Portal:Australia

Welcome to the Australia portal!

Introduction

Kangaroos on a beach -

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 total area of 7,688,287 km² (2,968,464 sq mi), making it the sixth-largest country in the world and the largest in Oceania. Australia 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 Acts of 1986.

Australia is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary democracy, and a federation comprising six states and ten territories. Its population of almost 28 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.

View east from Benjafield Way towards ABC tower

Hamersley is a residential suburb 14 kilometres (8.7 miles) north-northwest of the central business district of Perth, the capital of Western Australia, and six kilometres (4 mi) from the Indian Ocean. The suburb adjoins two major arterial roads—Mitchell Freeway to the west and Reid Highway to the south—and is within the City of Stirling local government area. It was built during the late 1960s and 1970s as part of the Government of Western Australia's response to rapidly increasing land prices across the metropolitan area. (Full article...)

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Selected biography -

Entries here consist of Good and Featured articles, which meet a core set of high editorial standards.

Barnes in cricket whites

Sidney George Barnes (5 June 1916 – 16 December 1973) was an Australian cricketer and cricket writer, who played 13 Test matches between 1938 and 1948. Able to open the innings or bat down the order, Barnes was regarded as one of Australia's finest batsmen in the period immediately following World War II. He helped create an enduring record when scoring 234 in the second Test against England at Sydney in December 1946; exactly the same score as his captain, Don Bradman, in the process setting a world-record 405-run fifth wicket partnership. Barnes averaged 63.05 over 19 innings in a career that, like those of most of his contemporaries, was interrupted by World War II. (Full article...)

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Did you know (auto-generated) -

... that Episode 8055 of the Australian television soap opera Neighbours is the first episode in the show's history to star and be directed and written entirely by women?
... that Aboriginal Australians who first saw herds of water buffalo interpreted the new animals as a manifestation of their dreaming?
... that Australian NFL player Laki Tasi got into American football at the suggestion of a burger shop owner?
... that, in a civil case between Mark Aldridge and a shop owner, South Australia's district court found that a person can be liable for the defamatory comments of others on their social media posts?
... that Monique Ryan ran for election to the Parliament of Australia after seeing an advertisement in the newspaper calling for an independent candidate?
... that in 2025 Oscar Piastri became the first Australian since 2010 to lead the Formula One World Drivers' Championship?
... that Fatima Payman is the first elected woman to wear a hijab in Australia’s parliament?
... that pumices erupted by the Protector Shoal volcano in 1962 floated to Australia and South America?

More Australian facts

In the news

18 February 2026 – Terrorism in Australia: Australia issues a temporary exclusion order barring one citizen held in a Syrian detention camp from returning to the country under counter-terrorism legislation, citing the citizen's possible links to Islamic State members. (Reuters)
13 February 2026 – 2026 Liberal Party of Australia leadership spill: Angus Taylor replaces Sussan Ley as Leader of the Opposition following a leadership spill in the Liberal Party. Ley subsequently resigns from politics, triggering a by-election in her Farrer seat. (The Guardian)
9 February 2026 – Australia–Israel relations, Gaza war protests in Australia: Protests against Israeli president Isaac Herzog's state visit, following the 2025 Bondi Beach shooting, are held in cities across Australia. In Sydney, protests occurred amid a ban by the state government on hate speech grounds, resulting in police making 27 arrests and deploying pepper spray. (ABC News Australia)
8 February 2026 – Politics of Australia: The Liberal–National Coalition of Australia reforms in Opposition following its second split in the span of a year. (The Guardian)
6 February 2026 –: Three men, including the pilot, are killed when a light aircraft crashes into the ocean off Goolwa South, South Australia. (Reuters)
1 February 2026 – 2026 Australian Open: In tennis, Spanish player Carlos Alcaraz defeats Serbian player Novak Djokovic in the men's singles final 2–6, 6–2, 6–3, 7–5, to win his first Australian Open title, becoming the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam in singles. (AFP via ABS-CBN) (ESPN)

