Jump to content

Portal:Australia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Welcome to the Australia portal!

ShowcaseContentInteresting factsContributing

Introduction  

Summer in the Mount Hotham area - show another panorama

The flag of Australia

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 has a total area of 7,688,287 km2 (2,968,464 sq mi), making it the sixth-largest country in the world and the largest in Oceania. Australia is the world's flattest and driest inhabited continent. It is a megadiverse country, and its size gives it a wide variety of landscapes and climates including deserts in the interior and tropical rainforests along the coast.

The ancestors of Aboriginal Australians began arriving from south-east 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 commenced with Dutch exploration of most of the coastline in the 17th century. British colonisation began in 1788 with the establishment of the penal colony of New South Wales. By the mid-19th century, most of the continent had been explored by European settlers and five additional self-governing British colonies were established, each gaining responsible government by 1890. The colonies federated in 1901, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. This continued a process of increasing autonomy from the United Kingdom, highlighted by the Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942, and culminating in the Australia Acts of 1986.

Australia is a federal parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy comprising six states and ten territories. Its population of almost 28 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard. Canberra is the nation's capital, while its most populous cities are Sydney and Melbourne, both with a population of more than 5 million. Australia's culture is diverse, and the country has one of the highest foreign-born populations in the world. It has a highly developed economy and one of the highest per capita incomes globally. Its abundant natural resources and well-developed international trade relations are crucial to the country's economy. It ranks highly for quality of life, health, education, economic freedom, civil liberties and political rights.

More about Australia, its history and culture

Featured article - show another

  Featured articles are displayed here, which represent some of the best content on English Wikipedia.

A red-bellied black snake in Lamington National Park, Queensland

The red-bellied black snake (Pseudechis porphyriacus) is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae, indigenous to Australia. Originally described by George Shaw in 1794 as a species new to science, it is one of eastern Australia's most commonly encountered snakes. Averaging around 1.25 m (4 ft 1 in) in length, it has glossy black upperparts, bright red or orange flanks, and a pink or dull red belly. It is not aggressive and generally retreats from human encounters, but will defend itself if provoked. Although its venom can cause significant illness, no deaths have been recorded from its bite, which is less venomous than other Australian elapid snakes. The venom contains neurotoxins, myotoxins, and coagulants and has haemolytic properties. Victims can also lose their sense of smell. (Full article...)

List of Featured articles in portal

Selected biography - show another

Entries here consist of Good and Featured articles, which meet a core set of high editorial standards.

Bruce in 1930

Stanley Melbourne Bruce, 1st Viscount Bruce of Melbourne (15 April 1883 – 25 August 1967) was an Australian politician, statesman and businessman who served as the eighth prime minister of Australia from 1923 to 1929. He held office as the leader of the Nationalist Party, having previously served as the treasurer of Australia from 1921 to 1923. (Full article...)

Did you know (auto-generated) - load new batch  

In the news  

Read and edit Wikinews


8 March 2025 – 2024–25 Australian region cyclone season
Cyclone Alfred
One person is confirmed killed and thirteen others are injured in floods caused by Cyclone Alfred as it passes through Queensland and New South Wales, Australia. (AP)
5 March 2025 – 2024–25 Australian region cyclone season
Tropical Cyclone Alfred
Queensland Premier David Crisafulli announces the suspension of public transport services and the closure of 640 schools in South East Queensland, Australia, as Cyclone Alfred is expected to make landfall early Friday morning local time. (ABC News Australia)
3 March 2025 – 2024–25 Australian region cyclone season
Cyclone warnings are issued to residents of Brisbane, South East Queensland and the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales as Tropical Cyclone Alfred is expected to make landfall on Thursday or early Friday local time. (The Guardian Australia)
25 February 2025 – 2025 Queensland floods
At least twelve people are killed by a melioidosis outbreak caused by standing waters from persistent flooding in Queensland, Australia. (7News)


Selected pictures - show another

On this day  

17 March:

The "Springs" that gave the town its name – Alice Springs
The "Springs" that gave the town its name – Alice Springs


General images  

The following are images from various Australia-related articles on Wikipedia.


Topics  

More portals  

WikiProject  

Flag of the Commonwealth of Australia
Flag of the Commonwealth of Australia
Coat of Arms of the Commonwealth of Australia
Coat of Arms of the Commonwealth of Australia
Location on the world map

Consider joining WikiProject Australia, a WikiProject dedicated to improving Wikipedia's coverage of topics related to Australia. The project page and its subpages contain suggestions on formatting and style of articles, which can be discussed at the project's notice board. To participate, simply add your name to the project members page.

As of 17 March 2025, there are 207,460 articles within the scope of WikiProject Australia, of which 598 are featured and 892 are good articles. This makes up 2.98% of the articles on Wikipedia, 5.29% of all featured articles and lists, and 2.16% of all good articles (see WP:AUSFG). Including non-article pages, such as talk pages, redirects, categories, etc., there are 414,920 pages in the project.

Associated Wikimedia  

The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:

More portals