The name Australia (pronounced /əˈstreɪliə/ in Australian English[41]) is derived from the Latin Terra Australis ('southern land'), a name used for a hypothetical continent in the Southern Hemisphere since ancient times.[42] Several 16th-century cartographers used the word Australia on maps, but not to identify modern Australia.[43] When Europeans began visiting and mapping Australia in the 17th century, the name Terra Australis was applied to the new territories.[N 5]
Until the early 19th century, Australia was best known as New Holland, a name first applied by the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman in 1644 (as Nieuw-Holland) and subsequently anglicised. Terra Australis still saw occasional usage, such as in scientific texts.[N 6] The name Australia was popularised by the explorer Matthew Flinders, who said it was "more agreeable to the ear, and an assimilation to the names of the other great portions of the Earth".[49] The first time that Australia appears to have been officially used was in April 1817, when Governor Lachlan Macquarie acknowledged the receipt of Flinders' charts of Australia from Lord Bathurst.[50] In December 1817, Macquarie recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted.[51] In 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially by that name.[52] The first official published use of the new name came with the publication in 1830 of The Australia Directory by the Hydrographic Office.[53]
Colloquial names for Australia include "Oz", "Straya" and "Down Under".[54] Other epithets include "the Great Southern Land", "the Lucky Country", "the Sunburnt Country", and "the Wide Brown Land". The latter two both derive from Dorothea Mackellar's 1908 poem "My Country".[55]
Human habitation of the Australian continent is estimated to have begun 50,000 to 65,000 years ago,[25][56][57][26] with the migration of people by land bridges and short sea crossings from what is now Southeast Asia.[58] It is uncertain how many waves of immigration may have contributed to these ancestors of modern Aboriginal Australians.[59][60] The Madjedbebe rock shelter in Arnhem Land is possibly the oldest site showing the presence of humans in Australia.[61][27] The oldest human remains found are the Lake Mungo remains, which have been dated to around 41,000 years ago.[62][63]
Torres Strait Islander people first settled their islands around 4,000 years ago.[84] Culturally and linguistically distinct from mainland Aboriginal peoples, they were seafarers and obtained their livelihood from seasonal horticulture and the resources of their reefs and seas.[85] Agriculture also developed on some islands and villages appeared by the 1300s.[86]
The Dutch are the first Europeans that recorded sighting and making landfall on the Australian mainland.[90] The first ship and crew to chart the Australian coast and meet with Aboriginal people was the Duyfken, captained by Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon.[91] He sighted the coast of Cape York Peninsula in early 1606, and made landfall on 26 February 1606 at the Pennefather River near the modern town of Weipa on Cape York.[92] Later that year, Spanish explorer Luís Vaz de Torres sailed through and navigated the Torres Strait Islands.[93] The Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines and named the island continent "New Holland" during the 17th century, and although no attempt at settlement was made,[92]a number of shipwrecks left men either stranded or, as in the case of the Batavia in 1629, marooned for mutiny and murder, thus becoming the first Europeans to permanently inhabit the continent.[94] In 1770, Captain James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast, which he named "New South Wales" and claimed for Great Britain.[95]
Most early settlers were convicts, transported for petty crimes and assigned as labourers or servants to "free settlers" (willing immigrants). Once emancipated, convicts tended to integrate into colonial society. Convict rebellions and uprisings were suppressed under martial law,[98] which lasted for two years following the 1808 Rum Rebellion, Australia's only successful coup d'état.[99] During the next two decades, social and economic reforms, together with the establishment of a Legislative Council and Supreme Court, saw the penal colony transition to a civil society.[100][101]
The indigenous population declined for 150 years following European settlement, mainly due to infectious disease.[102][103] British colonial authorities did not sign any treaties with Aboriginal groups.[103][104] As settlement expanded, tens of thousands of Indigenous people and thousands of settlers were killed in frontier conflicts while settlers dispossessed surviving Indigenous peoples of most of their land.[105]
The six colonies individually gained responsible government between 1855 and 1890, thus becoming elective democracies managing most of their own affairs while remaining part of the British Empire.[113] The Colonial Office in London retained control of some matters, notably foreign affairs.[114]
