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The
Australian National Anthem (Listen)
The Australian National Anthem
(Read about)
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| Aboriginal settlers arrived on the continent from Southeast Asia about 40,000 years before the first Europeans began exploration in the 17th century. No formal territorial claims were made until 1770, when Capt. James COOK took possession in the name of Great Britain. Six colonies were created in the late 18th and 19th centuries; they federated and became the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901. The new country took advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop its agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. In recent decades, Australia has transformed itself into an internationally competitive, advanced market economy. It boasted one of the OECD's fastest growing economies during the 1990's, a performance due in large part to economic reforms adopted in the 1980's. Long-term concerns include pollution, particularly depletion of the ozone layer, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef.
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Location:
| Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean
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Geographic coordinates:
| 27 00 S, 133 00 E
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Map references:
| Oceania
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Area:
| total: 7,686,850 sq km
water: 68,920 sq km
note: includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island
land: 7,617,930 sq km
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Area - comparative:
| slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states
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Land boundaries:
| 0 km
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Coastline:
| 25,760 km
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Maritime claims:
| territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
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Climate:
| generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north
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Terrain:
| mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast
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Elevation extremes:
| lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m
highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m
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Natural resources:
| bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum
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Land use:
| arable land: 6.55% (includes about 27 million hectares of cultivated grassland)
permanent crops: 0.04%
other: 93.41% (2001)
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Irrigated land:
| 24,000 sq km (1998 est.)
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Natural hazards:
| cyclones along the coast; severe droughts; forest fires
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Environment - current issues:
| soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural fresh water resources
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Environment - international agreements:
| party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
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Geography - note:
| world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; the invigorating tropical sea breeze known as the "Fremantle Doctor" affects the city of Perth on the west coast, and is one of the most consistent winds in the world
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Population:
| 20,090,437 (July 2005 est.)
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Age structure:
| 0-14 years: 19.8% (male 2,038,809/female 1,943,563)
15-64 years: 67.2% (male 6,815,600/female 6,695,189)
65 years and over: 12.9% (male 1,145,274/female 1,452,002) (2005 est.)
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Median age:
| total: 36.56 years
male: 35.74 years
female: 37.4 years (2005 est.)
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Population growth rate:
| 0.87% (2005 est.)
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Birth rate:
| 12.26 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
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Death rate:
| 7.44 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
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Net migration rate:
| 3.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
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Sex ratio:
| at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
| total: 4.69 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 4.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
male: 5.08 deaths/1,000 live births
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Life expectancy at birth:
| total population: 80.39 years
male: 77.52 years
female: 83.4 years (2005 est.)
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Total fertility rate:
| 1.76 children born/woman (2005 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
| 0.1% (2003 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
| 14,000 (2003 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
| less than 200 (2003 est.)
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Nationality:
| noun: Australian(s)
adjective: Australian
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Ethnic groups:
| Caucasian 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1%
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Religions:
| Anglican 26.1%, Roman Catholic 26%, other Christian 24.3%, non-Christian 11%, other 12.6%
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Languages:
| English, native languages
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Literacy:
| definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100%
male: 100%
female: 100% (1980 est.)
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Country name:
| conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia
conventional short form: Australia
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Government type:
| democratic, federal-state system recognizing the British monarch as sovereign
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Capital:
| Canberra
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Administrative divisions:
| 6 states and 2 territories*; Australian Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern Territory*, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia
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Dependent areas:
| Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island, Macquarie Island
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Independence:
| 1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies)
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National holiday:
| Australia Day, 26 January (1788)
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Constitution:
| 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901
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Legal system:
| based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
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Suffrage:
| 18 years of age; universal and compulsory
