Portal:Australia
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Introduction
View from Connors Hill in Shire of East Gippsland, Victoria, Australia -
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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 Southeast Asia 50,000 to 65,000 years ago, during the Last Glacial Period. By the time of British settlement, Aboriginal Australians spoke more than 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 constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary democracy, and a federation 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, each with a population of more than five 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.
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The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) operated Vultee Vengeance dive bombers during World War II. The Australian Government ordered 297 of the type in late 1941 as part of efforts to expand the RAAF. This order was later increased to 400 aircraft. A few Vengeances arrived in Australia during 1942, and large-scale deliveries commenced in early 1943; further orders were cancelled in 1944 after 342 had been delivered. (Full article...)
Selected biography -
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Samuel John Everett Loxton OBE (29 March 1921 – 3 December 2011) was an Australian cricketer, footballer and politician. Among these three pursuits, his greatest achievements were attained on the cricket field; he played in 12 Tests for Australia from 1948 to 1951. A right-handed all-rounder, Loxton was part of the Invincibles, who went through the 1948 tour of England undefeated, an unprecedented achievement that has never been matched. As well as being a hard-hitting batsman, Loxton was a right-arm swing bowler who liked to aim at the upper bodies of the opposition, and an outfielder with an accurate and powerful throw. After being dropped from the national team, Loxton represented Victoria for seven more seasons before retiring from first-class cricket. He served as an administrator after his playing days were over and spent 24 years as a Liberal Party member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly. Up until 1946, Loxton also played in the Victorian Football League (VFL) for St Kilda as a forward. In all three arenas, he was known for his energetic approach. (Full article...)
Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that Aboriginal soldier Tim Hughes was decorated for remarkable bravery, exceptional coolness and initiative during the Battle of Buna–Gona?
- ... that starting at age 16, future Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci was named top sewing machine salesperson three years in a row?
- ... that Holly Ringland wrote her second book while stuck in Australia for three years during the COVID-19 pandemic?
- ... that a senator once brought fake dynamite into an Australian budget estimates hearing to make a point about parliamentary security arrangements?
- ... that Australia-born rugby union player Jason Jones-Hughes was the subject of a protracted legal battle over his international eligibility after Wales called him up for the 1999 Rugby World Cup?
- ... that Australian NFL player Laki Tasi got into American football at the suggestion of a burger shop owner?
- ... that "The Potato King of Colorado" survived a shipwreck, mined for gold in Australia, and helped establish an alcohol-free Methodist colony?
- ... that an Australian radio station defended playing Zheani's "Bring Wet Cunt" uncensored in 2024?
In the news
- 18 January 2026 – 2026 Australian Open
- In tennis, Venus Williams becomes the oldest player to participate in the women's singles draw of an Australian Open at the age of 45 years and 7 months, surpassing Kimiko Date's record from 2015. (The Independent)
- 13 January 2026 – Adelaide Writers' Week boycott
- Adelaide Writers' Week in Adelaide, Australia, cancels its 2026 festival after director Louise Adler resigned and more than 180 writers withdrew in protest over the board's decision to disinvite Palestinian Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah. (Reuters)
- 12 January 2026 –
- Meta reports that it has shut down over 544,000 accounts of users under the age of 16 on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads in response to Australian social media age restrictions. (DW)
- 11 January 2026 – 2025–26 Australian bushfire season
- One person is killed and at least 300 properties are destroyed by wildfires across Victoria and New South Wales, Australia. A state of emergency is declared in Victoria with thousands of firefighters and more than 70 aircraft deployed to combat the fires. (BBC News)
- 11 January 2026 – 2026 United Cup
- In tennis, Poland win their first United Cup title after defeating Switzerland 2–1 in the final at the Ken Rosewall Arena in Sydney, Australia. (Reuters)
- 19 December 2025 – 2025 Bondi Beach shooting
- Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese announces a nationwide gun buyback program, the largest since the aftermath of the 1996 Port Arthur massacre, in response to the recent Bondi Beach shooting in Sydney. (AFP via France 24)
Selected pictures -
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Photo credit: John O'NeillA panoramic view across the interior of the Australian Synchrotron (a subatomic particle accelerator) in Clayton, Victoria. Dominating the image is the storage ring, showing the optical diagnostic beamline at front right. In the middle of the storage ring is the booster synchrotron and linac. The yellow, green and red magnets on the trolley (front left) are a demonstration of the bending and focusing magnets used in the storage ring to produce the synchrotron radiation and maintain the electron beam. -
Photo credit: Frank HurleyA group of Australian infantry wearing Small Box Respirators (SBRs) at the Third Battle of Ypres in September 1917. After the introduction of poison gas in World War I, countermeasures were developed. SBRs represented the pinnacle of gas mask development during the war, a mouthpiece connected via a hose to a box filter (hanging around the wearer's neck in this picture), which in turn contained granules of chemicals that neutralised the gas. The SBR was the prized possession of the ordinary infantryman; when the British were forced to retreat during the German Spring Offensive of 1918, it was found that while some troops had discarded their rifles, hardly any had left behind their respirators. -
Ninety Mile Beach, Victoria, is believed to the longest un-interrupted beach in the world.