In the mid-19th century, explorers such as Burke and Wills charted Australia's interior.[115] A series of gold rushes beginning in the early 1850s led to an influx of new migrants from China, North America and continental Europe,[116] as well as outbreaks of bushranging and civil unrest; the latter peaked in 1854 when Ballarat miners launched the Eureka Rebellion against gold license fees.[117] The 1860s saw the rise of blackbirding, where South Sea Islanders were coerced or abducted into indentured labour, mainly by Queensland colonists.[118][119]
In the decades following World War II, Australia enjoyed significant increases in living standards, leisure time and suburban development.[149][150] Governments encouraged a large wave of immigration from across Europe, with such immigrants referred to as "New Australians".[151] This required a relaxation of the white Australia policy, which was justified to Australians using the slogan "populate or perish".[152]
Following the abolition of the last vestiges of the White Australia policy in 1973,[159] Australia's demography and culture transformed as a result of a large and ongoing wave of non-European immigration, mostly from Asia.[160][161] The late 20th century also saw an increasing focus on foreign policy ties with other Pacific Rim nations.[162] The Australia Acts severed the remaining constitutional ties between Australia and the United Kingdom while maintaining the monarch in her independent capacity as Queen of Australia.[163][164] In a 1999 constitutional referendum, 55% of voters rejected abolishing the monarchy and becoming a republic.[165]
Following the September 11 attacks on the United States, Australia joined the United States in fighting the Afghanistan War from 2001 to 2021 and the Iraq War from 2003 to 2009.[166] The nation's trade relations also became increasingly oriented towards East Asia in the 21st century, with China becoming the nation's largest trading partner by a large margin.[167]
In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, several of Australia's largest cities were locked down for extended periods and free movement across the national and state borders was restricted in an attempt to slow the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.[168]
Topographic map of Australia (dark green represents the lowest elevation and dark brown the highest)
Surrounded by the Indian and Pacific oceans,[N 7] Australia is separated from Asia by the Arafura and Timor seas, with the Coral Sea lying off the Queensland coast, and the Tasman Sea lying between Australia and New Zealand. The world's smallest continent[170] and sixth-largest country by total area,[171] Australia—owing to its size and isolation—is often dubbed the "island continent"[172] and is sometimes considered the world's largest island.[173] Australia has 34,218 km (21,262 mi) of coastline (excluding all offshore islands),[174] and claims an extensive exclusive economic zone of 8,148,250 square kilometres (3,146,060 sq mi). This exclusive economic zone does not include the Australian Antarctic Territory.[175]
Mainland Australia lies between latitudes 9° and 44° south, and longitudes 112° and 154° east.[8] Australia's size gives it a wide variety of landscapes, with tropical rainforests in the north-east, mountain ranges in the south-east, south-west and east, and desert in the centre.[176] The desert or semi-arid land commonly known as the outback makes up by far the largest portion of land.[177] Australia is the driest inhabited continent; its annual rainfall averaged over continental area is less than 500 mm.[178] The population density is 3.4 inhabitants per square kilometre, although the large majority of the population lives along the temperate south-eastern coastline. The population density exceeds 19,500 inhabitants per square kilometre in central Melbourne.[179] In 2021 Australia had 10% of the global permanent meadows and pastureland.[180]Forest cover is around 17% of Australia's total land area.[181][182]
The Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef,[183] lies a short distance off the north-east coast and extends for more than 2,000 km (1,200 mi). Mount Augustus, claimed to be the world's largest monolith,[184] is located in Western Australia. At 2,228 m (7,310 ft), Mount Kosciuszko is the highest mountain on the Australian mainland. Even taller are Mawson Peak, at 2,745 m (9,006 ft), on the remote Australian external territory of Heard Island, and, in the Australian Antarctic Territory, Mount McClintock and Mount Menzies, at 3,492 m (11,457 ft) and 3,355 m (11,007 ft) respectively.[185]
Eastern Australia is marked by the Great Dividing Range, which runs parallel to the coast of Queensland, New South Wales and much of Victoria. The name is not strictly accurate, because parts of the range consist of low hills, and the highlands are typically no more than 1,600 m (5,200 ft) in height.[186] The coastal uplands and a belt of Brigalow grasslands lie between the coast and the mountains, while inland of the dividing range are large areas of grassland and shrubland.[186][187] These include the western plains of New South Wales, and the Mitchell Grass Downs and Mulga Lands of inland Queensland.[188][189][190][191] The northernmost point of the mainland is the tropical Cape York Peninsula.[8]
