Lexi Webster
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country that comprises the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. It is the largest country in Oceania, and the smallest of the seven traditional continents. The continent of Australia is sometimes referred to as Sahul, Australinea, or Meganesia to distinguish it from the country of Australia. The continent includes the island of New Guinea, which is divided between Papua New Guinea and Western New Guinea, as well as the Aru Islands, the Ashmore and Cartier Islands, and the Coral Sea Islands, among others.
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What You'll Learn
Australia is a country and a continent
The Australian continent, sometimes known as Sahul, Australinea, or Meganesia, is the smallest of the seven traditional continents. It is located within the Southern and Eastern Hemispheres, near Maritime Southeast Asia. The continent includes mainland Australia, Tasmania, the island of New Guinea (Papua New Guinea and Western New Guinea), the Aru Islands, the Ashmore and Cartier Islands, most of the Coral Sea Islands, and some other nearby islands.
Australia, the country, is highly urbanized and has the world's 14th-largest economy and the second-highest human development index globally. It has a wide variety of landscapes and climates, ranging from deserts in the interior to tropical rainforests along the coast. The ancestors of Aboriginal Australians began arriving in the country from Southeast Asia between 50,000 and 65,000 years ago, and by the time of British settlement, they spoke 250 distinct languages and had one of the oldest living cultures in the world.
The Australian continent has a total land area of 8.56 million square kilometers (3,310,000 square miles), making it the smallest, lowest, flattest, and second-driest continent on Earth, after Antarctica. The continent includes a continental shelf overlain by shallow seas that divide it into several landmasses, including the Arafura Sea and Torres Strait between mainland Australia and New Guinea, and the Bass Strait between mainland Australia and Tasmania.
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Australia is the largest country in Oceania
Australia is the world's flattest and driest inhabited continent. It has a diverse range of landscapes and climates, including tropical rainforests along the north-east coast, mountain ranges in the south-east, south-west, and east, and dry desert in the interior. The desert or semi-arid land commonly known as the outback makes up the largest portion of the country. Australia is one of 17 megadiverse countries, with about 94% of its amphibians, 93% of its reptiles and flowering plants, 69% of its mammals, and 46% of its birds being endemic.
Sydney, the largest city in Oceania, is located in Australia. It is the most multicultural city in Oceania, with over 250 different languages spoken and about 40% of residents speaking a language other than English at home. Australia has a highly developed and globally competitive economy, ranking high in quality of life and Human Development Index.
Australia has a total of 37 government-funded universities and three private universities, as well as other specialist institutions that provide approved courses at the higher education level. The country has a state-based system of vocational training, known as TAFE, and many trades offer apprenticeships for training new tradespeople. About 58% of Australians aged 25 to 64 have vocational or tertiary qualifications, and the tertiary graduation rate of 49% is the highest among OECD countries.
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New Guinea is part of the Australia-New Guinea continent
The continent of Australia, also known as Sahul, Australinea, Meganesia, or Australia-New Guinea, is located within the Southern and Eastern Hemispheres, near Maritime Southeast Asia. The Australia-New Guinea continent includes mainland Australia, Tasmania, the island of New Guinea (Papua New Guinea and Western New Guinea), the Aru Islands, the Ashmore and Cartier Islands, most of the Coral Sea Islands, and some other nearby islands.
New Guinea is the second-largest island in the world, exceeded in size only by Greenland. It is about 1,500 miles (2,400 km) long (from northwest to southeast) and about 400 miles (650 km) wide at its widest (north to south). The island is located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, and is separated from Australia by the 150-kilometre (81-nautical-mile; 93-mile) wide Torres Strait. However, both landmasses lie on the same continental shelf and were united during episodes of low sea level in the Pleistocene glaciations as the combined landmass of Sahul.
The island's name was given by Spanish explorer Yñigo Ortiz de Retez during his maritime expedition in 1545 due to the perceived resemblance of the indigenous peoples of the island to those in the African region of Guinea. The western half of the island, known as Western New Guinea, forms a part of Indonesia and is organized as the provinces of Papua, Central Papua, Highland Papua, South Papua, Southwest Papua, and West Papua. The eastern half of the island is the major land mass of the nation of Papua New Guinea. Three of Papua New Guinea's four regions are parts of New Guinea Island: Southern, Highlands, and Momase.
