Interesting Facts About Australia
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Australia today is a vibrant multicultural country with people of British descent, as well as Aboriginal and immigrants from many countries in Europe, Africa and Asia.
It is the sixth largest country in the world and the only country that is also a continent. Australia is in the Southern Hemisphere, where Summer is from December to February.
Here are some more interesting things that you may not know about Australia.
- The black box flight recorder for aircraft was invented in Australia in 1958 by the Aeronautical research scientist David Warren.
- The first official world surfing championships were held in Sydney in 1964.
- The oldest newspaper in Australia is the Sydney Morning Herald, published in 1831.
- Over 90% of the world's opals are mined in Australia.
- Tasmania was once part of mainland Australia, before the melting of ice caps 12,000 years ago
- A resident of Sydney is called Sydneysiders.
- In 1926, New South Wales became the first government in the world to pay pensions to women.
- Eucalyptus was first used as a medicine by Aborigines, to treat coughs, fevers and asthma.
- Australia is the only continent without an active volcano.
- The city of Melbourne founded the first gay and lesbian radio station in the world in 1993 with the name Joy Radio.
- Dutch explorers arrived in Australia before James Cook claimed it for England and named it New Holland.
- Melbourne was formerly called Batmania, after one of its founders John Batman.
- The longest fence in the world is located in Australia. It is 5530 km long and was erected to keep dingoes away from sheep.
- When a specimen of a platypus was first sent to England, the sceptical recipients believed the Australians had played a joke by sticking a duk's bill on a large rat's body.
- Australia is the lowest continent in the world, with an average height of just 330m above sea level.
- Australia's first TV station was TCN Channel 9 in Sydney.
- Australia's first police force was created from a group of 12 of their best behaved convicts.
- Australians called the English pommies from the initials POME on convicts uniforms. These initials stood for Prisoners of Mother England.
- The name Kylie is derived from the Aborigine for Boomerang.
Famous Film Stars Born In Australia that have become internationally known
Did you know ?
Famous Film Stars Born In Australia
- Cate Blanchett, born in Sydney
- Toni Collette, born in Sydney
- Errol Flynn, born in Hobart
- Paul Hogan, born in Lightning Ridge
- Hugh Jackman, born in Sydney
- Health Ledger, born in Perth
- Geoffrey Rush, born in Toowoomba
- Eric bana, born in Melboune
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Comments
I am looking up "Toowoomba" right now in another browser window. I have had trouble locating it on the map. Nice hub - thank you.
Just to add another couple of oddities:
Melbourne - once was nicnamed "Bearbrass". It was supposedly a version of its Aboriginal name. In the early 19th century, it was also known as Bareport, Bareheep, Barehurp and Bareberp. Ref: "Bearbrass Imagining Early Melbourne" by Robyn Annear. Mandarin. 1995
Active volcanoes - While Australia does not have an active volcano on its mainland, it does own one. Heard Island, south of Perth, is a territory owned by Australia. This island has an awesome beauty - lava spilling volcano capped with snow and ice!
A great hub, giving the world a "taste" of Australia!
Smiles and Light
Nice hub.
Also home to one of the best rugby sides on earth, depsite what the Kiwis tell everybody! (Not from there, but worth mention.)
Very interesting info.
I loved the article! Makes me want to go there. Cate Blanchett- what a babe! I didn't realize she wsa from Australia. One thing I know for sure, besides the beauty and uniqueness of Australia- watch out for the snakes and for the open water. Australia has like 3 of the world's most poisionous snakes and open water is an invite for a croc attack! I've heard they've attacked people in as little as a few inches depth of water. Of course, I know that doesn't go on everywhere but those kinds of stores get memorialized in your thoughts. Thanks for the great read!
tnx for your information
Nice hub.
yeah awesome haha
Didn't also Australia, was the place where England and other countries send their most dangerous convicted criminals to isolation? Like a prison island?
Home of the well known Backpacker serial killer? Those awfull deaths!
There is a tv program that only tells Australia worse crimes and let me tell you, violent indeed!
Australia is one country I'd really like to visit some day. But I'm afraid it's at least a couple of years away :(
John i have been there atleast 4 times because some of my family lives there. Its cool over there and i hope you go there. And i am doing a country report at school so ya. Buye Buye
-Ryan
This hub was so interesting to read. There seem to be some real neat facts about Australia and now I know a little bit more about the country and it's history as well. I would love to visit there someday.
Interesting info@
very nice hub and useful information about Australia. Visit my site on http://hubpages.com/hub/wild-pictures and http://hubpages.com/hub/kenya-vacations
lovely hub, simply love it
Nice hub
lovely hub, simply love it
Great hub,thankyou!!!!
Im not sure about the dingos and the emu proof or rabbit proof fence. We used to spend Sundays on a motorbike riding along the fence line whilst Kangaroos jumped over 6 feet to get over it.
The rabbit proof fence goes for miles and I know that at least one of the fences has fencing at least 2 feet underground so that when there were emus or rabbits in plague proportions, they couldnt dig under the fence to get through and ruin farm crops. Youve motivated me to do a hub on it.
And there are crocodiles, but mainly in the Northern Territory and signage is everywhere... And Australia was a penal colony, with free settlers too, as my Mother so gladly informs me.
We were not terra nullius though, the australian aboriginal people are said to be the oldest race on earth.
And we are not a violent people and the outback is a place to be aware of yourself, as people from all corners of the world visit there and it is remote and beautiful and harsh and vivid. Id say an English soccer crowd from the 1990s was more aggressive than any Australian. Fantastic hub!!!!
Interesting Page
I've been to Australia, twice! One time I barely missed running into Steve Irwin. I went to his zoo 5 minutes after he did! Aww
love it i used iit for my homework
very coooooooooooool
Awesome hub!
Lissie says:
2 years ago
Nice hub -the map's a bit misleading though - its more a read place rather than a green place !