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General Information about Australia

Australia is situated in the south-west of the Pacific Ocean. The area of this country is 7,7 million square kilometres. The population of the country is about 20 million people. The capital is Canberra. The population of Canberra is about 300 thousand people. Official language is English. Australia is the largest island in the world and it is the smallest continent.

The Commonwealth of Australia is a self-governing federal state. It has got 6 states: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and 2 internal territories.

National Anthem, Flag and the Coat-of-Arms

Australian national flag consists of 5 white stars of the Southern Cross and the white Commonwealth star (the large seven pointed star) on a blue background with a Union Jack in canton. The Southern Cross is the southern Crux, whose four chief stars are in the form of cross.

The flag of Australia is the only one to fly over a whole continent. The small Union Jack represents the historical link with Britain, and the large seven-pointed star represents the six states and the Territories, and the small stars form the Southern Cross – a prominent feature of the southern hemisphere night sky.

A distinctive Australia flora and fauna is reflected in the country's coat-of-arms by the symbols of Australia's endemic animals; kangaroo and emu and twig of wattle (a kind of acacia).

Australia officially adopted green and gold as its national colours in 1984.

The Australia national anthem was adopted in the 1970ties. It is used on the all official and ceremonial occasions.

Terra Incognita

(Unknown Land)

It is supposed that Australia's native inhabitants, the Aborigines, arrived in Australia at least 40,000 years ago. The first Europeans visited the shores of Australia in 1606. The Spanish ship of Luis Vaes de Torres sailed through the strait which now bears his name and separates Australia and Papua New Guinea. In the same year the Dutch ship Duyfken (Little Dove) sailed into the Gulf of Carpentaria. Among later voyagers is Dirk Hartog (1616), who left an inscribed pewter plate (Australia's most famous early European relic, now in Amsterdam) in Western Australia.

Abel Tasman, Dutch navigator, visited Tasmania, which he named Van Diemen's Land, in 1642.

The first Englishman to visit the continent was a buccaneer, William Dampier, who landed near King Sound on the northwest coast in 1699.

A second wave of immigration began in 1770, when Captain James Cook, of the British Navy, sighted the east coast of the continent.

Cook had been sent to Tahiti to make astronomical observations and when his mission was completed, he sailed south in Endeavour, circumnavigated New Zealand and headed due west. On April 20, 1770, Cook sighted land near Cape Everard, in the southeast corner of Australia. He turned north, charting the coastline as he went and, 9 days later, landed at Botany Bay, which he named for the variety of botanic specimen found there. He raised the British flag and claimed New South Wales as a British Colony.

First European Settlement

It is probably due to its geographical position that Australia was the last continent to be inhabited by the white man. It was just a little over 390 years that the Australian continent was discovered.

The first landing by Europeans took place in 1606. More than a century and a half later an expedition headed by the British explorer James Cook added the land to the possessions of the British crown.

Until the name “Australia” (meaning “South Land”) became generally accepted for the continent, it had been referred to as New Holland, New South Wales, or Botany Bay. During the War of Independence (1776) the former British colonies in America declared themselves independent. Britain tried to make up for this loss by the seizure of new territories. Besides, the convicts could no longer be transported to the American colon

Australia Day 26 january - mark the landing of Captain Cook in 1788.Australia consist of six states: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland,South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania; and two territories : The Nothern Territory and the australian Capital Territiry, which is the location of the capital city Canberra

Geographical Position

Australia is the only country in the world that is also a continent. It is the sixth large country and the smallest continent.The cThe Nature of Australia

Australia is the driest continent on the Earth. The unique climate and the isolation of Australia from other continents explain the existence of unusual plants and animals.

The commonest tree of Australia is the eucalyptus. In the drier areas there is the Australian acacia or mimosa. In those areas one can also find strange bottle trees. They preserve water in their trunks.

Australian animals are also very unusual. Among them there are kangaroos, duck-bills, koala bears, and others.

Population and Cities

Australian population is about 23 million people. The natives of the country are called Aborigines. Now they comprise a very small part of the country’s population due to the former extrusion ofthe indigenous peoplein the past.

There are 5 big cities in Australia: Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Brisbane. Canberra was specially planned as a capital. All the government buildings are situated there.

Sydney is the oldest and largest city in Australia. It is a big industrial centre. About 5 million people live in the city.

Attractions in Australia

Australia has a lot to offer to tourists.

The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands.

The most famous building in the country is the Sydney Opera House. Its roof looks like sails. It is a masterpiece of architecture. More than 5,000 people can visit concerts, operas, theatre performances and other events.

Kakadu National Park is in Australia’s Northern Territory and covers about 20,000 square kilometres. It is a wetland with over 200 kinds of birds and 1,700 plant species. It is also the home of Australian crocodiles.

Географическое положение

Австралия – единственная страна в мире, которая также является континентом. Это шестая по территории страна и самый маленький континент. Столица страны – Канберра. Официальный язык – английский.

Природа Австралии

Австралия – самый засушливый континент на Земле. Уникальный климат и изоляция Австралии от других континентов объясняют наличие необычных растений и животных.

Эвкалипт – самое распространенное дерево в Австралии. В более засушливых районах есть австралийская акация или мимоза. В этих областях можно также найти странные бутылочные деревья. Они накапливают воду в своих стволах.

Австралийские животные также очень необычны. Среди них кенгуру, утконосы, коалы и другие.

Население и крупные города

Население Австралии составляет около 23 миллионов человек. Коренных жителей страны называют аборигенами. Теперь они составляют очень небольшую часть населения из-за вытеснения коренного народа в прошлом.

В Австралии 5 больших городов: Сидней, Мельбурн, Аделаида, Перт и Брисбен. Канберра была специально спланирована как столица. Там расположены все правительственные здания.

Сидней – старейший и крупнейший город в Австралии. Это крупный промышленный центр. В этом городе живут около 5 миллионов человек.

Достопримечательности Австралии

Австралия может многое предложить туристам.

Большой Барьерный риф – крупнейший в мире коралловый риф, состоящий из более 2900 отдельных коралловых рифов и 900 островов.

Самое знаменитое здание в стране – Сиднейский оперный театр. Его крыша выглядит как паруса. Это шедевр архитектуры. Более 5000 человек могут посетить концерты, оперы, спектакли и другие мероприятия.

Национальный Парк Какаду находится в Северной территории Австралии и охватывает около 20000 км2. Это водно-болотные угодья с более чем 200 видами птиц и 1700 видами растений. Также это дом австралийских крокодилов. apital of the country is Canberra. The official language is English.