Uluru in the semi-arid region of Central Australia is one of the country's most recognisable natural landmarks.[192]
Lying on the Indo-Australian Plate, the mainland of Australia is the lowest and most primordial landmass on Earth with a relatively stable geological history.[204][205] The landmass includes virtually all known rock types and from all geological time periods spanning more than 3.8 billion years of the Earth's history. The Pilbara Craton is one of only two pristine Archaean 3.6–2.7 Ga (billion years ago) crusts identified on the Earth.[206]
Having been part of all major supercontinents, the Australian continent began to form after the breakup of Gondwana in the Permian, with the separation of the continental landmass from the African continent and Indian subcontinent. It separated from Antarctica over a prolonged period beginning in the Permian and continuing through to the Cretaceous.[207] When the last glacial period ended in about 10,000 BC, rising sea levels formed Bass Strait, separating Tasmania from the mainland. Then between about 8,000 and 6,500 BC, the lowlands in the north were flooded by the sea, separating New Guinea, the Aru Islands, and the mainland of Australia.[208] The Australian continent is moving toward Eurasia at the rate of 6 to 7 centimetres a year.[209]
The Australian mainland's continental crust, excluding the thinned margins, has an average thickness of 38km, with a range in thickness from 24 km to 59 km.[210] Australia's geology can be divided into several main sections, showcasing that the continent grew from west to east: the Archaean cratonic shields found mostly in the west, Proterozoicfold belts in the centre and Phanerozoicsedimentary basins, metamorphic and igneous rocks in the east.[211]
The Australian mainland and Tasmania are situated in the middle of the tectonic plate and have no active volcanoes,[212] but due to passing over the East Australia hotspot, recent volcanism has occurred during the Holocene, in the Newer Volcanics Province of western Victoria and south-eastern South Australia. Volcanism also occurs in the island of New Guinea (considered geologically as part of the Australian continent), and in the Australian external territory of Heard Island and McDonald Islands.[213]Seismic activity in the Australian mainland and Tasmania is also low, with the greatest number of fatalities having occurred in the 1989 Newcastle earthquake.[214]
The climate of Australia is significantly influenced by ocean currents, including the Indian Ocean Dipole and the El Niño–Southern Oscillation, which is correlated with periodic drought, and the seasonal tropical low-pressure system that produces cyclones in northern Australia.[216][217] These factors cause rainfall to vary markedly from year to year. Much of the northern part of the country has a tropical, predominantly summer-rainfall (monsoon).[178] The south-west corner of the country has a Mediterranean climate.[218] The south-east ranges from oceanic (Tasmania and coastal Victoria) to humid subtropical (upper half of New South Wales), with the highlands featuring alpine and subpolar oceanic climates. The interior is arid to semi-arid.[178]
Water restrictions are frequently in place in many regions and cities of Australia in response to chronic shortages due to urban population increases and localised drought.[222][223] Throughout much of the continent, major flooding regularly follows extended periods of drought, flushing out inland river systems, overflowing dams and inundating large inland flood plains, as occurred throughout Eastern Australia in the early 2010s after the 2000s Australian drought.[224]
Although most of Australia is semi-arid or desert, the continent includes a diverse range of habitats from alpine heaths to tropical rainforests. Fungi typify that diversity—an estimated 250,000 species—of which only 5% have been described—occur in Australia.[225] Because of the continent's great age, extremely variable weather patterns, and long-term geographic isolation, much of Australia's biota is unique. About 85% of flowering plants, 84% of mammals, more than 45% of birds, and 89% of in-shore, temperate-zone fish are endemic.[226] Australia has at least 755 species of reptile, more than any other country in the world.[227] Besides Antarctica, Australia is the only continent that developed without feline species. Feral cats may have been introduced in the 17th century by Dutch shipwrecks, and later in the 18th century by European settlers. They are now considered a major factor in the decline and extinction of many vulnerable and endangered native species.[228] Seafaring immigrants from Asia are believed to have brought the dingo to Australia sometime after the end of the last ice age—perhaps 4000 years ago—and Aboriginal people helped disperse them across the continent as pets, contributing to the demise of thylacines on the mainland.[229] Australia is also one of 17 megadiverse countries.[230]