New Guinea is differentiated from its drier, flatter, and less fertile southern counterpart, Australia, by its much higher rainfall and its active volcanic geology. However, the two land masses share a similar animal fauna, with marsupials, including wallabies and possums, and the egg-laying monotreme, the echidna. During the last Ice Age, while much of the rest of the world was experiencing a significant cooling effect, the Australia-New Guinea tectonic plate was moving north, allowing temperatures in Australia-New Guinea to remain constant, and wildlife species to evolve to fit particular ecological niches.
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Australia is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations
Australia has been a member of the Commonwealth since its inception in the first half of the 20th century, during the decolonisation of the British Empire. The Balfour Declaration of 1926 affirmed the equality of status of the United Kingdom and its dominions, which were freely associated as members of the British Commonwealth of Nations. The Statute of Westminster, which formalised this relationship, was ratified by Australia in 1942.
As a member of the Commonwealth, Australia has certain privileges and responsibilities. Australian citizens are eligible to serve in the British Armed Forces, and some Commonwealth member states grant Australian citizens the right to vote in their elections. Australia has also benefited from the sharing of good practices and resources facilitated by the Commonwealth. For example, Australia has used the Commonwealth's good practice guide to improve its election procedures and has partnered with the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative to advance human rights.
Australia's membership in the Commonwealth also shapes its foreign relations. Australia is part of the Five Power Defence Arrangements, a defence partnership between Commonwealth countries, and it has collaborated with other Commonwealth nations to support Ukraine. Additionally, Australia's foreign relations are influenced by its other international affiliations, including its alliance with the United States, its engagement with the Indo-Pacific region, and its membership in international organisations such as the United Nations, OECD, and G20.
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Australia is a multicultural country
Australia is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest country in the world and the largest in Oceania. Australia is a multicultural country, with a wide variety of landscapes and climates, including deserts in the interior and tropical rainforests along the coast.
Historically, Australia's immigration policy was hampered by racism, limiting immigration to those who qualified under the White Australia Policy. However, since the late 1970s, there has been a significant increase in immigration from Asian and other non-European countries, making Australia a multicultural nation. Sydney, the most multicultural city in Oceania, has more than 250 different languages spoken, with about 40% of residents speaking a language other than English at home. Melbourne is also very multicultural, having the largest Greek-speaking population outside of Europe and the second-largest Asian population in Australia.
Australia has successfully integrated immigrants into its society and economy. Studies show that children of immigrants in Australia attain better average results in education than children of native-born Australians. Skilled migrants have contributed to Australia's economy, with 67.3% of the total migration program outcome in 2016-17 comprising skilled migrants. Australia's immigration policies have enabled the country to have one of the world's strongest economies and most peaceful societies.
The Census data in Australia shows a steady increase in the proportion of overseas-born and second-generation migrants since World War II. In 2021, the area with the highest proportion of overseas-born population was Auburn in western Sydney, with 61.7% of the population born outside of Australia. The most common countries of birth for migrants to Australia have changed over time, with England, Ireland, and Scotland being the primary sources of migration in the first half of the 20th century. Since 1971, the proportion of people born in England has decreased from 6.6% to 3.6% in 2021.
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Frequently asked questions
There is only one country found in Australia, which is called Australia. However, the Australian continent includes the mainland of Australia, Tasmania, the island of New Guinea (Papua New Guinea and Western New Guinea), the Aru Islands, the Ashmore and Cartier Islands, most of the Coral Sea Islands, and numerous other nearby islands.
Australia is the smallest, lowest, flattest, and driest inhabited continent in the world. It is surrounded by the Indian, Southern, and Pacific Oceans. The country of Australia comprises most of the continent and is sometimes referred to as an island continent.
The ancestors of Aboriginal Australians began arriving from Southeast Asia 50,000 to 65,000 years ago during the last glacial period. By the time of British settlement, Aboriginal Australians spoke 250 distinct languages and had one of the oldest living cultures in the world. Australia's written history began with Dutch exploration of most of the coastline in the 17th century. Papua New Guinea, formerly an Australian external territory, gained its independence in 1975.
