Portal:Australia
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Introduction
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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 land area of 7,688,287 km2 (2,968,464 sq mi), making it the sixth-largest country in the world, and 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 Act 1986.
Australia is a parliamentary democracy with a constitutional monarchy, and a federation comprising six states and ten territories. Its population of almost 29 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.
Featured article -
Featured articles are displayed here, which represent some of the best content on English Wikipedia.
Fort Glanville Conservation Park is a protected area located in the Australian state of South Australia located in Semaphore Park, a seaside suburb of Adelaide consisting of a functional 19th century fort listed on the South Australian Heritage Register and some adjoining land used as a caravan park. The fort was built after more than 40 years of indecision over the defence of South Australia. It was the first colonial fortification in the state and is considered one of the best preserved and most functional in Australia. Fort Glanville was designed by Governor Major General Sir William Jervois and Lieutenant Colonel Peter Scratchley, both important figures in early Australian colonial defence. When built it was designed to defend both Semaphore's anchorage and shipping entering the Port River from naval attack. (Full article...)
Selected biography -
Thomas Charles Richmond Baker, DFC, MM & Bar (2 May 1897 – 4 November 1918) was an Australian soldier, aviator, and flying ace of the First World War. Born in Smithfield, South Australia, he was an active sportsman in his youth and developed a keen interest in aviation. He was employed as a clerk with the Bank of New South Wales, before he enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force in July 1915, for service in World War I. Posted to an artillery unit on the Western Front, he was awarded the Military Medal for carrying out numerous repairs on a communications line while subject to severe artillery fire. In June 1917, Baker was awarded a bar to his decoration for his part in quelling a fire in one of the artillery gun pits that was endangering approximately 300 rounds of shrapnel and high explosive. (Full article...)
Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that Jessie Catherine Couvreur became so famous for her public lectures about Australia that she was invited to a private meeting with King Leopold II of Belgium?
- ... that an advertisement featuring the Invisible Woman from Marvel Rivals was found in breach of advertising ethics by the Ad Standards Community Panel in Australia?
- ... that Eve became one of only two platypuses to be exhibited outside Australia in more than 50 years when she arrived at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park?
- ... that the Vietnamese refugee vessel Tự Do reached Australia after a 6,000-kilometre (3,700 mi) voyage guided by a compass and a map torn from a school desk?
- ... that Georgina Sutton was the first woman to be appointed the chief pilot of an Australian airline?
- ... that the Australian spider Progradungula barringtonensis has been called a "ghost of Gondwana"?
- ... that Episode 7921 of Neighbours featured Australia's first televised fictional same-sex wedding since the country voted in favour of legalising same-sex marriage?
- ... that the Australian War Memorial changed its rules retroactively to disqualify Flawed Hero: Truth, Lies and War Crimes from a prize it was already selected to receive?
In the news
- 23 September 2026 – 2026 OpenAI infiltration of Medicare
- Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese says that an OpenAI-deployed agent accessed public and restricted files on a Medicare database during testing in June. OpenAI notified the government in September, while investigations continue into the breach. (AFP via France 24) (The Guardian)
- 17 September 2026 – Visa policy of Australia
- Australia tightens visa rules for international students and working holidaymakers, restricts visa switching, and increases enforcement against overstayers as it seeks to reduce net overseas migration to 225,000 by 2027–28 and ease pressure on housing. (AFP via France 24)
- 11 September 2026 –
- The Seoul Central District Court acquits former South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol on charges that he appointed his defense minister, Lee Jong-sup, as ambassador to Australia to obstruct an investigation into a South Korean marine's drowning during the 2023 floods. (AP)
- 7 September 2026 –
- In Australian rules football, the Australian Football League introduces limits on contact training from the 2027 preseason to reduce concussion risk, capping weekly contact at 120 minutes initially and 160 minutes later while prohibiting high-intensity sessions on consecutive days. (AFP via France 24)
- 4 September 2026 –
- New Zealand becomes the second country after Australia to authorize pharmaceutical-grade MDMA for severe post-traumatic stress disorder, with Medsafe allowing two psychiatrists to prescribe it alongside psychotherapy in controlled clinical settings. (AFP via France 24)
- 25 August 2026 – AI boom, Artificial intelligence in music
- The Australian Recording Industry Association bans wholly AI-generated music from appearing on its charts starting in September 2026. The ruling aims to distinguish fully AI-generated music and AI-assisted music, where the track is human-created but uses AI as a supporting tool. (DW)
Selected pictures -
Photo credit: Fir0002The Common bluetail (Ischnura heterosticta) is a small Australian damselfly of the family Coenagrionidae. Most males have blue eyes, blue thorax and a blue ringed tail. The females are green or light brown.