Australian forests are mostly made up of evergreen species, particularly eucalyptus trees in the less arid regions; wattles replace them as the dominant species in drier regions and deserts.[231] Among well-known Australian animals are the monotremes (the platypus and echidna); a host of marsupials, including the kangaroo, koala, and wombat, and birds such as the emu and the kookaburra.[231] Australia is home to many dangerous animals including some of the most venomous snakes in the world.[232] The dingo was introduced by Austronesian people who traded with Indigenous Australians around 3000 BCE.[233] Many animal and plant species became extinct soon after first human settlement,[234] including the Australian megafauna; others have disappeared since European settlement, among them the thylacine.[235][236]
Executive: the Cabinet, led by the prime minister (the leader of the party or coalition with a majority in the House of Representatives) and other ministers they have chosen; formally appointed by the governor-general[252]
Charles III reigns as King of Australia and is represented in Australia by the governor-general at the federal level and by the governors at the state level, who by section 63 of the Constitution and convention act on the advice of their ministers.[253][254] Thus, in practice the governor-general acts as a legal figurehead for the actions of the prime minister and the Cabinet. The governor-general may in some situations exercise reserve powers: powers exercisable in the absence or contrary to ministerial advice. When these powers may be exercised is governed by convention and their precise scope is unclear. The most notable exercise of these powers was the dismissal of the Whitlam government in the constitutional crisis of 1975.[255]
In the Senate (the upper house), there are 76 senators: twelve each from the states and two each from the mainland territories (the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory).[256] The House of Representatives (the lower house) has 151 members elected from single-member electoral divisions, commonly known as "electorates" or "seats", allocated to states on the basis of population, with each of the current states guaranteed a minimum of five seats.[257] The lower house has a maximum term of three years, but this is not fixed and governments usually dissolve the house early for an election at some point in the 6 months before the maximum.[258] Elections for both chambers are generally held simultaneously with senators having overlapping six-year terms except for those from the territories, whose terms are not fixed but are tied to the electoral cycle for the lower house. Thus only 40 of the 76 places in the Senate are put to each election unless the cycle is interrupted by a double dissolution.[256]
Australia's electoral system uses preferential voting for the House of Representatives and all state and territory lower house elections (with the exception of Tasmania and the ACT which use the Hare-Clark system). The Senate and most state upper houses use the proportional system which combines preferential voting with proportional representation for each state. Voting and enrolment is compulsory for all enrolled citizens 18 years and older in every jurisdiction.[259][260][261] The party with majority support in the House of Representatives forms the government and its leader becomes Prime Minister. In cases where no party has majority support, the governor-general has the constitutional power to appoint the prime minister and, if necessary, dismiss one that has lost the confidence of Parliament.[262] Due to the relatively unique position of Australia operating as a Westminster parliamentary democracy with a powerful and elected upper house, the system has sometimes been referred to as having a "Washminster mutation",[249] or as a semi-parliamentary system.[263]
There are two major political groups that usually form government federally: the Australian Labor Party and the Coalition, which is a formal grouping of the Liberal Party and its minor partner, the National Party.[264][265] At the state level of government, the relationship between the Nationals and the Liberal Party differs, with the parties merged in Queensland and the Northern Territory (federal parliamentarians sit in either the Liberal or National partyroom however); in coalition in New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia; and in competition with the Liberals in South Australia and Tasmania.[266] Within Australian political culture, the Coalition is considered centre-right and the Labor Party is considered centre-left.[267] Independent members and several minor parties have achieved representation in Australian parliaments, mostly in upper houses. The Australian Greens are the third largest party by both vote and membership and the fourth largest by parliamentary representation.[268][269] The most recent federal election was held on 21 May 2022 and resulted in the Australian Labor Party, led by Anthony Albanese, being elected to government.[270]
