of the United Kingdom. Australia remains, however, a constitutional monarchy with Elizabeth IIof the United Kingdom as its queen and head of state. Australia’s ties to its British past are gradually fading. The constitutional crisis of 1974 , which toppled Prime Minister Gough Whitlam, shocked the country.

Politics

Parliament building.

The Commonwealth of Australia is a constitutional monarchy and has a parliamentary system of government. Queen Elizabeth II is currently the head of the Australian State and uses the formal title of ‘Queen of Australia’, fulfilling a different role than she does in other kingdoms of the Commonwealth. She is nominally represented by the governor general at the federal level and by the governor of each state. Although the Constitution provides broad executive powers to the Governor General, their implementation is generally carried out only with the advice of the Prime Minister.

There are three branches of the Australian government:

• Legislative branch: the Parliament of Australia, including the Queen, the Senate and the House of Representatives. The queen is represented by the governor general, who in practice only exercises constitutional power with the approval of the Prime Minister.
• Executive power: the Federal Executive Council (the governor general in agreement with the executive directors). in practice, the councilors are the prime minister and the ministers of state.
• Judiciary: The Supreme Court of Australia and other federal courts. State courts formally became independent from the Privy Council Judiciary Committee when the Australia Act was passed in 1986.

The Commonwealth Parliament, which is bicameral, consists of the queen, the Senate (upper house), made up of 76 senators, and the House of Representatives (lower house), made up of 150 members. Members of the lower house run in one-man constituencies, commonly known as electorates (‘electorates’) or seats (‘seats’). The seats in the House of Representatives are assigned to the states based on the population of each one of them. In the Senate, each state, regardless of its population, is represented by 12 senators, while the territories (the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory) are represented by two senators each. Elections for both houses take place every three years, renewing only half of the Senate seats corresponding to the states and all the senators for the territories. This means that the senators for the states hold said office for a period of six years and the territorial senators hold such offices for a period of three years. The party or coalition that has the support of the majority in the House of Representatives forms the Government, with the leader of that party becoming the Prime Minister. There are three main political parties: The party or coalition that has the support of the majority in the House of Representatives forms the Government, with the leader of that party becoming the Prime Minister. There are three main political parties: The party or coalition that has the support of the majority in the House of Representatives forms the Government, with the leader of that party becoming the Prime Minister. There are three main political parties:

• The Labor Party.
• The Liberal Party
• The National Party.

Independent members and minor parties – including the Greens and Australian Democrats – have gained representation in Parliament, mainly in the upper house, although their influence has not been of great importance. From Australian Legislative elections of 2007 | elections of 2007 , the Labor Party led by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is in power. In the 2004 elections , the Coalition won control of the Senate, this being the first time in more than 20 years that a party (or a coalition of parties) has done so while also at the head of the national government. By 2006, the Labor Party was in power in all states and territories. Voting is compulsory for every citizen over 18 years of age both at the territorial or state level as well as in national elections.

Territorial organization

Australia is divided into six states, two mainland territories, and other smaller territories. The states are:

• New South Wales (NSW),
• Queensland (QLD),
• South Australia (SA),
• Tasmania (TAS),
• Victoria (VIC).
• Western Australia (WA).