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Executive branch:
| chief of state: Queen of Australia ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Michael JEFFERY (since 11 August 2003)
head of government: Prime Minister John Winston HOWARD (since 11 March 1996); Deputy Prime Minister John ANDERSON (since 20 July 1999)
cabinet: Prime Minister nominates, from among members of Parliament, candidates who are subsequently sworn in by the Governor General to serve as government ministers
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the recommendation of the prime minister; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is sworn in as prime minister by the governor general
note: government coalition - Liberal Party and National Party
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Legislative branch:
| bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the Senate (76 seats - 12 from each of the six states and two from each of the two mainland territories; one-half of state members are elected every three years by popular vote to serve six-year terms while all territory members are elected every three years) and the House of Representatives (150 seats; members elected by popular preferential voting to serve terms of up to three-years; no state can have fewer than five representatives)
elections: Senate - last held 9 October 2004 (next to be held no later than June 2008); House of Representatives - last held 9 October 2004 (next to be called no later than November 2007)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party (for session beginning on 1 July 2002) - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 35, Australian Labor Party 28, Australian Democrats 7, Green Party 2, One Nation Party 1, Australian Progressive Alliance 1, independent 2; (for session beginning on 1 July 2005) - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 39, Australian Labor Party 28, Democrats 4, Australian Greens 4, Family First Party 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 87, Australian Labor Party 60, independents 3
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Judicial branch:
| High Court (the chief justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general)
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Political parties and leaders:
| Australian Democrats [Lyn ALLISON]; Australian Labor Party [Kim BEAZLEY]; Australian Progressive Alliance [Meg LEES]; Australian Greens [Bob BROWN]; Liberal Party [John Winston HOWARD]; The Nationals [John ANDERSON]; One Nation Party [Len HARRIS]; Family First Party [Steve FIELDING]
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International organization participation:
| ANZUS, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CP, EBRD, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, Paris Club, PCA, PIF, Sparteca, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNMEE, UNMISET, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, WToO, ZC
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
| chief of mission: Ambassador Michael J. THAWLEY
chancery: 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco
FAX: [1] (202) 797-3168
telephone: [1] (202) 797-3000
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
| chief of mission: Ambassador J. Thomas SCHIEFFER
embassy: Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2600
mailing address: APO AP 96549
telephone: [61] (02) 6214-5600
FAX: [61] (02) 6214-5970
consulate(s) general: Melbourne, Perth, Sydney
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Flag description:
| blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant known as the Commonwealth Star, representing the federation of the colonies of Australia in 1901; the star depicts one point for each of the six original states and one representing all of Australia's internal and external territories; the remaining half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four larger, seven-pointed stars
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The Australian National Anthem
| ‘Advance
Australia Fair' is the national anthem of Australia. A revised
version of a late nineteenth century patriotic song, it was
officially declared the national anthem on 19 April 1984.
The composer
Peter Dodds McCormick, a Scot, composed ‘Advance Australia
Fair' under the pen-name ‘Amicus' (amicus is the Latin
word for friend). It was first performed in Sydney on Saint
Andrew's Day, 1878. Peter McCormick died in 1916 and ‘Advance
Australia Fair' became free of copyright in 1966.
W. J. Paling & Company, the publishers of the song, described
it as ‘one of the three greatest songs of the British
Empire'. The other two were ‘God Save the King' (or
‘Queen') and ‘God Defend New Zealand'.
Some of the original words of the song have been changed for
the official version. ‘Australia's sons let us rejoice'
was the original first line; this has been replaced with ‘Australians
all let us rejoice'. In the third verse of the original song,
two lines were changed-‘To make our youthful Commonwealth'
became ‘To make this Commonwealth of ours' and ‘For
loyal sons beyond the seas' became ‘For those who've
come across the seas'.
How Advance Australia Fair became the national anthem
Although the official anthem was ‘God Save the Queen'
(or ‘King') from 1788 to 1974, numerous commercial and
official competitions were held over the years to find a substitute.
The first was held in 1840.
John Dunmore Lang, who published an ‘Australian Anthem'
and an ‘Australian Hymn' in 1826, was an early advocate
of a distinctively Australian anthem; Carl Linger of South
Australia wrote ‘The Song of Australia' (1860), which
was suggested to the then Prime Minister in 1929 as a possible
national anthem.
Among the competitions held were one by The Bulletin, which
attracted 74 entries, and two by the Australian Broadcasting
Commission in 1943 and 1945. The Commonwealth Jubilee celebrations
competition in 1951 was won by Henry Krips with ‘This
Land of Mine'.
The issue of a truly national anthem was raised persistently
before the 1956 Olympic Games, which were held in Melbourne.
‘Advance Australia Fair' and ‘Waltzing Matilda'
were the two songs most strongly favoured then as the new
anthem. ‘Waltzing Matilda' was composed in 1895, with
lyrics by one of Australia's best known poets, A. B. (‘Banjo')
Paterson.
On Australia Day, 26 January, in 1972, the number of entries
(400) received in an Australia-wide national anthem quest
gave an indication of the interest in a new anthem. Exactly
a year later a government-sponsored competition was announced,
which drew 2500 entries for the words and 1300 for the music.
The judges selected six entries for the words, but rejected
all the musical entries.
The
Australian National Anthem (Listen)
ADVANCE AUSTRALIA FAIR
Australians all let us rejoice,
For we are young and free;
We've golden soil and wealth for toil;
Our home is girt by sea;
Our land abounds in nature's gifts
Of beauty rich and rare;
In history's page, let every stage
Advance Australia Fair.
In joyful strains then let us sing,
Advance Australia Fair.
Beneath our radiant Southern Cross
We'll toil with hearts and hands;
To make this Commonwealth of ours
Renowned of all the lands;
For those who've come across the seas
We've boundless plains to share;
With courage let us all combine
To Advance Australia Fair.