The states have the general power to make laws except in the few areas where the constitution grants the Commonwealth exclusive powers.[272][273] The Commonwealth can only make laws on topics listed in the constitution but its laws prevail over those of the states to the extent of any inconsistency.[274][275] Since Federation, the Commonwealth's power relative to the states has significantly increased due to the increasingly wide interpretation given to listed Commonwealth powers – and because of the states' heavy financial reliance on Commonwealth grants.[276][277]
Each state and major mainland territory has its own parliament—unicameral in the Northern Territory, the ACT and Queensland, and bicameral in the other states. The lower houses are known as the Legislative Assembly (the House of Assembly in South Australia and Tasmania); the upper houses are known as the Legislative Council. The head of the government in each state is the Premier and in each territory the Chief Minister. The King is represented in each state by a governor. At the Commonwealth level, the King's representative is the governor-general.[254]
Australia is a member of several defence, intelligence and security groupings including the Five Eyes intelligence alliance with the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and New Zealand; the ANZUS alliance with the United States and New Zealand; the AUKUS security treaty with the United States and United Kingdom; the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue with the United States, India and Japan; the Five Power Defence Arrangements with New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Malaysia and Singapore; and the Reciprocal Access defence and security agreement with Japan.
The power over foreign policy is highly concentrated in the prime minister and the national security committee, with major decision such as joining the 2003 invasion of Iraq made with without prior Cabinet approval.[302][303] Similarly, the Parliament does not play a formal role in foreign policy and the power to declare war lies solely with the executive government.[304] The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade supports the executive in its policy decisions.
In 2021–22, Australia's generation of electricity was sourced from black coal (37.2%), brown coal (12%), natural gas (18.8%), hydro (6.5%), wind (11.1%), solar (13.3%), bio-energy (1.2%) and others (1.7%).[339][340] Total consumption of energy in this period was sourced from coal (28.4%), oil (37.3%), gas (27.4%) and renewables (7%).[341] From 2012 to 2022, the energy sourced from renewables has increased 5.7%, whilst energy sourced from coal has decreased 2.6%. The use of gas also increased by 1.5% and the use of oil stayed relatively stable with a reduction of only 0.2%.[342]
In 2020, Australia produced 27.7% of its electricity from renewable sources, exceeding the target set by the Commonwealth government in 2009 of 20% renewable energy by 2020.[343][344] A new target of 82% percent renewable energy by 2030 was set in 2022[345] and a target for net zero emissions by 2050 was set in 2021.[346]
Science and technology
In 2019, Australia spent $35.6 billion on research and development, allocating about 1.79% of GDP.[347] A recent study by Accenture for the Tech Council shows that the Australian tech sector combined contributes $167 billion a year to the economy and employs 861,000 people.[348] In addition, recent startup ecosystems in Sydney and Melbourne are already valued at $34 billion combined.[349] Australia ranked 23rd in the Global Innovation Index 2024.[350]
With only 0.3% of the world's population, Australia contributed 4.1% of the world's published research in 2020, making it one of the top 10 research contributors in the world.[351][352]CSIRO, Australia's national science agency, contributes 10% of all research in the country, while the rest is carried out by universities.[352] Its most notable contributions include the invention of atomic absorption spectroscopy,[353] the essential components of Wi-Fi technology,[354] and the development of the first commercially successful polymer banknote.[355]
Australia is also highly urbanised, with 67% of the population living in the Greater Capital City Statistical Areas (metropolitan areas of the state and mainland territorial capital cities) in 2018.[357] Metropolitan areas with more than one million inhabitants are Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.[31]
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. In 2021, the average age of the population was 39 years.[358] In 2015, 2.15% of the Australian population lived overseas, one of the lowest proportions worldwide.[359]
Australia contains five cities (including their suburbs) that consist of more than one million people. Most of Australia's population live close to coastlines.[360]