The two mainland territories are the Northern Territory (NT) and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). In most of their affairs, territories function similar to states; however, the Commonwealth Parliament has the power to override any legislation of the former parliaments. In contrast, federal law can only override state laws relating to certain areas as set out in Section 51 of the Australian Constitution; all residual legislative powers are handled by state parliaments, including hospitals, education, police, judiciary, highways, public transportation, and local government. Each state and territory has its own legislature (unicameral in the case of the Northern Territory, the Australian Capital Territory 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 called the Legislative Council. The head of government of each state and territory is called premier or chief minister respectively. The queen is represented in the states by a governor, in the Northern Territory by an administrator, and in the Australian Capital Territory by the Governor General. 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 seaport for the national capital. Australia also has the following inhabited external territories: 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 called the Legislative Council. The head of government of each state and territory is called premier or chief minister respectively. The queen is represented in the states by a governor, in the Northern Territory by an administrator, and in the Australian Capital Territory by the Governor General. 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 seaport for the national capital. Australia also has the following inhabited external territories: 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 called the Legislative Council. The head of government of each state and territory is called premier or chief minister respectively. The queen is represented in the states by a governor, in the Northern Territory by an administrator, and in the Australian Capital Territory by the Governor General. 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 seaport for the national capital. Australia also has the following inhabited external territories: The lower house is known as the Legislative Assembly (House of Assembly in South Australia and Tasmania) and the upper house is called the Legislative Council. The head of government of each state and territory is called premier or chief minister respectively. The queen is represented in the states by a governor, in the Northern Territory by an administrator, and in the Australian Capital Territory by the Governor General. 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 seaport for the national capital. Australia also has the following inhabited external territories: The lower house is known as the Legislative Assembly (House of Assembly in South Australia and Tasmania) and the upper house is called the Legislative Council. The head of government of each state and territory is called premier or chief minister respectively. The queen is represented in the states by a governor, in the Northern Territory by an administrator, and in the Australian Capital Territory by the Governor General. 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 seaport for the national capital. Australia also has the following inhabited external territories: The head of government of each state and territory is called premier or chief minister respectively. The queen is represented in the states by a governor, in the Northern Territory by an administrator, and in the Australian Capital Territory by the Governor General. 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 seaport for the national capital. Australia also has the following inhabited external territories: The head of government of each state and territory is called premier or chief minister respectively. The queen is represented in the states by a governor, in the Northern Territory by an administrator, and in the Australian Capital Territory by the Governor General. 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 seaport for the national capital. Australia also has the following inhabited external territories: 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 seaport for the national capital. Australia also has the following inhabited external territories: 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 seaport for the national capital. Australia also has the following inhabited external territories:

• Norfolk island
• Christmas island
• Cocos (Keeling) Islands.

Uninhabited external territories:

• Ashmore Islands
• Cartier Islands.
• Coral Sea Islands
• Heard and McDonald Islands .
• Australian Antarctic Territory (claimed, not recognized).

As for two alleged islands, the Dougherty and the Emerald, these have been considered fiction for years and are therefore categorized as ghost islands.

Foreign relations and military affairs

In recent decades Australia’s foreign relations have been marked by a close relationship with the United States , the signing of the ANZUS Treaty , and the desire to develop relations with Asia and the Pacific , particularly through the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Pacific Islands Forum. Relations with the UK are also close. Much of the Australian diplomatic effort is focused on the liberalization of international trade. In 2005, Australia secured a seat at the first East Asia Summit. He is also a member of the British Commonwealth of Nations, in which the meetings of the Commonwealth Heads of State constitute the main forum for cooperation among the nations that comprise it. Australia is part of the Cairns Group, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, and the World Trade Organization. The nation has supported several major bilateral trade agreements, the most recent being the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement. It is a founding member of the United Nations and maintains an international aid program through which 60 countries receive assistance.

Geography

Climate zones.

Australia is one of the 14 independent countries that make up Oceania and is the sixth largest in the world. Surrounded by the Indian , Glacial Antarctic and Pacific oceans , it is separated from Asia by the seas of Arafura and Timor. Australia’s 7,686,850 km² area lies on the Indo-Australian plate. Australia has a coastline of 25,760 km and claims a large exclusive economic zone of 8,148,250 km². This exclusive economic zone does not include the Australian Antarctic Territory. The Great Barrier Reef, the largest coral reef in the world, lies just off the northeast coast and stretches for more than 2,000 kilometers. From a width of 100 to 300 km, it makes up a large number of islands. In terms of relief, Australia occupies one of the oldest and lowest landmasses on the planet. At 2,228 m elevation, Mount Kosciuszko in the Great Dividing Range is the highest mountain in mainland Australia; however Mawson Peak, in the remote Australian territory of the Heard and McDonald Islands,

