User:Maxmead2/sandbox
Country in Oceania / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Commonwealth of Australia | |
---|---|
Anthem: "Advance Australia Fair"[N 1] | |
Capital | Canberra 35°18′29″S 149°07′28″E |
Largest city | Sydney |
National language | English[N 2] |
Demonym(s) |
|
Government | Federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy |
• Monarch | Elizabeth II |
Sir Peter Cosgrove | |
Malcolm Turnbull | |
Michael McCormack | |
Susan Kiefel | |
Scott Ryan | |
Tony Smith | |
Legislature | Parliament |
Senate | |
House of Representatives | |
Independence from the United Kingdom | |
1 January 1901 | |
9 October 1942 (with effect from 3 September 1939) | |
3 March 1986 | |
Area | |
• Total | 7,692,024 km2 (2,969,907 sq mi) (6th) |
• Water (%) | 0.76 |
Population | |
• 2024 estimate | 27,226,700[5] (51st) |
• 2016 census | 23,401,892[6] |
• Density | 3.5/km2 (9.1/sq mi) (236th) |
GDP (PPP) | 2018 estimate |
• Total | $1.313 trillion[7] (19th) |
• Per capita | $52,191[7] (17th) |
GDP (nominal) | 2018 estimate |
• Total | $1.500 trillion[7] (13th) |
• Per capita | $59,655[7] (10th) |
Gini (2012) | 33.6[8] medium (19th) |
HDI (2015) | 0.939[9] very high (2nd) |
Currency | Australian dollar (AUD) |
Time zone | UTC+8 to +10.5 (Various[N 3]) |
UTC+8 to +11.5 (Various[N 3]) | |
Date format | dd/mm/yyyy |
Driving side | left |
Calling code | +61 |
ISO 3166 code | AU |
Internet TLD | .au |
Australia (/əˈstreɪliə, ɒ-/ ⓘ),[10][11] officially the Commonwealth of Australia,[12] is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It is the largest country in Oceania and the world's sixth-largest country by total area. The neighbouring countries are Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and East Timor to the north; the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east; and New Zealand to the south-east. Australia's capital is Canberra, and its largest city is Sydney.
For about 60,000 years before the first British settlement in the late 18th century, Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians, who in documented times have spoken languages classifiable into roughly 250 groups. After the European discovery of the continent by Dutch explorers in 1606, Australia's eastern half was claimed by Great Britain in 1770 and initially settled through penal transportation to the colony of New South Wales from 26 January 1788. The population grew steadily in subsequent decades, and by the 1850s most of the continent had been explored and an additional five self-governing crown colonies established. On 1 January 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. Australia has since maintained a stable liberal democratic political system that functions as a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy comprising six states and several territories.
Australia has the world's 13th-largest economy and tenth-highest per capita income (IMF).[13] With the second-highest human development index globally, the country ranks highly in quality of life, health, education, economic freedom, and civil liberties and political rights.[14] Australia is a member of the ASEAN Plus mechanism, United Nations, G20, Commonwealth of Nations, ANZUS, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), World Trade Organization, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, and the Pacific Islands Forum. The population of 27 million[5] is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard.[15] Australia has the world's 9th largest immigrant population, with immigrants accounting for 26% of the population.[16][17]