Damon Mcknight
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. It is the only country in the continent of Australia and is the world's sixth-largest country by area. Australia is a highly developed country with one of the highest per capita incomes globally. It is a federal parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy comprising six states and ten territories. Its population of about 25 million people is highly urbanized and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard.
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What You'll Learn
- Australia is the only country in the world that covers an entire continent
- Australia is the smallest continent and one of the largest countries on Earth
- Australia is highly urbanised and has the world's 14th-largest economy
- Australia has a diverse culture and one of the world's highest foreign-born populations
- Australia is a member of the Commonwealth and its head of state is the British monarch
Australia is the only country in the world that covers an entire continent
The Australian continent includes the mainland, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. It is surrounded by the Indian and Pacific Oceans and is separated from Asia by the Arafura and Timor Seas, with the Coral Sea to the north and the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand to the southeast. The continent also includes a continental shelf overlain by shallow seas, which divide it into several landmasses.
Australia is the smallest of the world's seven continents, and it is the only one that is inhabited yet also the flattest and driest. It has a highly diverse landscape and climate, ranging from tropical rainforests in the northeast and northwest to arid and desert regions in the centre and the famous outback. The Great Dividing Range runs along most of eastern Australia, and the country has thousands of kilometres of coastline.
Australia has a diverse and highly urbanised population of almost 28 million people, with one of the highest foreign-born populations in the world. It has a highly developed economy, with abundant natural resources and one of the highest per capita incomes globally. It is a federal parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy, with Canberra as its capital and Sydney and Melbourne as its largest cities.
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Australia is the smallest continent and one of the largest countries on Earth
Australia is a country and the smallest of the world's seven continents. It is officially the Commonwealth of Australia and is a federal parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy. It is made up of six states and ten territories, including the mainland Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller offshore islands.
The continent of Australia is sometimes referred to as Sahul, Australinea, or Meganesia to differentiate it from the country of Australia. It is located within the Southern and Eastern hemispheres, near Maritime Southeast Asia. The continent includes a continental shelf overlain by shallow seas, which divide it into several landmasses. The Arafura Sea and Torres Strait separate mainland Australia from New Guinea, and the Bass Strait separates the mainland from Tasmania.
Australia is the only country in the world that covers an entire continent. It is the sixth-largest country in the world by total area, covering 7,688,287 square kilometres (2,968,464 square miles), which is about 5.6% of Earth's landmass. It is the largest country in Oceania, a geographical region that includes thousands of islands in the Pacific Ocean.
Australia has a highly diverse landscape and climate. It is the world's flattest and driest inhabited continent, with an average height of 325 metres (1,066 feet) and an average annual rainfall of 470 millimetres (19 inches). About 70% of the country is arid or semi-arid, and about 18% is desert. The Great Dividing Range runs along most of eastern Australia, and the country's highest mountain, Mount Kosciuszko, stands at 2,228 metres (7,310 feet). Australia is known for its unique flora and fauna, including eucalyptus trees, acacias, kangaroos, koalas, and the egg-laying mammals, the platypus and echidna.
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Australia is highly urbanised and has the world's 14th-largest economy
Australia is a highly urbanised country with the world's 14th-largest economy. It is officially the Commonwealth of Australia and is a federal parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy comprising six states and ten territories. With a population of almost 28 million, Australia is the sixth-largest country in the world by total area and the largest in Oceania. It is the smallest of the seven continents, with the mainland extending from west to east for nearly 2,500 miles (4,000 km) and from the Cape York Peninsula in the northeast to Wilsons Promontory in the southeast for nearly 2,000 miles (3,200 km).
Australia is highly urbanised, with 67% of its population living in metropolitan areas in 2018. The country's five largest cities by population are Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, and Adelaide, all with over one million inhabitants. Sydney and Melbourne, the two most populous cities, are also the nation's economic and cultural centres. Australia has one of the highest foreign-born populations in the world, with the ninth-largest immigrant population globally.