Brisbane CBD and the Story Bridge, with CityCat cruising the Brisbane River.
The Story Bridge is a crossing of the Brisbane River in the Queensland capital of Brisbane. It is a six lane dual-carriageway connecting Fortitude Valley to Kangaroo Point. Designed by John Bradfield, the bridge was opened in 1940 at the height of the Great Depression. It is a Brisbane landmark, and a focus of the Riverfestival.
Photo credit: Stuart Edwards
Photo credit: ChmouelThe Sydney Opera House in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Situated on Bennelong Point at Sydney Harbour, the Sydney Opera House is one of the most distinctive and famous 20th-century buildings, and one of the most famous performing arts venues in the world.
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.
Photo: John O'Neill; edit: JJ HarrisonBrian Nankervis (b. 1956), an Australian comedian and writer, shown here during a live performance. Nankervis rose to popularity while playing Raymond J. Bartholomeuz on Hey Hey It's Saturday; since 2005 he has been a host of the gameshow RocKwiz.
Photo credit: Noodle snacksThe Tasmanian Native-hen (Gallinula mortierii) is a flightless rail between 43 to 51 cm (17 to 20 in) in length, one of twelve species of birds endemic to the Australian island of Tasmania. Although flightless, it is capable of running quickly and has been recorded running at speeds up to 30 miles per hour (48 km/h).
A family of black swans on the shore of the Swan River with the Perth skyline in background.
Perth is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth largest city in Australia, with a population of 1,477,818 in June 2005, making up almost 75% of Western Australia's population. It is a coastal city, located beside the Indian Ocean, and is situated on the Swan River in the lower south-western portion of the Australian continent.
Photo credit: Nachoman-au
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.
The Royal Exhibition Building, showing the fountain on the southern or Carlton Gardens side of the building.
The Royal Exhibition Building is located in Victorian capital of Melbourne. Situated in the Carlton Gardens, at the north-eastern edge of the central business district, it was completed in 1880 for the Melbourne International Exhibition. It was also the site of the inauguration of the Commonwealth of Australia with the opening of the first Parliament of Australia.
Photo credit: Diliff
Photo: John O'NeillAn officer of the Victoria Police, the primary law enforcement agency of the Australian state of Victoria. The agency was founded in 1835 from an existing colonial police force of 875 men. As of 2011, the Victoria Police has over 12,190 sworn members, and over 2,900 civilian staff across 393 police stations.
A panorama of the La Trobe Reading Room from ground level looking upwards to the domed roof.
The State Library of Victoria is the central library of the state of Victoria, Australia, located in the city of Melbourne. It is sited on the block bounded by Swanston, La Trobe, Russell and Little Lonsdale Streets, in the northern centre of the central business district. The Library's combined collections contain over 1.5 million books and 16,000 serials, including the diaries of the city's founders, John Batman and John Pascoe Fawkner, as well as the folios of Captain James Cook.
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".
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.
Yulara seen from helicopter, August 2004
Yulara is an isolated town in the Northern Territory of Australia. At the 2016 census, Yulara had a permanent population of 1,099 in an area of 103.33 square kilometres (39.90 sq mi). It is 18 kilometres (11 mi) by road from the World Heritage Site Uluru (Ayers Rock) and 55 kilometres (34 mi) from Kata Tjuta (the Olgas).
Photo credit: Manfred Wiesinger
Hakea laurina, or Pincushion Hakea
Hakea is a genus of about 150 species of plants in the Family Proteaceae, endemic to Australia. Hakeas are found in every state of Australia with the highest species diversity being found in the south west of Western Australia.
Photo credit: Fir0002
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.
Government House, the residence of the Governor of Western Australia.
Government House in Perth is the official residence of the Governor of Western Australia and was built between 1859 and 1864. The building is a mansion in the Jacobean Revival style set on 3.2 hectares of English gardens in the centre of the Perth business district, between St. Georges Terrace and the Swan River. The buildings and gardens are listed on the Western Australian Register of Heritage Places and are open to the public from time to time. The building has 16 rooms on the ground floor and 25 on the first floor.