The Ninety Mile Beach is a sandy stretch of south-eastern coastline of Victoria, Australia which separates the Gippsland Lakes region from Bass Strait.It is believed to be the longest un-interrupted beach in the world — just over 151 kilometres (94 miles) running northeastward from a spit near Port Albert to the man-made channel at Lakes Entrance. For the northern part of its route the beach runs along a sandbar on what amounts to a series of tidal islands and behind which are several large lakes and numerous shallow littoral lagoons. The area comprises the Gippsland Lakes Coastal Park. -
Photo credit: Fir0002The Cairns Birdwing (Ornithoptera euphorion) is a birdwing butterfly of the Papilionidae family. It is Australia's largest butterfly, and is native to the tropical north of Queensland. -
A Beautiful Firetail (Stagonopleura bella) male (top) and female. In this common Australian species of estrildid finch, nest-building and raising children is done collaboratively. -
Nitmiluk National Park from the air.
Nitmiluk National Park is a protected area in the Northern Territory of Australia. It is located 244 kilometres southeast of Darwin. Established around a series of gorges on the Katherine River and Edith Falls, the park has great ceremonial significance to the local Jawoyn people, who are custodians of Nitmiluk National Park. In Jawoyn, Nitmiluk means place of the cicada dreaming.
Photo credit: Brian Voon Yee Yap -
Photo: Sport the LibraryJeremy Doyle (1983–2011) was an Australian wheelchair basketball player. Left paraplegic after a car accident, he was classified as a 1 point player. While representing his country Doyle won two gold medals, first at the 2009 Paralympic World Cup and again at the 2010 Wheelchair Basketball World Championship. -
Photo credit: Fir0002Nick Heidfeld and Nico Rosberg at corner 6 of the 2008 Australian Grand Prix, during one of the race's safety car periods. This first race of the 2008 Formula One season was won by McLaren-Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton. Heidfeld and Rosberg finished second and third, respectively. -
Photo: JJ HarrisonThe Dusky Robin (Melanodryas vittata) is a small passerine bird native to Tasmania. A member of the Australian Robin family, it is not related to European or American Robins. It is a brown-plumaged bird of open woodland, measuring 16–17 cm (6.3–6.7 in) in length. -
Photo: JJ HarrisonThe Tasmanian Darner (Austroaeschna tasmanica) is an Australian species of dragonfly in the Aeshnidae family, which includes some of the largest of the dragonflies on the planet. Also referred to as "hawkers", the name "darner" derives from the fact that the female abdomens look like a sewing needle, as they cut into plant stem when they lay their eggs through the ovipositor. -
Photo credit: James Francis HurleySoldiers of an Australian 4th Division field artillery brigade on a duckboard track passing through Chateau Wood, near Hooge in the Ypres salient, October 29, 1917. The photo was taken in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele, also known as the Third Battle of Ypres, which was one of the major battles of World War I. -
Photo credit: John O'NeillFuel dumping is a practice used by aircraft that are equipped to jettison fuel in the event of certain types of emergency situations. This RAAF F-111 aircraft is performing a dump-and-burn fuel dump at the Australian International Airshow, a procedure where the fuel is intentionally ignited using the plane's afterburner. This type of fuel dumping is also referred to as "torching" or a "zippo". -
A panorama of the Melbourne skyline from Yarra's Edge, Docklands at twilight.
The Melbourne Docklands is a new inner city suburb and urban renewal project in the Victorian capital of Melbourne. The district, built on former unused docks, covers 2 km² and comprises 7 km of waterfront. It was commenced in 2000, and is expected to be completed by 2015, almost doubling the size of the central business district. Its resident population, to be comprised of primarily hi-rise apartment dwellers, is estimated to reach 20,000, while a further 25,000 will work in the area. The Docklands is already a major attraction, with landmarks such as the Telstra Dome.
