About Australia

About Australia

Australia is an open, friendly, democratic society with a robust, innovative economy. With a population of nearly 20 million people, Australia is the only country to govern an entire continent, the sixth largest in the world in land area.

Australia has a culturally diverse society which includes Indigenous peoples who have lived for countless years on the land, and migrants who have come from more than 160 countries worldwide.

Australia's environment contains immense natural beauty; from the lonely deserts of the interior, to lush rainforests and sparkling seas.

Australia is a western country that is geographically located in the blossoming South East Asian region. Building closer relations with Australia's Asian neighbours is a government priority. Many Australian citizens now live, work and travel to Asian countries.

National Flag

The Australian flag flew for the first time in Melbourne on 3 September 1901, following a design competition that drew 32,823 entries. The stars of the Southern Cross represent Australia's geographical position in the Southern Hemisphere, and the large Commonwealth Star symbolises the federation of States and Territories.

National Anthem

"Advance Australia Fair" has been Australia's national anthem since 19 April 1984

Australians all let us rejoice,
For we are young and free;
We've golden soil and wealth for toil;
Our home is girt by sea;
Our land abounds in nature's gifts
Of beauty rich and rare;
In history's page, let every stage
Advance Australia Fair.
In joyful strains then let us sing,
Advance Australia Fair.

Beneath our radiant Southern Cross
We'll toil with hearts and hands;
To make this Commonwealth of ours
Renowned of all the lands;
For those who've come across the seas
We've boundless plains to share;
With courage let us all combine
To Advance Australia Fair.
In joyful strains then let us sing,
Advance Australia Fair.

Australia's People

Australia as a country is composed of people from many different cultural backgrounds. It is fair to say that all Australians have come from somewhere else in the world.

Australia's democracy asks new Australian citizens to make this commitment:

"I pledge my loyalty to Australia and its people
Whose democratic beliefs I share,
Whose rights and liberties I respect,
Whose laws I will uphold and obey."

Australia's Own Dragon

Australia, like Bhutan, has it's very own connection with the dragon!

The coastal waters off the Australian coast are the home of some magnificent marine dragons - the weedy sea dragon and the leafy sea dragon.

Anyone who has seen a leafy sea-dragon cannot fail to make the connection between this tiny gossamer-like creature and the dragons of fairy tales.

Unique to the southern waters of South Australia and Western Australia, the leafy sea-dragon's home is inshore areas of seagrass. Unfortunately these are under increasing threat from pollution and excessive fertiliser run-off.

The weedy sea-dragon on the other hand is endemic to (only found in) Australian temperate waters and are protected in New South Wales and Tasmania.

They are similar to a sea-horse, although they are quite a bit bigger than the sea horse. In fact, they are like an unravelled or a stretched out sea horse.

The leafy has a lot more appendages or leaf like bits hanging off them, and is a yellowy-brown or even orange colour sometimes. Whereas the weedy sea-dragon has less appendages, but is a lot more colourful. It is sort of a reddy-brown with blue or purple bars and yellow or white spots on it. So it is quite spectacular colour-wise.

Of the two species, the weedy sea-dragon is the larger one. It grows to about 45-46 cm and that is measured from its nose to the end of its tail. And the leafy sea-dragon is slightly smaller, it is about 30-35 cm.

Here are a couple of pictures of the different dragons.

Leafy Sea Dragon

Weedy Sea Dragon

Sea Dragon

Quick Facts about Australia

Land Area: 7.69 million km2
Population: 20.7 million
Language: English
Currency: Australian dollars (A$)
National colours: Green and blue
Time: Australia has three time zones:
NE/SE: GMT + 10
Central: GMT + 9
West: GMT + 8
Workforce: 9.6 million
Items handled by postal service: 4.52 billion per year
Overseas visitors: 4.94 million (2000)
Highest point: 2228 metres above sea level
(Mount Kosciuszko, New South Wales)
Lowest point: 15 metres below sea level
(dry bed of Lake Eyre, South Australia)
Longest river: 3370 km (Murray-Darling river system)
Hottest place: Cloncurry, Queensland (53—C)
Coldest place: Charlotte Pass, New South Wales (-23—C)
Distance north to south: 3700 km
Distance east to west: 4000 km
(Source: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade www.dfat.gov.au)