Australian residents by country of birth (2021 census)
Between 1788 and the Second World War, the vast majority of settlers and immigrants came from the British Isles (principally England, Ireland and Scotland), although there was significant immigration from China and Germany during the 19th century. Following Federation in 1901, the white Australia policy was strengthened, restricting further migration from these areas. However, this policy was relaxed following WW2 and in the decades following, Australia received a large wave of immigration from across Europe, with many more immigrants arriving from Southern and Eastern Europe than in previous decades. All overt racial discrimination ended in 1973, with multiculturalism becoming official policy.[362] Subsequently, there has been a large and continuing wave of immigration from across the world, with Asia being the largest source of immigrants in the 21st century.[363]
Today, Australia has the world's eighth-largest immigrant population, with immigrants accounting for 30% of the population, the highest proportion among major Western nations.[364][365] In 2022–23, 212,789 permanent migrants were admitted to Australia, with a net migration population gain of 518,000 people inclusive of non-permanent residents.[366][367] Most entered on skilled visas,[363] however the immigration program also offers visas for family members and refugees.[368]
Although English is not the official language of Australia in law, it is the de facto official and national language.[374][375]Australian English is a major variety of the language with a distinctive accent and lexicon,[376] and differs slightly from other varieties of English in grammar and spelling.[377]General Australian serves as the standard dialect.[378] The Australian sign language known as Auslan was used at home by 16,242 people at the time of the 2021 census.[379]
At the 2021 census, English was the only language spoken in the home for 72% of the population. The next most common languages spoken at home were Mandarin (2.7%), Arabic (1.4%), Vietnamese (1.3%), Cantonese (1.2%) and Punjabi (0.9%).[380]
More than 250 Australian Aboriginal languages are thought to have existed at the time of first European contact.[381] The National Indigenous Languages Survey (NILS) for 2018–19 found that more than 120 Indigenous language varieties were in use or being revived, although 70 of those in use were endangered.[382] The 2021 census found that 167 Indigenous languages were spoken at home by 76,978 Indigenous Australians — Yumplatok (Torres Strait Creole), Djambarrpuyngu (a Yolŋu language) and Pitjantjatjara (a Western Desert language) were among the most widely spoken.[383] NILS and the Australian Bureau of Statistics use different classifications for Indigenous Australian languages.[384]
Australia has no state religion; section 116 of the Australian Constitution prohibits the Australian government from making any law to establish any religion, impose any religious observance, or prohibit the free exercise of any religion.[385] However, the states still retain the power to pass religiously discriminatory laws.[386]
In 2021, just under 8,000 people declared an affiliation with traditional Aboriginal religions.[4] In Australian Aboriginal mythology and the animist framework developed in Aboriginal Australia, the Dreaming is a sacred era in which ancestral totemic spirit beings formed The Creation. The Dreaming established the laws and structures of society and the ceremonies performed to ensure continuity of life and land.[389]
Australia's life expectancy of 83 years (81 years for males and 85 years for females)[390] is the fifth-highest in the world. It has the highest rate of skin cancer in the world,[391] while cigarette smoking is the largest preventable cause of death and disease, responsible for 7.8% of the total mortality and disease. Ranked second in preventable causes is hypertension at 7.6%, with obesity third at 7.5%.[392][393] Australia ranked 35th in the world in 2012 for its proportion of obese women[394] and near the top of developed nations for its proportion of obese adults;[395] 63% of its adult population is either overweight or obese.[396]
Australia spent around 9.91% of its total GDP to health care in 2021.[397] It introduced a national insurance scheme in 1975.[398] Following a period in which access to the scheme was restricted, the scheme became universal once more in 1981 under the name of Medicare.[399] The program is nominally funded by an income tax surcharge known as the Medicare levy, currently at 2%.[400] The states manage hospitals and attached outpatient services, while the Commonwealth funds the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (subsidising the costs of medicines) and general practice.[398]
Australia has the highest ratio of international students per capita in the world, with Melbourne ranking fifth among the 2023 QS Best Student Cities (University of Melbourne pictured).