Photo credit: Diliff -
Photo credit: Noodle snacksThe 26-metre (85 ft) radio telescope at Mount Pleasant Radio Observatory, located 20 kilometres (12 mi) east of Hobart, Tasmania, is the southernmost antenna used in Australia's Very Long Baseline Interferometry network. The facility is owned and operated by the University of Tasmania. -
The Scenic Railway at en:Luna Park, Melbourne, viewed from Shakespeare Grove
Luna Park is an amusement park located on the foreshore of Port Phillip Bay in St Kilda, Victoria, which is an inner suburb of Melbourne, Australia. It opened in 1912 and has been operating since. It is the first of two Luna Parks still operating in Australia; the other is on Sydney Harbour.
Photo credit: Stevage -
Photo credit: John O'NeillA Common Grass Blue (Zizina labradus), a small Australian butterfly. This specimen, perched on a rose, is approximately 10 millimetres (0.4 in) in size. Females generally have a larger wingspan compared to males (23 and 20 mm or 0.9 and 0.8 in respectively). -
Elabana Falls, Lamington National Park
Lamington National Park is a 206 square kilometre conservation area situated on the Lamington Plateau in Queensland, 75 kilometres south of Brisbane. It is part of the World Heritage site, Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves. Most of the park is situated 900 m above sea level only 30 km from the Pacific's ocean shores. The plateau and cliffs, remnants of a huge volcano, remain one of the world's most special sanctuaries.
Photo credit: Malcolm Jacobson -
Photo: JJ HarrisonThe Tawny Frogmouth (Podargus strigoides) is a nocturnal species of Australian frogmouth commonly mistaken for an owl. Males and females look similar, growing to 35–53 cm (14–21 in) long and up to 680 g (1.5 lb) in weight. The Tawny Frogmouth is almost exclusively insectivorous, feeding rarely on frogs and other small prey. It generally sits very still on a low perch and catches food with its beak. -
Adelaide Festival Centre from the north bank of the River Torrens.
The Adelaide Festival Centre is a multi-purpose arts centre in the South Australian capital of Adelaide. It is situated adjacent to Elder Park on the banks of the River Torrens, northwest of the intersection of North Terrace and King William Street. The centre is distinguished by its three silvery-white tetrahedron dome roofs and its plaza consisting of lego block-like sculptures. It was opened in 1973 by Don Dunstan as the home for performing arts in South Australia, and the centre remains the principal venue for the Adelaide Festival of Arts.
Photo credit: Michael -
Photo credit: LiquidGhoulThe head of a Coastal Carpet Python, the largest subspecies of Morelia spilota, a non-venomous Australian python, showing its forked tongue, a feature common to many reptiles, who smell using the tip of their tongue. Having a forked tongue allows them to tell which direction a smell is coming from. -
Photo: JJ HarrisonThe Metallic Ringtail (Austrolestes cingulatus) is an Australian species of damselfly, so named because of its glossy metallic colouration and the "rings" on each abdominal segment. It is widely distributed in Tasmania, Victoria, eastern New South Wales and south eastern Queensland. -
Common Eastern Froglet (Crinia signifera)
The Common Eastern Froglet (Crinia signifera) is a very common, Australian ground-dwelling frog, of the family Myobatrachidae. It ranges from south-eastern Australia, from Adelaide to Melbourne, up the eastern coast to Brisbane. It also inhabits a majority of Tasmania. It is a small frog (3 centimetres), of brown or grey colour of various shades. It has extremely variable markings, with great variety usually found within confined populations
Photo credit: LiquidGhoul
On this day
- 1887 – Brisbane receives a daily rainfall of 465 millimetres (18.3 inches), a record for any Australian capital city.
- 1904 – Henry Northcote, 1st Baron Northcote is appointed the third Governor General of Australia.
- 1918 – The Mackay cyclone struck Mackay, Queensland, causing serious damage and killing 30.
- 1931 – Isaac Isaacs becomes the first Australian born Governor-General of Australia
- 1941 – World War II: Australian and British forces attack Tobruk, Libya.
- 1966 – Richard Layton Butler, Premier of South Australia, dies.
- 1974 – Entertainer, Rove McManus is born.
General images
The following are images from various Australia-related articles on Wikipedia.