Australia has a highly developed mixed-market economy that is rich in natural resources. In 2019, the country was a top-ten global producer of several minerals and metals, including gold, silver, copper, iron ore, bauxite, manganese, lead, zinc, cobalt, uranium, nickel, and tin. It is also a significant producer of precious stones, including opal, diamond, ruby, sapphire, and jade. Australia's economy is dominated by its service sector, which in 2017 comprised 62.7% of the GDP and employed 78.8% of the labour force. The country also has a strong social security system, which comprises roughly 25% of its GDP.
Australia has the world's 14th-largest economy by nominal GDP, with a GDP of approximately $1.98 trillion as of June 2021. It also has the second-highest human development index globally, the second-highest amount of wealth per adult, and the thirteenth-highest financial assets per capita. The Australian Securities Exchange in Sydney is the 16th-largest stock exchange in the world in terms of domestic market capitalisation. Australia's currency is the Australian dollar, which is also used by several Pacific nations, including Kiribati, Nauru, and Tuvalu.
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Australia has a diverse culture and one of the world's highest foreign-born populations
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. It is the world's smallest continent and the sixth-largest country by total area. Australia is highly urbanised, with almost 28 million people, and has the world's 14th-largest economy and the second-highest human development index globally.
Australia has a diverse culture and is one of the countries with the highest foreign-born populations in the world. In 2021, just over 7 million people in Australia were born overseas, representing 27.6% of the population. This was an increase from 6.1 million, or 26.3%, in 2016. The most common country of birth in 2021 was England, though its proportion of the population decreased from 3.9% to 3.6% of the population. The biggest change was the movement of India from the fourth to the second highest overseas country of birth, an increase from 1.9% to 2.6% of the population. Other countries with notable populations in Australia include Italy, whose population has been decreasing since the early 1970s, and Nepal.
Australia's written history began with Dutch exploration of most of the coastline in the 17th century, followed by British colonisation. Before colonisation, Aboriginal Australians spoke 250 distinct languages and had one of the oldest living cultures in the world. Between 1863 and 1901, over 62,000 people from the Pacific Islands were kidnapped and forced to work on sugar plantations in Queensland. This process, known as 'blackbirding', resulted in working conditions akin to slavery. After Federation in 1901, the White Australia Policy was used to prevent non-Europeans from settling in Australia, leading to a rapid decrease in overseas-born residents.
Today, Australia is a highly multicultural country, with more than 1 in 5 Australians speaking a language other than English at home. Sydney, the country's most populous city, is particularly diverse, with almost half (47.9%) of its population born outside of Australia.
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Australia is a member of the Commonwealth and its head of state is the British monarch
Australia is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. It is the world's smallest continent and the sixth-largest country by total area. Australia is officially the Commonwealth of Australia and is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, an international organisation of 56 sovereign states, most of which were formerly part of the British Empire. The Commonwealth provides a forum for member countries to develop ties and trade relations, and they are regarded as equal in status.
The head of state of Australia is the same person as the monarch of the United Kingdom, as Australian constitutional law provides that the monarch of the UK will also be the monarch of Australia. The current monarch is King Charles III, who has reigned since 8 September 2022. The monarch is represented at the federal level by the governor-general, who is currently Samantha Mostyn.
Australia is a constitutional monarchy and a federal parliamentary democracy, modelled on the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy and responsible government. The monarchy is a central component of Australia's system of government, with the monarch serving as the country's sovereign. The monarch acts upon the advice of Australian state and federal ministers, and each realm is independent of the others.
The title of the Australian monarch was changed in 1953 following a meeting of Commonwealth prime ministers, at which Australia's officials stated their preference for a format that would name all the realms. This resulted in the title "Elizabeth II (by the Grace of God) of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, [name of realm], and all of her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth (Defender of the Faith)". This title kept mention of the United Kingdom but also separately named Australia and the other Commonwealth realms.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, Australia is officially the Commonwealth of Australia, a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands.
No, Australia is not part of another country. It is a federal parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy comprising six states and ten territories.
Australia is on the Australian continent, the smallest of the world's continents. It is sometimes considered the world's largest island and is often dubbed the "island continent".
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