Selected pictures -

Image 1
Mount Pleasant Radio Observatory
Photo credit: Noodle snacks
The 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.
Image 2
Sydney Harbour Bridge at night

The Sydney Harbour Bridge is one of the major landmarks of Sydney, Australia, connecting the Sydney central business district with the North Shore commercial and residential areas, both of which are located on Sydney Harbour. The dramatic water vista of the bridge together with the nearby Sydney Opera House (left) is an iconic image. The bridge is affectionately known as "the Coathanger" by many Sydneysiders on account of its arch-based design. It is the widest bridge in the world and also the world's largest single-arch bridge. From its official opening on 19 March 1932 until 1967, the bridge was the city's tallest structure.

Photo credit: Diliff
Image 3
Yarra River from inner-city bridge

The Yarra River is a river in southern Victoria (Australia), originally called Birrarung by the Wurundjeri people who occupied the Yarra valley prior to European settlement. The River's lower reaches travel through central Melbourne.
Image 4
Tawny Frogmouth
Photo: JJ Harrison
The Tawny Frogmouth (Podargus strigoides) is a nocturnal species of Australian frogmouth commonly mistaken for an owl. Males and females look similar, growing to 35–53 cm (14–21 in) long and up to 680 g (1.5 lb) in weight. The Tawny Frogmouth is almost exclusively insectivorous, feeding rarely on frogs and other small prey. It generally sits very still on a low perch and catches food with its beak.
Image 5
Australian Synchrotron
Photo credit: John O'Neill
A 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.
Image 6
Zizina labradus
Photo credit: John O'Neill
A Common Grass Blue (Zizina labradus), a small Australian butterfly. This specimen, perched on a rose, is approximately 10 millimetres (0.4 in) in size. Females generally have a larger wingspan compared to males (23 and 20 mm or 0.9 and 0.8 in respectively).
Image 7
Fleet Air Arm (RAN)
Photo: Fir0002
A Eurocopter AS350 "Squirrel" helicopter flown by 723 Squadron of the Fleet Air Arm (FAA), the section of the Royal Australian Navy responsible for the operation of aircraft. The FAA is currently an all-helicopter force, operating four separate models in the anti-submarine warfare and maritime support roles.
Image 8
Metallic Ringtail
Photo credit: Fir0002
A female Metallic Ringtail (Austrolestes cingulatus), an Australian damselfly, eating its prey. Each abdominal segment is marked by a pale "ring"; this combined with its glossy metallic coloration give the insect its common name.
Image 9
Tasmanian Native-hen
Photo credit: Noodle snacks
The 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).
Image 10
2008 Australian Grand Prix
Photo credit: Fir0002
Nick 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.
Image 11
The front of the Cathedral.

St Mary's Cathedral is the largest Roman Catholic church in Australia. It is the seat of Cardinal Archbishop George Pell and it holds the title and dignity of a Minor Basilica, bestowed upon it by Pope Pius XI in 1930. The present St Mary's is the second church of that name to occupy the site abutting College Street in Sydney. The foundation stone for the first building was laid by New South Wales Governor Lachlan Macquarie and blessed by the colony's Catholic chaplain, Father Therry, on 3 May 1821.

Photo credit: KaiAdin
Image 12
The pinnacles with dusk approaching

The Pinnacles Desert is an area of unique limestone formations within the Nambung National Park in Western Australia. The desert contains many thousands of pillars, which rise up to five metres, with shape and texture having been defined by calcification processes and erosion. Since The Pinnacles was incorporated into the national park in the 1960s, the area has become significant tourist attraction.

Photo credit: Sean Mack
Image 13
Tasmanian devil
Photo: JJ Harrison
The Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) is a carnivorous marsupial found in the wild only on the Australian island of Tasmania. It is characterised by its stocky and muscular build, black fur, pungent odour, extremely loud and disturbing screech, keen sense of smell, and ferocity when feeding. Its large head and neck allow it to generate the strongest bite per unit body mass of any living mammal.
Image 14
An Eastern Banjo Frog, found in eastern Australia.