In joyful strains then let us sing,
Advance Australia Fair.
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| Economy - overview: |
Australia has an
enviable Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita
GDP on par with the four dominant West European economies. Rising
output in the domestic economy, robust business and consumer
confidence, and rising exports of raw materials and agricultural
products are fueling the economy. Australia's emphasis on reforms,
low inflation, and growing ties with China are other key factors
behind the economy's strength. The impact of drought, weak foreign
demand, and strong import demand pushed the trade deficit up
from $8 billion in 2002, to $18 billion in 2003, and to $13
billion in 2004. One other concern is the rapid increase in
domestic housing prices, which have raised the prospect that
interest rates will need to be raised to prevent a speculative
bubble. |
| GDP: |
purchasing power
parity - $611.7 billion (2004 est.) |
| GDP - real growth
rate: |
3.5% (2004 est.)
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| GDP - per capita: |
purchasing power
parity - $30,700 (2004 est.) |
| GDP - composition
by sector: |
agriculture:
3.4%
industry: 28.2%
services: 68.4%
(2004 est.) |
| Budget: |
revenues:
$222.7 billion
expenditures: $221.7 billion, including
capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
| Public debt: |
17.4% of GDP (2004
est.) |
| Currency: |
Australian dollar
(AUD) |
| Currency code: |
AUD |
| Exchange rates: |
Australian dollars
per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002),
1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000) |
| Fiscal year: |
1 July - 30 June
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| Telephones -
main lines in use: |
10.815 million
(2003) |
| Telephones -
mobile cellular: |
14.347 million
(2003) |
| Telephone system: |
general assessment:
excellent domestic and international service
domestic:
domestic satellite system; much use of radiotelephone in areas
of low population density; rapid growth of mobile cellular telephones
international: country code - 61; submarine cables
to New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Indonesia; satellite earth
stations - 10 Intelsat (4 Indian Ocean and 6 Pacific Ocean),
2 Inmarsat (Indian and Pacific Ocean regions) (1998) |
| Radio broadcast
stations: |
AM 262, FM 345,
shortwave 1 (1998) |
| Television broadcast
stations: |
104 (1997) |
| Internet country
code: |
.au |
| Internet hosts: |
2,847,763 (2003)
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| Internet Service
Providers (ISPs): |
571 (2002) |
| Internet users: |
9.472 million (2002)
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| Railways: |
total: 43,802
km (5,290 km electrified)
broad gauge: 1,957 km 1.600-m gauge
standard gauge: 26,675 km 1.435-m gauge (2,828 km electrified)
dual gauge: 213 km dual gauge (2003)
narrow gauge: 14,957 km 1.067-m gauge (2,462 km electrified)
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| Highways: |
total: 811,603
km
paved: 314,090 km (including 18,619 km of expressways)
unpaved: 497,513 km (1999 est.) |
| Waterways: |
2,000 km (mainly
used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling river systems)
(2004) |
| Pipelines: |
condensate/gas
492 km; gas 28,680 km; liquid petroleum gas 240 km; oil 4,773
km; oil/gas/water 110 km (2004) |
| Ports and harbors: |
Adelaide, Brisbane,
Cairns, Darwin, Devonport (Tasmania), Fremantle, Geelong, Hobart
(Tasmania), Launceston (Tasmania), Mackay, Melbourne, Sydney,
Townsville |
| Merchant marine: |
total: 55
ships (1,000 GRT or over) 1,531,461 GRT/1,999,409 DWT
foreign-owned: 16 (France 1, Germany 3, Japan 1, Philippines
1, Saudi Arabia 1, United Kingdom 2, United States 7)
registered in other countries: 35 (2005)
by type: bulk carrier 16, cargo 7, chemical tanker 3,
container 1, liquefied gas 4, passenger 5, passenger/cargo 6,
petroleum tanker 8, roll on/roll off 5 |
| Airports: |
448 (2004 est.)
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| Transnational Issues |
Australia |
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Disputes - international:
| East Timor and Australia continue to meet but disagree over how to delimit a permanent maritime boundary and share unexploited petroleum resources that fall outside the Joint Petroleum Development Area covered by the 2002 Timor Sea Treaty; East Timor dispute hampers creation of a revised maritime boundary with Indonesia (see also Ashmore and Cartier Islands dispute); regional states express concern over Australia's 2004 declaration of a 1,000-nautical mile-wide maritime indentification zone; Australia asserts land and maritime claims to Antarctica (see Antarctica); in 2004 Australia submitted claims to UNCLOS to extend its continental margin from both its mainland and Antarctic claims
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Illicit drugs:
| Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate
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Australia,
aussy, AUS
See also: Foreign
Embassies in Australia
See also: Australian Embassies
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