Country occupying all of the Earth's smallest continent, situated S of Indonesia, between the Pacific and Indian oceans.
government
Australia is an independent sovereign nation within the Commonwealth, retaining the British monarch as head of state and represented by a governor-general. The constitution came into effect 1 Jan 1901. As in the British system, the executive, comprising the prime minister and cabinet, is drawn from the federal parliament and is answerable to it. The parliament consists of two chambers: an elected Senate of 76 (12 for each of the six states, two for the Australian Capital Territory, and two for the Northern Territory); and a House of Representatives of 148, elected by universal adult suffrage. Senators serve for six years, and members of the House for three years. Voting is compulsory; the Senate is elected by proportional representation, but the House of Representatives is elected as single-member constituencies with preferential voting. Each state has its own constitution, governor (the monarch's representative), executive (drawn from the parliament), and legislative and judicial system. Each territory has i
ts own legislative assembly. The last relics of UK legislative control over Australia were removed 1986.
history
Australia’s first inhabitants, the Aborigines, arrived in Australia at least 40,000 years ago, according to present evidence. The first recorded sighting of Australia by Europeans was 1606, when the Dutch ship Duyfken, under the command of Willem Jansz, sighted the W coast of Cape York and the Spanish ship of Luis Vaez de Torres sailed N of Cape York and through Torres Strait, thus proving that New Guinea was separate from any southern continent. Later voyagers include Dirk Hartog 1616—who left an inscribed pewter plate (Australia’s most famous early European relic, now in Amsterdam) in W Australia—Abel Tasman, and William Dampier. A second wave of immigration began 1788, after Capt James Cook had claimed New South Wales as a British colony 1770.
colonies established
The gold rushes of the 1850s and 1880s contributed to the exploration as well as to the economic and constitutional growth of Australia, as did the pioneer work of the overlanders. The creation of other separate colonies followed the first settlement in New South Wales at Sydney 1788: Tasmania 1825, Western Australia 1829, South Australia 1836, Victoria 1851, and Queensland 1859. The system of transportation of convicts from Britain was never introduced in South Australia and Victoria, and ended in New South Wales 1840, Queensland 1849, Tasmania 1852, and Western Australia 1868. The convicts' contribution to the economic foundation of the country was considerable, and many would not have been convicted under a less harsh and capricious penal system than the one operating in Britain at that time.
inland exploration by Europeans
Exploration of the interior began with the crossing of the barrier of the Blue Mountains 1813. Explorers include Hamilton Hume (1797–1873) and William Hovell (1786–1875) who reached Port Phillip Bay 1824 and were the first Europeans to see the Murray River; Charles Sturt; Thomas Mitchell (1792–1855), surveyor general for New South Wales 1828–55, who opened up the fertile western area of Victoria; Edward Eyre, Ludwig Leichhardt, Robert O' Hara Burke and William Wills (1834–1861), and John Stuart. In the 1870s the last gaps were filled in by the crossings of W Australia by John Forrest, (William) Ernest Giles (1835–1897) 1875–76, and Peter Warburton (1813–1889) 1873.
economic depression and growth
In the 1890s there was a halt in the rapid expansion that Australia had enjoyed, and the resulting depression led to the formation of the Australian Labor Party and an increase in labor-union activity, which has characterized Australian politics ever since. State powers waned following the creation of the Commonwealth of Australia 1901. Australia played an important role in both world wars, and after World War II it embarked on a fresh period of expansion, with new mineral finds playing a large part in economic growth. Since 1945 Australia has strengthened its ties with India and other SE Asian countries.
growth of nationalism
After heading a Liberal–Country Party coalition government for 17 years, Robert Menzies resigned 1966 and was succeeded by Harold Holt, who died 1967. John Gorton became prime minister 1968 but lost a vote of confidence in the house of representatives and was succeeded by a Liberal–Country Party coalition under William McMahon 1971. At the end of 1972 the Australian Labor Party took office, led by Gough Whitlam. Under the Whitlam government, especially after Britain's entry into the European Community 1973, there was a growth of nationalism. The 1974 general election gave the Labor Party a fresh mandate to govern despite having a reduced majority in the House of Representatives.
1975 constitutional crisis
The Senate blocked the government's financial legislation 1975 and, with Whitlam unwilling to resign, the governor-general took the unprecedented step of dismissing him and his cabinet and inviting Malcolm Fraser to form a Liberal–Country Party coalition caretaker administration. The wisdom of this action was widely questioned, and eventually governor-general John Kerr resigned 1977. In the 1977 general election the coalition was returned with a reduced majority that was further reduced 1980.
Hawke era
In the 1983 general election the coalition was eventually defeated and the Australian Labor Party under Bob Hawke again took office. Hawke called together employers and unions to a National Economic Summit to agree to a wage and price policy and to deal with unemployment. In 1984 he called a general election 15 months early and was returned with a reduced majority. Hawke placed even greater emphasis than his predecessors on links with SE Asia and imposed trading sanctions against South Africa as a means of influencing the dismantling of apartheid. In the 1987 general election, Labor marginally increased its majority in the House but did not have an overall majority in the Senate, where the balance was held by the Australian Democrats. The 1990 election was won by Labor, led by Hawke, with a reduced majority in the House of Representatives, for a record fourth term in office. The Australian Democrats maintained the balance of power in the Senate. In Aug 1991 Hawke announced that agreement had been reached on g
reater cohesion of the states' economies.
Keating as prime minister
In Dec 1991 Hawke’s leadership of the Labor Party was successfully challenged by Paul Keating, who became the new party leader and prime minister. Hawke retired from politics Jan 1992. Despite Keating’s “kickstart” plan to boost a stagnant economy announced Feb 1992, Australia’s unemployment rate reached a record 11.1% in July. Keating’s inability to tackle the effects of the recession was seen as the main reason for his waning popularity. An expansionary budget outlined in Aug was criticised by the opposition as an attempt to gain support for the Labor Party in preparation for the 1993 elections. In Dec 1992 the Citizenship Act was amended so as to remove the oath of allegiance to the British Crown. In March 1993 Keating’s premiership was confirmed when the Labor Party won a surprising general election victory, entering an unprecedented fifth term of office. Alexander Downer replaced John Hewson as Liberal Party leader May 1994.
1. A nation occupying the whole of the Australian continent; aboriginal tribes migrated there from southeastern Asia 20,000 years ago; first Europeans were British convicts sent there as a penal colony.
2. The smallest continent; between the South Pacific and the Indian Ocean.

(Familiar) Australian person.

1. A native or inhabitant of Australia; Also called: Aussie.
2. The Austronesian languages spoken by Australian aborigines; Also called: Aboriginal Australian.

A characteristic feature of Australian English.

1. A native or inhabitant of Australia; Also called: Aussie.
2. The Austronesian languages spoken by Australian aborigines; Also called: Aboriginal Australian.

Of or relating to or characteristic of Australia or its inhabitants.