School attendance, or registration for home schooling,[401] is compulsory throughout Australia. Education is primarily the responsibility of the individual states and territories; however, the Commonwealth has significant influence through funding agreements.[402] Since 2014, a national curriculum developed by the Commonwealth has been implemented by the states and territories.[403] Attendance rules vary between states, but in general children are required to attend school from the age of about 5 until about 16.[404][405] In some states (Western Australia, Northern Territory and New South Wales), children aged 16–17 are required to either attend school or participate in vocational training, such as an apprenticeship.[406][407][408][409] According to the 2022 PISA evaluations, Australian 15-year-olds ranked ninth in the OECD for reading and science and tenth for maths. However, less than 60% of Australian students achieved the National Proficiency Standard – 51% in maths, 58% in science and 57% in reading.[410][411]
Australia has an adult literacy rate that was estimated to be 99% in 2003.[412] However, a 2011–2012 report for the Australian Bureau of Statistics found that 44% of the population does not have high literary and numeracy competence levels, interpreted by others as suggesting that they do not have the "skills needed for everyday life".[413][414][415]
Australia has 37 government-funded universities and three private universities, as well as a number of other specialist institutions that provide approved courses at the higher education level.[416] The OECD places Australia among the most expensive nations to attend university.[417] There is a state-based system of vocational training, known as TAFE, and many trades conduct apprenticeships for training new tradespeople.[418] About 58% of Australians aged from 25 to 64 have vocational or tertiary qualifications[419] and the tertiary graduation rate of 49% is the highest among OECD countries. 30.9% of Australia's population has attained a higher education qualification, which is among the highest percentages in the world.[420][421][422]
Australia has the highest ratio of international students per head of population in the world by a large margin, with 812,000 international students enrolled in the nation's universities and vocational institutions in 2019.[423][424] Accordingly, in 2019, international students represented on average 26.7% of the student bodies of Australian universities. International education therefore represents one of the country's largest exports and has a pronounced influence on the country's demographics, with a significant proportion of international students remaining in Australia after graduation on various skill and employment visas.[425] Education is Australia's third-largest export, after iron ore and coal, and contributed more than $28 billion to the economy in the 2016–17 financial year.[N 13][352]
Many Australians identify egalitarianism, mateship, irreverence and a lack of formality as part of their national identity.[433][434][435] These find expression in Australian slang, as well as Australian humour, which is often characterised as dry, irreverent and ironic.[436][437] New citizens and visa holders are required to commit to "Australian values", which are identified by the Department of Home Affairs as including: a respect for the freedom of the individual; recognition of the rule of law; opposition to racial, gender and religious discrimination; and an understanding of the "fair go", which is said to encompass the equality of opportunity for all and compassion for those in need.[438] What these values mean, and whether or not Australians uphold them, has been debated since before Federation.[439][440][441][442]
In the performing arts, Aboriginal peoples have traditions of religious and secular song, dance and rhythmic music often performed in corroborees.[457] At the beginning of the 20th century, Nellie Melba was one of the world's leading opera singers,[458] and later popular music acts such as the Bee Gees, AC/DC, INXS and Kylie Minogue achieved international recognition.[459] Many of Australia's performing arts companies receive funding through the Australian government's Australia Council.[460] There is a symphony orchestra in each state,[461] and a national opera company, Opera Australia,[462] well known for its famous sopranoJoan Sutherland.[463] Ballet and dance are represented by The Australian Ballet and various state companies. Each state has a publicly funded theatre company.[464]
Most Indigenous Australian groups subsisted on a diet of native fauna and flora, otherwise called bush tucker.[476] It has increased in popularity among non-Indigenous Australians since the 1970s, with examples such as lemon myrtle, the macadamia nut and kangaroo meat now widely available.[477][478]
Post-war migrants transformed Australian cuisine, bringing with them their culinary traditions and contributing to new fusion dishes.[482] Italians introduced espresso coffee and, along with Greeks, helped develop Australia's café culture, of which the flat white and avocado toast are now considered Australian staples.[483][484]Pavlovas, lamingtons, Vegemite and Anzac biscuits are also often called iconic Australian foods.[485]
Australia is a leading exporter and consumer of wine.[486]Australian wine is produced mainly in the southern, cooler parts of the country.[487] The nation also ranks highly in beer consumption,[488] with each state and territory hosting numerous breweries.