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The Wiggles performing in the United States in 2007 (from Culture of Australia) -
Convict architecture at Port Arthur, Tasmania (from Culture of Australia) -
Interior of St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney (from Culture of Australia) -
South Australian suffragette Catherine Helen Spence (1825–1910). The Australian colonies established democratic parliaments from the 1850s and began to grant women the vote in the 1890s. -
An Aboriginal encampment near the Adelaide foothills in an 1854 painting by Alexander Schramm (from Aboriginal Australians) -
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Governor Arthur Phillip hoists the British flag over the new colony at Sydney Cove in 1788 (from Culture of Australia) -
A billycan used for heating water (from Culture of Australia) -
Dwellings accommodating Aboriginal families at Hermannsburg Mission, Northern Territory, 1923 (from Aboriginal Australians) -
St Mary Mackillop established an extensive network of schools and is Australia's first canonised saint of the Catholic Church. (from Culture of Australia) -
Cricket match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, 1860s (from Culture of Australia) -
A group of Australian men wearing speedos (from Culture of Australia) -
Men from Bathurst Island, 1939 (from Aboriginal Australians) -
The University of Sydney (from Culture of Australia) -
Nan Tien Temple, a Buddhist temple in Wollongong. Multicultural immigration has increased Australia's religious diversity. (from Culture of Australia) -
Sheep grazing in rural Australia. Early British settlers introduced Western stock and crops and Australian agriculture now produces an abundance of fresh produce. (from Culture of Australia) -
A commemorative statue of John Simpson Kirkpatrick, a famous stretcher bearer who was killed in the Gallipoli Campaign. (from Culture of Australia) -
The Princess Theatre in Melbourne (from Culture of Australia) -
The surf lifesaving movement originated in Australia. Pictured: surf lifesavers, Bondi Beach, 1930s (from Culture of Australia) -
The SBS building in Melbourne's Federation Square. SBS is Australia's multicultural broadcaster. (from Culture of Australia) -
Kylie Minogue, one of Australia's most successful pop musicians (from Culture of Australia) -
Australians by the waterside at the Portsea Hotel, a pub in Melbourne, Victoria (from Culture of Australia) -
Anzac Day dawn services are held throughout Australia every April. (from Culture of Australia) -
The Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne (from Culture of Australia) -
Donald Bradman is often cited as statistically the greatest sportsman of any major sport. (from Culture of Australia) -
Skiing in Australia began in Kiandra, a goldmining town in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, in the 1860s. (from Culture of Australia) -
Didgeridoo performers (from Culture of Australia) -
Countries of birth of Australian estimated resident population, 2006 (from Culture of Australia) -
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Founded in 1993, Sydney's Tropfest is the world's largest short film festival. (from Culture of Australia) -
Hyde Park Barracks, Sydney (from Culture of Australia) -
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The Matildas, Australia's national women's football team, in 2021 (from Culture of Australia) -
The Bulletin, founded by J. F. Archibald (left), nurtured bush poets such as Henry Lawson (right). (from Culture of Australia) -
Corroboree at Newcastle by convict artist Joseph Lycett, c. 1818. Aboriginal Australian religious practices associated with the Dreamtime have been practised for tens of thousands of years. (from Culture of Australia) -
Singer-songwriter Paul Kelly (from Culture of Australia) -
William Wentworth (1790–1872) was among the first to articulate a vision of Australian nationhood (from Culture of Australia) -
Statue in Fremantle of an Australian rules footballer taking a spectacular mark (from Culture of Australia) -
A typical Queenslander house in Brisbane (from Culture of Australia) -
Actor playing the bushranger Ned Kelly in The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906), the world's first feature film (from Culture of Australia) -
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The first State of Origin shield (from Culture of Australia) -
Portrait of Madame Melba by Rupert Bunny (from Culture of Australia) -
A swagman in bushman's apparel, wearing a brimmed hat and carrying swag and billy can (from Culture of Australia) -
A Luritja man demonstrating method of attack with boomerang under cover of shield (1920) (from Culture of Australia) -
The verandah is the dominant feature of this Federation Filigree-style pub in Ravenswood. (from Culture of Australia) -
An Eastern Arrernte man of the Arltunga district, Northern Territory, in 1923. His hut is decked with porcupine grass. (from Aboriginal Australians) -
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Historical image of Aboriginal Australian women and children, Maloga, New South Wales around 1900 (in European dress) (from Aboriginal Australians) -
Parliament House, Canberra (from Culture of Australia) -
Cover of Old Bush Songs, Banjo Paterson's 1905 collection of bush ballads (from Culture of Australia) -
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Noongar traditional dancers in Perth (from Aboriginal Australians) -
Golden wattle, Australia's floral emblem and the source of Australia's national colours, green and gold (from Culture of Australia)
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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 20 January 2026, there are 212,477 articles within the scope of WikiProject Australia, of which 599 are featured and 926 are good articles. This makes up 2.98% of the articles on Wikipedia, 5.18% of all featured articles and lists, and 2.14% of all good articles (see WP:AUSFG). Including non-article pages, such as talk pages, redirects, categories, etc., there are 552,740 pages in the project.
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