Australia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising <a href="/facts/Mainland_Australia/2JNyVlCK">the mainland</a> of the <a href="/facts/Australia_(continent)/moNlN1Qk">Australian continent</a>, the island of <a href="/facts/Tasmania/q3dubPTt">Tasmania</a> and <a href="/facts/List_of_islands_of_Australia/Qpkq7cG6">numerous smaller islands</a>. It has a total area of 7,688,287 km2 (2,968,464 sq mi), making it the <a href="/facts/List_of_countries_and_dependencies_by_area/XQWaBfYo">sixth-largest country in the world</a> and the largest in <a href="/facts/Oceania/vzTEvsfV">Oceania</a>. Australia is the world's flattest and driest inhabited continent. It is a <a href="/facts/Megadiverse_countries/BE8PrlT7">megadiverse country</a>, and its size gives it a wide variety of landscapes and <a href="/facts/Climate_of_Australia/WaGB4qUE">climates</a> including <a href="/facts/Deserts_of_Australia/f6lTgTvV">deserts</a> in the <a href="/facts/Outback/coL8oBwS">interior</a> and <a href="/facts/Forests_of_Australia/QLKCSy36">tropical rainforests</a> along the <a href="/facts/Eastern_states_of_Australia/DRoXs4JH">coast</a>.
The ancestors of <a href="/facts/Aboriginal_Australians/DNAQ5z5m">Aboriginal Australians</a> began arriving from <a href="/facts/South-east_Asia/VafwT517">south-east Asia</a> 50,000 to 65,000 years ago, during the <a href="/facts/Last_Glacial_Period/mIYwj8e9">last glacial period</a>. By the time of British settlement, Aboriginal Australians spoke 250 distinct languages and had one of the oldest living cultures in the world. <a href="/facts/History_of_Australia/3ufPj9fN">Australia's written history</a> commenced with <a href="/facts/European_maritime_exploration_of_Australia/c61bc3Uo">Dutch exploration</a> of most of the coastline in the 17th century. British colonisation began in 1788 with the establishment of the penal <a href="/facts/Colony_of_New_South_Wales/1E3tJ03r">colony of New South Wales</a>. By the mid-19th century, most of the continent had been explored by European settlers and five additional self-governing <a href="/facts/Crown_colony/RnCkfdDR">British colonies</a> were established, each gaining <a href="/facts/Responsible_government/gSgDvLlf">responsible government</a> by 1890. The Commonwealth of Australia was founded in 1901 upon the <a href="/facts/Federation_of_Australia/fRsBVbCb">federation</a> of the colonies. Australia grew more autonomous of the United Kingdom, highlighted by the <a href="/facts/Statute_of_Westminster_Adoption_Act_1942/txAAuMol">Statute of Westminster Adoption Act 1942</a>, later culminating in the <a href="/facts/Australia_Acts/om4eFolR">Australia Acts</a> of 1986. 
Australia is a <a href="/facts/Federalism_in_Australia/r889thA4">federal</a> <a href="/facts/Parliamentary_democracy/HAsnSsRz">parliamentary democracy</a> and <a href="/facts/Constitutional_monarchy/C0TtVRq8">constitutional monarchy</a> comprising <a href="/facts/States_and_territories_of_Australia/kUd6AV5c">six states and ten territories</a>, with a highly urbanised population residing primarily on the eastern seaboard. <a href="/facts/Canberra/V2PldFRs">Canberra</a> is the nation's capital, while <a href="/facts/Melbourne/EHY9YxI0">Melbourne</a> and <a href="/facts/Sydney/8TegRcwB">Sydney</a> are the most populous cities- each with a population of over five million. <a href="/facts/Culture_of_Australia/SBVlgWqt">Australia's culture</a> is diverse, and the country has one of the <a href="/facts/List_of_sovereign_states_by_immigrant_and_emigrant_population/B07LKtAm">highest foreign-born populations in the world</a>. It has a highly <a href="/facts/Developed_economy/4KRrMBaM">developed economy</a> and one of the <a href="/facts/List_of_countries_by_GNI_(PPP)_per_capita/4w4csQEk">highest per capita incomes globally</a>. Its abundant natural resources and well-developed <a href="/facts/List_of_the_largest_trading_partners_of_Australia/LknERKqB">international trade relations</a> are crucial to <a href="/facts/Economy_of_Australia/Pp5e03qI">the country's economy</a>. It <a href="/facts/International_rankings_of_Australia/odP15TVe">ranks highly</a> for quality of life, health, education, economic freedom, civil liberties and political rights.
Australia is a <a href="/facts/Middle_power/ku44qNYY">middle power</a>, and has the world's <a href="/facts/List_of_countries_by_military_expenditures/QJemgRxr">thirteenth-highest military expenditure</a>. It is a member of international alliances including the United Nations, the <a href="/facts/G20/pFut6kJQ">G20</a>, the <a href="/facts/OECD/CI9W2zGv">OECD</a>, the <a href="/facts/World_Trade_Organization/p7hgb1lP">World Trade Organization</a>, <a href="/facts/Asia-Pacific_Economic_Cooperation/Y9uLYe1C">Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation</a>, the <a href="/facts/Pacific_Islands_Forum/snJ8H1ak">Pacific Islands Forum</a>, the <a href="/facts/Pacific_Community/CtgqFzY9">Pacific Community</a>, the <a href="/facts/Commonwealth_of_Nations/TcIRQnNq">Commonwealth of Nations</a>, and various defence and security organisations including <a href="/facts/ANZUS/n3cann4t">ANZUS</a>, <a href="/facts/AUKUS/AeX2Yct3">AUKUS</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Five_Eyes/7lnSYxYh">Five Eyes</a>. It is also a <a href="/facts/Major_non-NATO_ally/fTRWTDN9">major non-NATO ally</a> of the United States.

Australia open-in-new

Australia