The largest monolith in the world, Mount Uluru, is located in Western Australia. A huge part of the country is desert or semi-arid. Australia is the driest and flattest inhabited country, and the one with the least fertile soils. Only in the southeast and southwest is there a temperate climate. The northern part of the country, with a tropical climate, has a vegetation consisting mainly of rain forests, forests, grasslands, mangroves and deserts. The climate is highly influenced by seasonal tropical low pressure systems that produce cyclones in the northern region, and by marine currents, including the oceanic-atmospheric phenomenon of El Niño, which is correlated with periodic droughts. The Australian hydrography is clear evidence of the drying process that the island-continent undergoes; the two most important rivers, the Darling and the Murray, despite having lengths greater than 2000 km, carry a meager flow in almost their entire section that gives them the appearance of narrow streams; Except in Tasmania and the perhumid zone of the extreme north, the great majority of the watercourses are actually paleochanges or wadis, something similar happens with their “lakes”, in present times the great Australian lakes are depressions with salt flats and some lagoons in its background. In return, there is an important aquifer in the western half of Australia that provides the waters emerging from the Great Artesian Basin. In the northwest of Australia is the ancient (archaic) Pilbara craton, such studied craton presents stromatolites that would be some of the oldest traces of life on the surface of planet Earth. the vast majority of the watercourses are actually paleochannels or wadis, something similar happens with their “lakes”, in present times the great Australian lakes are depressions with salt flats and some lagoons at their bottom. In return, there is an important aquifer in the western half of Australia that provides the waters emerging from the Great Artesian Basin. In the northwest of Australia is the ancient (archaic) Pilbara craton, such studied craton presents stromatolites that would be some of the oldest traces of life on the surface of planet Earth. the vast majority of the watercourses are actually paleochannels or wadis, something similar happens with their “lakes”, in present times the great Australian lakes are depressions with salt flats and some lagoons at their bottom. In return, there is an important aquifer in the western half of Australia that provides the waters emerging from the Great Artesian Basin. In the northwest of Australia is the ancient (archaic) Pilbara craton, such studied craton presents stromatolites that would be some of the oldest traces of life on the surface of planet Earth. In return, there is an important aquifer in the western half of Australia that provides the waters emerging from the Great Artesian Basin. In the northwest of Australia is the ancient (archaic) Pilbara craton, such studied craton presents stromatolites that would be some of the oldest traces of life on the surface of planet Earth. In return, there is an important aquifer in the western half of Australia that provides the waters emerging from the Great Artesian Basin. In the northwest of Australia is the ancient (archaic) Pilbara craton, such studied craton presents stromatolites that would be some of the oldest traces of life on the surface of planet Earth.

Flora and fauna

Although much of Australia is desert or semi-arid, it has a great diversity of habitats, from alpine heaths to tropical rain forests. Due to the great age of the continent, the low fertility of its soils, its different extremely variable climates and its prolonged isolation from the rest of the continents, the Australian biota is unique and diverse. About 85% of flowering plants, 84% of mammals, more than 45% of birds, and 90% of fish in temperate coastal areas are endemic. Many of Australia’s ecoregions and the indigenous species that live in them are threatened by human activities and the introduction of alien species. Numerous protected areas have been created by the Biodiversity Action Plan to protect and conserve the unique ecosystems of the continent; 64 wetlands are registered as of international importance by the agreements of theRamsar Convention and there are also 16 World Heritage Sites . Australia is ranked number 13 in the world in the 2005 Environmental Sustainability Index .

Flora

Most of Australia’s woody plants such as Angophora costataThey are evergreen and are adapted to fire and drought, including many species of eucalyptus and acacia. There is a very rich variety of endemic species of legumes that thrive even in nutrient-poor soils thanks to their symbiosis with the Rhizobia bacteria, and fungi that make mycorrhiza possible. It is considered that the current predominance of xerophytic flora typical of semi-arid, arid and desert areas is due to a desertification process that began approximately 30,000 years ago due to the previous emergence of Homo sapiens between 50,000 / 45,000 years ago. In addition, 80 sea mountains, some more than 500 meters high and 25 kilometers wide; 145 underwater canyons, and corals two meters high and up to 2,000 years old.

Fauna

Kangaroos in the wild.

The Australian fauna is famous for the presence of marsupials and monotremes; In addition to these typical and famous animals, Australia is characterized by the extraordinary abundance of poisonous animals, most of them lethal to human beings: the Chironex fleckeri (sea wasp or irukandji) is a small jellyfish that frequents the seas of the «Half de Arriba »(the northern sector of Australia ), also poisonous octopuses (such as Hapalochlaena lunulata ) and poisonous fish, sea snakes and the extinct Arandaspis ; some of the deadliest spiders abound on land, many of which are frequent in cities. Another Australian characteristic: it is the continent with the greatest variety of lizards. The best-known indigenous animal species include, as noted, monotremes ( platypus and echidnas) and marsupials ; Australian marsupials are characterized by the adaptive variety of their species, being herbivores and carnivores and species that by evolutionary convergence look like rodents or that look like canids, and among them stand out various species of kangaroo , the koala , the wombat , the Tasmanian Devil and the thylacine or Tasmanian tiger (extinct in the 1930s ); and birds such as the emu , the kookaburras , the lyre bird or thecockatoo .