Photo credit: Greg O'Beirne
Photo: Steven Rasmussen; edit: KeraunoscopiaAustralian artistic gymnast Lauren Mitchell (b. 1991) performing a layout step-out on the balance beam during the 41st World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in London, United Kingdom, on 14 October 2009; at the Championships, Mitchell won two silver medals, one for the balance beam and another for floor exercises. Since her first medal in 2007, Mitchell has placed in the World Championships, World Cup, and Commonwealth Games, and competed in two Olympic Games.
Photo credit: Noodle snacksA view of the greater Hobart area, as seen from Mount Wellington. The state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania, Hobart is located in the state's south-east, on the estuary of the River Derwent.
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: 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 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.
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On this day
- 1983 – Australia II wins the America's Cup ending the New York Yacht Club's 132-year domination of the race.
General images
Skiing in Australia began in Kiandra, a goldmining town in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, in the 1860s. (from Culture of Australia)
Portrait of Madame Melba by Rupert Bunny (from Culture of Australia)
Calisthenics class at the Goodwood Boys Technical School, 1945 (from Culture of Australia)
Dwellings accommodating Aboriginal families at Hermannsburg Mission, Northern Territory, 1923 (from Aboriginal Australians)
An Aboriginal encampment near the Adelaide foothills in an 1854 painting by Alexander Schramm (from Aboriginal Australians)
The Princess Theatre in Melbourne (from Culture of Australia)
The verandah is the dominant feature of this Federation Filigree-style pub in Ravenswood. (from Culture of Australia)
Donald Bradman is often cited as statistically the greatest sportsman of any major sport. (from Culture of Australia)
Australians by the waterside at the Portsea Hotel, a pub in Melbourne, Victoria (from Culture of Australia)
A Luritja man demonstrating method of attack with boomerang under cover of shield (1920) (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)
The Bulletin, founded by J. F. Archibald (left), nurtured bush poets such as Henry Lawson (right). (from Culture of Australia)
Governor Arthur Phillip hoists the British flag over the new colony at Sydney Cove in 1788 (from Culture of Australia)
Cover of Old Bush Songs, Banjo Paterson's 1905 collection of bush ballads (from Culture of Australia)
The first State of Origin shield (from Culture of Australia)
Singer-songwriter Paul Kelly (from Culture of Australia)
The University of Sydney (from Culture of Australia)
Cricket match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, 1860s (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)
Actor playing the bushranger Ned Kelly in The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906), the world's first feature film (from Culture of Australia)
Noongar traditional dancers in Perth (from Aboriginal Australians)
The SBS building in Melbourne's Federation Square. SBS is Australia's multicultural broadcaster. (from Culture of Australia)
The Wiggles performing in the United States in 2007 (from Culture of Australia)
A group of Australian men wearing speedos (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.
Historical image of Aboriginal Australian women and children, Maloga, New South Wales around 1900 (in European dress) (from Aboriginal Australians)
The Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne (from Culture of Australia)
William Wentworth (1790–1872) was among the first to articulate a vision of Australian nationhood (from Culture of Australia)
Interior of St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney (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 commemorative statue of John Simpson Kirkpatrick, a famous stretcher bearer who was killed in the Gallipoli Campaign. (from Culture of Australia)
Men from Bathurst Island, 1939 (from Aboriginal Australians)
Countries of birth of Australian estimated resident population, 2006 (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)
Hyde Park Barracks, Sydney (from Culture of Australia)
The surf lifesaving movement originated in Australia. Pictured: surf lifesavers, Bondi Beach, 1930s (from Culture of Australia)
Golden wattle, Australia's floral emblem and the source of Australia's national colours, green and gold (from Culture of Australia)
The Matildas, Australia's national women's football team, in 2021 (from Culture of Australia)
Nan Tien Temple, a Buddhist temple in Wollongong. Multicultural immigration has increased Australia's religious diversity. (from Culture of Australia)
Convict architecture at Port Arthur, Tasmania (from Culture of Australia)
Statue in Fremantle of an Australian rules footballer taking a spectacular mark (from Culture of Australia)
A billycan used for heating water (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 26 September 2026, there are 219,305 articles within the scope of WikiProject Australia, of which 610 are featured and 984 are good articles. This makes up 3.03% of the articles on Wikipedia, 5.14% of all featured articles and lists, and 2.19% of all good articles (see WP:AUSFG). Including non-article pages, such as talk pages, redirects, categories, etc., there are 578,910 pages in the project.
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