The Eastern Banjo Frog, Limnodynastes dumerilli, is a frog species from the family Myobatrachidae. It is native to eastern Australia and has been introduced to New Zealand. The frog is also commonly called the "pobblebonk" after its distinctive "bonk" call, which is likened to a banjo string being plucked.

Photo credit: Fir0002
Image 15
Victoria Police
Photo: John O'Neill
An 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.
Image 16
Sydney Opera House
Photo credit: Chmouel
The 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.
Image 17
The Central Basin and Captain Cook water jet looking towards the National Library and Parliament House.

The Captain James Cook Memorial was built by the Commonwealth Government to commemorate the Bicentenary of Captain James Cook's first sighting of the east coast of Australia. The memorial includes a water jet located in the central basin and a skeleton globe sculpture at Regatta Point showing the paths of Cook's expeditions. On 25 April 1970, Queen Elizabeth II officially inaugurated the memorial. When running both pumps simultaneously, the main jet throws approximately six tons of water into the air at any instant, reaching a maximum height of 147 metres. Alternatively the jet can be run on a single pump reaching a lower height of 110 metres. During special occasions it can be illuminated, often with coloured lights.
Image 18
Beautiful Firetail
Photo: JJ Harrison
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.
Image 19
Jeremy Doyle
Photo: Sport the Library
Jeremy 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.
Image 20
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
Image 21
Forked tongue
Photo credit: LiquidGhoul
The 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.
Image 22
Hobart
Photo credit: Noodle snacks
A 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.

On this day

22 February:

1791 – The first land grant in Australia is made to ex-convict James Ruse, he established Experiment Farm.
1928 – Bert Hinkler arrived in Darwin, having flown the first solo flight between England and Australia. He left England on 7 February.
1962 – Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, is born.

More Australian anniversaries...