Among the native placental mammals, the Flying Squirrel is striking ; the dingo was introduced by the Asians who traded with the Australian aborigines around 4000 BC. n. and. . In the waterways of the Australian north there are large crocodiles and other reptiles such as monitor lizards (especially Varanus giganteus ), the Australian Water Dragonand some of the deadliest snakes on the planet. Many animal and plant species became extinct after human settlement, including the Australian megafauna some 30,000 years ago, such megafauna included “marsupial lions” and giant kangaroos; others have become extinct since European settlement, such as the Tasmanian Thylacine

Economy

Australia has a thriving Western mixed economy, with per capita income slightly higher than the UK, Germany and France , in terms of purchasing power parity. The nation is in second place in the IDC (Human Development Index) carried out in 2009 by the United Nations , being surpassed only by Norway . In recent years, the Australian economy has weathered the global economic downturn, which is visible in the growth of its domestic economy and in the maintenance of business and consumption. The Australian economy has not suffered a recession since the early 1990s. By April 2008, unemployment was 4.1%. The tertiary sector of the economy, including tourism, education, and financial services, comprises 69% of GDP. Agriculture and the exploitation of natural resources comprise 3% and 5% of GDP respectively, but contribute substantially to national exports. The most important export markets for Australia include Japan , China , the United States , South Korea and New Zealand . Income per Hab / USD in 2009 was 38,100.

Demography

City of Sydney.

Most Australians live in urban areas; Sydney is the city with the most inhabitants in Australia. The trend towards urbanization is stronger in Australia than in many other parts of the world. Most of the roughly 21 million Australians live concentrated in major cities. Australia’s population has quadrupled since the end of World War I (1914-1918) , fueled by an ambitious immigration program. In 2001, the top five groups that made up 23.1% of foreign born Australians were originally from the UK , New Zealand , Italy , Vietnam and China. After the abolition of the White Australia policy in 1973 , numerous government initiatives promoted ethnic harmony based on a multicultural policy.

The indigenous population ―aboriginal inhabitants of the continent and islanders of the Torres Strait― was 410,003 inhabitants (2.2% of the total population), detecting an important population growth of this group since the 1976 census , which registered a population indigenous 115,953 people. The Australian Aboriginesor Maori have high rates of incarceration and unemployment, lower levels of education and a 17-year lower life expectancy than other Australians. Ethnic inequality is a political problem that still persists today. Like other developed countries, Australia is experiencing an aging demographic, with more retirees and fewer people of working age. A large number of Australians live outside their native country. Australia has maintained one of the most active immigration programs in the world to drive population growth. Many immigrants are well prepared when it comes to their education, although there are also refugees.

Languages

English is the official language and is spoken and written in a variant known as Australian English. According to a census, English is the only language spoken in the home of around 80% of the population. After this, the most widely spoken languages ​​in the home environment are Chinese (2.1%), Italian (1.9%) and Greek (1.4%). The Spanish (0.5%), with 104,000 speakers is the seventh language of influence of the country. Most of Australia’s Spanish speakers are of Argentine, Uruguayan, Chilean or Spanish origin. Australian Spanish-speakers can be found in the large metropolis, mainly in Sydney and Melbourne. It is believed that between 200 and 300 Australian Aboriginal languages ​​existed at the time of first contact with Europeans. Only about 70 languages ​​have survived and around 20 are currently in danger of disappearance. Indigenous languages ​​are the main language for 50,000 people (0.02%). Australia has a sign language known as Auslan, which is the primary language for around 6,500 deaf people.

Religion

Australia has no state religion. 68% of Australians identified as Christian: 27% Roman Catholic , 21% Anglicanand 20% approx. He is Protestant. Australian followers of non-Christian religions comprise 5% of the population. A total of 19% were categorized as non-religious (this includes non-theistic beliefs such as secular humanism, atheism, agnosticism and rationalism) and 12% refused to answer or did not give an adequate answer for a correct interpretation. As in many western countries, the level of active participation in religious worship is much lower than the population that is followers of this religion; weekly church attendance is approximately 1.5 million people, about 7.5% of the population.