The most popular sports in Australia by adult participation are: swimming, athletics, cycling, soccer, golf, tennis, basketball, surfing, netball and cricket.[490]
Australia has professional leagues for four football codes, whose relative popularity is divided geographically.[499] Originating in Melbourne in the 1850s, Australian rules football attracts the most television viewers in all states except New South Wales and Queensland, where rugby league holds sway, followed by rugby union.[500]Soccer, while ranked fourth in television viewers and resources, has the highest overall participation rates.[501]
The surf lifesaving movement originated in Australia in the early 20th century, following the relaxation of laws prohibiting daylight bathing on Australian beaches. The volunteer lifesaver is one of the country's icons.[502][503]
^Australia also has a royal anthem, "God Save the King", which may be played in place of or alongside the national anthem when members of the royal family are present. If not played alongside the royal anthem, the national anthem is instead played at the end of an official event.[1]
^Sydney is the largest city based on Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Greater Capital City Statistical Areas (GCCSAs). These represent labour markets and the functional area of Australian capital cities.[2] Melbourne is larger based on ABS Significant Urban Areas (SUAs). These represent Urban Centres, or groups of contiguous Urban Centres, that contain a population of 10,000 people or more.[3]
^The religion question is optional in the Australian census.
^ abThere are minor variations from three basic time zones; see Time in Australia.
^The earliest recorded use of the word Australia in English was in 1625 in "A note of Australia del Espíritu Santo, written by Sir Richard Hakluyt", published by Samuel Purchas in Hakluytus Posthumus, a corruption of the original Spanish name "Austrialia del Espíritu Santo" (Southern Land of the Holy Spirit)[44][45][46] for an island in Vanuatu.[47] The Dutch adjectival form australische was used in a Dutch book in Batavia (Jakarta) in 1638, to refer to the newly discovered lands to the south.[48]
^Australia describes the body of water south of its mainland as the Southern Ocean, rather than the Indian Ocean as defined by the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO). In 2000, a vote of IHO member nations defined the term "Southern Ocean" as applying only to the waters between Antarctica and 60° south latitude.[169]
^Includes those who nominate "Australian" as their ancestry.[4] The Australian Bureau of Statistics has stated that most who nominate "Australian" as their ancestry have at least partial Anglo-CelticEuropean ancestry.[372]
^Each person may nominate more than one ancestry, so total may exceed 100%.[373]
^The Australian Bureau of Statistics has stated that most who nominate "Australian" as their ancestry have at least partial Anglo-CelticEuropean ancestry.[372]
^Those who nominated their ancestry as "Australian Aboriginal". Does not include Torres Strait Islanders. This relates to nomination of ancestry and is distinct from persons who identify as Indigenous (Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander) which is a separate question.
^Indigenous identification is separate to the ancestry question on the Australian Census and persons identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander may identify any ancestry.
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^Grant, Cameron (August 2007). "Damaged Dirt"(PDF). The Advertiser. Archived from the original(PDF) on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 23 April 2010. Australia has the oldest, most highly weathered soils on the planet.
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^ abFlood, J. (2019). The Original Australians: The story of the Aboriginal People (2nd ed.). Crows Nest NSW: Allen & Unwin. p. 161. ISBN978-1-76087-142-0.
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