General images

The following are images from various Australia-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1The first State of Origin shield (from Culture of Australia)
Image 2C. J. Dennis, poetic humourist of Australian English (from Culture of Australia)
Image 3Hyde Park Barracks, Sydney (from Culture of Australia)
Image 4Dwellings accommodating Aboriginal families at Hermannsburg Mission, Northern Territory, 1923 (from Aboriginal Australians)
Image 5Donald Bradman is often cited as statistically the greatest sportsman of any major sport. (from Culture of Australia)
Image 6Corroboree 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)
Image 7A Luritja man demonstrating method of attack with boomerang under cover of shield (1920) (from Culture of Australia)
Image 8A typical Queenslander house in Brisbane (from Culture of Australia)
Image 9Countries of birth of Australian estimated resident population, 2006 (from Culture of Australia)
Image 10A swagman in bushman's apparel, wearing a brimmed hat and carrying swag and billy can (from Culture of Australia)
Image 11Federation Bungalow in Killara, Sydney (from Culture of Australia)
Image 12Sydney Opera House (foreground) and Sydney Harbor Bridge (from Culture of Australia)
Image 13Cricket match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, 1860s (from Culture of Australia)
Image 14Founded in 1993, Sydney's Tropfest is the world's largest short film festival. (from Culture of Australia)
Image 15Australians by the waterside at the Portsea Hotel, a pub in Melbourne, Victoria (from Culture of Australia)
Image 16The Wiggles performing in the United States in 2007 (from Culture of Australia)
Image 17A high-set Victorian-era Queenslander with a large veranda in Brisbane (from Culture of Australia)
Image 18Interior of St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney (from Culture of Australia)
Image 19A group of Australian men wearing speedos (from Culture of Australia)
Image 20Nan Tien Temple, a Buddhist temple in Wollongong. Multicultural immigration has increased Australia's religious diversity. (from Culture of Australia)
Image 21Singer-songwriter Paul Kelly (from Culture of Australia)
Image 22Bush tucker harvested in Alice Springs (from Culture of Australia)
Image 23The verandah is the dominant feature of this Federation Filigree-style pub in Ravenswood. (from Culture of Australia)
Image 24Statue in Fremantle of an Australian rules footballer taking a spectacular mark (from Culture of Australia)
Image 25An Eastern Arrernte man of the Arltunga district, Northern Territory, in 1923. His hut is decked with porcupine grass. (from Aboriginal Australians)
Image 26Actor playing the bushranger Ned Kelly in The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906), the world's first feature film (from Culture of Australia)
Image 27The SBS building in Melbourne's Federation Square. SBS is Australia's multicultural broadcaster. (from Culture of Australia)
Image 28Men from Bathurst Island, 1939 (from Aboriginal Australians)
Image 29Anzac Day dawn services are held throughout Australia every April. (from Culture of Australia)
Image 30Historical image of Aboriginal Australian women and children, Maloga, New South Wales around 1900 (in European dress) (from Aboriginal Australians)
Image 31The University of Sydney (from Culture of Australia)
Image 32Golden wattle, Australia's floral emblem and the source of Australia's national colours, green and gold (from Culture of Australia)
Image 33William Wentworth (1790–1872) was among the first to articulate a vision of Australian nationhood (from Culture of Australia)
Image 34Kylie Minogue, one of Australia's most successful pop musicians (from Culture of Australia)
Image 35South 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.
Image 36The Bulletin, founded by J. F. Archibald (left), nurtured bush poets such as Henry Lawson (right). (from Culture of Australia)
Image 37Dame Edna Everage, a comic creation of Barry Humphries (from Culture of Australia)
Image 38Skiing in Australia began in Kiandra, a goldmining town in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, in the 1860s. (from Culture of Australia)
Image 39Tudor Revival house in Killara, New South Wales (from Culture of Australia)
Image 40The surf lifesaving movement originated in Australia. Pictured: surf lifesavers, Bondi Beach, 1930s (from Culture of Australia)
Image 41Noongar traditional dancers in Perth (from Aboriginal Australians)
Image 42Phar Lap winning the Melbourne Cup, "the race that stops a nation" (from Culture of Australia)
Image 43Birdsville Hotel, an Australian pub in outback Queensland (from Culture of Australia)
Image 44Sheep 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)
Image 45St Mary Mackillop established an extensive network of schools and is Australia's first canonised saint of the Catholic Church. (from Culture of Australia)
Image 46Didgeridoo performers (from Culture of Australia)
Image 47Cover of Old Bush Songs, Banjo Paterson's 1905 collection of bush ballads (from Culture of Australia)
Image 48An Aboriginal encampment near the Adelaide foothills in an 1854 painting by Alexander Schramm (from Aboriginal Australians)
Image 49Governor Arthur Phillip hoists the British flag over the new colony at Sydney Cove in 1788 (from Culture of Australia)
Image 50A billycan used for heating water (from Culture of Australia)
Image 51Convict architecture at Port Arthur, Tasmania (from Culture of Australia)
Image 52The Royal Exhibition Building, Melbourne (from Culture of Australia)
Image 53The Matildas, Australia's national women's football team, in 2021 (from Culture of Australia)
Image 54The Princess Theatre in Melbourne (from Culture of Australia)
Image 55Parliament House, Canberra (from Culture of Australia)
Image 56A commemorative statue of John Simpson Kirkpatrick, a famous stretcher bearer who was killed in the Gallipoli Campaign. (from Culture of Australia)
Image 57Portrait of Madame Melba by Rupert Bunny (from Culture of Australia)

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WikiProject

Flag of the Commonwealth of Australia	Coat of Arms of the Commonwealth of Australia

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 21 February 2026, there are 213,105 articles within the scope of WikiProject Australia, of which 599 are featured and 938 are good articles. This makes up 2.98% of the articles on Wikipedia, 5.16% of all featured articles and lists, and 2.16% of all good articles (see WP:AUSFG). Including non-article pages, such as talk pages, redirects, categories, etc., there are 555,614 pages in the project.