Education

School attendance is compulsory from ages 6 to 15 across Australia (up to 16 in South Australia and Tasmania, and up to 17 in Western Australia), contributing to a 99 literacy level in the adult population % approximately. Government grants have enabled the establishment of 38 Australian universities and, although several of them are private, most receive government contributions. There is a state-based vocational training system known as TAFE (Technical and Further Education) Institutes, and many businesses train staff to prepare them as new traders. About 58% of Australians aged 25-64 have a college or university degree; the university population index of people between the ages specified above (49%) is the highest among the countries that make up the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Life expectancy is 80.9 years (the fourth highest in the world).

Culture

Sydney .

The primary basis of Australian culture was Anglo-Celtic until the mid- 20th century , although distinctive Australian features had been acquired from the Aboriginal environment and culture. For the past 50 years, Australian culture has been heavily influenced by American popular culture (particularly on television and film), by large-scale immigration from non-English-speaking countries, and by neighboring Asian countries. The vigor and originality of the Australian arts – movies, opera, music, painting, theater, dance and handicrafts – have achieved international recognition. Australia has a long history when it comes to the visual artsthat begins with the cave paintings made by the natives. Since the times of European settlement, the Australian landscape has been a common theme in national art, which is evident in the works of Arthur Streeton, Arthur Boyd and Albert Namatjira, among others. The traditions of the aborigines are transmitted mainly orally (oral tradition) and are closely related to ceremonies and stories about the time of dreams.

The music, dance and art of the Australian aborigines have a notable influence on the performing and visual arts of contemporary Australia. The nation has an active tradition of music, ballet, and theater; many of the performing arts companies receive public funding through the Australian Council for the Arts. There is an orchestra in every capital city, and a national opera company, the Australian Opera, which gained importance thanks to the opera singer Dame Joan Sutherland; Australian music includes classical music, jazz and many other genres of popular music. Australian literature has also been influenced by landscape; for example, in the works of writers such as Banjo Paterson and Henry Lawson. The character of colonial Australia, reaffirmed in the country’s literature, It had a great impact on the modern stage of the nation and stood out for its egalitarianism and anti-authoritarianism. In1973 Patrick White was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, becoming the only Australian to receive this award; is recognized as one of the greatest writers in the English language of the 20th century .

Australia has two national public broadcasting companies (ABC and SBS), three commercial television networks, three pay television services, and numerous public television channels and radio stations. Australian cinema has achieved commercial and critical success. Each major city has its own daily newspapers; There are also two national daily newspapers: The Australian and The Australian Financial Review. According to Reporters Without Borders, in 2005 the Commonwealth was ranked 31st in the world in terms of press freedom, ranking below New Zealand (9th) and the United Kingdom (28th). place), but above the United States. The fact that it occupies that position, not very high, is mainly due to the limited diversity in media ownership. Most of the print media is controlled by the News Corporation, or by John Fairfax Holdings.

Sport

Surf on Australian beaches.

Sport, supported by a climate that favors outdoor activities, plays an important role in Australian culture. 23.5% of Australians over 15 years of age regularly participate in organized sporting activities. [29] Internationally, Australia has important teams in Cricket , Hockey , Netball , Rugby League and rugby union; and also excels in Cycling , Rowing and Swimming . On a national scale, other popular sports include Australian Football , Horse Racing , Soccer and Motor Racing.. Australia has participated in each edition of the modern-era Olympic Games and in all Commonwealth Games. It has hosted the 1956 and 2000 Olympic Games and has been among the five countries with the most medals won since the 2000 Games. Furthermore, it is the only country in the Southern Hemisphere to have won any gold medals at the Olympic Games in Winter.

The Commonwealth Games of 1938 , 1962 , 1982 and 2006 were also held in Australia . Other major international events that frequently take place in this country include the Formula 1 race known as the Australian Grand Prix, international cricket competitions. In tennis, Australians are known for their serve and volley game and enjoy tennis players of the quality of Lleyton Hewitt, Samantha Stosur, or Alicia Molik among others, they also celebrate the Australian Openin Melbourne, one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments. Televised sport is also popular; some of the highest marks in audience ratings were reached by programs that televised the Olympic Games and the finals of soccer competitions, both local and international. The Cycling is a sport booming, with figures such as Cadel Evans, Michael Rogers, Stuart O’Grady and Robbie McEwen to head the Australia II in 1983 proclaimed winner of the Cup America sailing. This being the first time, in the history of the America’s Cup, that a non-American ship proclaimed itself the winner of the Hundred Guineas Cup