Austraalia referaat inglise keeles (7)

Tallinna Inglise Kolledž
Australia
Topic
Alice Tärk, 8b.
Tallinn 2007
Table of contents:
Factfile………………………………………………………………………………………………………………Symbols………………………………………………………………………………………………………………Head of State…………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Government ……………………………………………………………………………………………………….
History……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Relief………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Geographical position ……………………………………………………………………………………….
Waterbodies……………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Natural zones …………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Plants …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Animals ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Climate………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
States and Territories……………………………………………………………………………………….
Industry………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Aborigines and first settlers………………………………………………………………………………
Sports …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Culture……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Factfile

Australia is the only country in the worlf that fills the whole continent . The continent is also called Australia, if you want to make clear that you are speaking about the country you may call it by its official name: Commonwealth of Australia.
Australia is the smallest continent, but one of the largest countries in the world. Its area is about 7,6 million sq kilometers. Its population is about 20,0 million and most of the people live in bigger cities: Sydney (4.2 million), Melbourne (3.7 million), Brisbane (2 million) and in Canberra , Which is also the capital of Australia.
National language in Australia is english and the monetary unit is Australian dollar. Australia is divided into 6 states and 2 territories.

Symbols

Australia has a British Union flag. It is red, white and blue . Five small stars represent the constellation Southern cross . The big star represents country’s states and territories. In 1901 the flag was chosen from about 30000 entries in a public contest. It was officially adopted as Australian flag in 1953.
The coat of arms features a kangaroo and an emu (the national animals of Australia), golden wattle (the national floral emblem ), a shield with the coats of arms of the six states of Australia and a star for all states and territories.
Australia’s national anthem is “Advance Australia Fair ”, which replaced “God Save The Queen ” in 1984. the unofficial anthem is “Waltzing Matilda”.
As said before Australias national animals are kangaroos and emus. Often coalas are mentioned too, its floral emblem is the golden wattle and its national colours are the colours of its flag – red, white and blue.

Head of state

Head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who is queen of United Kingdom and also queen is Australia. In practice , Governor General performs her functions in queen’s absence. Since 1989 Bill Hayden has been the Governor General

Government

Australia is constitutional monarchy, based on liberal democratic tradition. In practice Australia is parliamentary democracy. The power in the country is put to life by Parliament . Parliament is consists of The House Of Representatives and The Senat .
The House of Representatives consists of 150 members . The party with the majority provides the Prime Minister, who also forms the Government. Today the power is divided by three parties: The Australian Labour Party, the Liberal Party and National Party.
The Senat’s membership is wider, it comprises 12 senators from each state and 2 from each territory. Senators are elected for six year terms.
The Executive power in Australia is in the hands of the Commonwealth Government lead by the Prime Minister. Today the Prime Minister is John Howard, the leader of the Liberal Party.

History

Australia was once a part of the giant continent – Gondwana. It included Africa , South America and Antarctica . First Australia and Antarctica split from Gondwana, then Australia broke away from Antarctica and began to move north . Aborigines arrived there about 50 000 years ago. They had occupied the whole continent by 30 000 years ago. At that time Tasmania was still part of the mainland. About 20 000 years ago the ice began to melt and the rising water level cut Tasmania off from the mainland.
Traders from what is now Indonesia are thought to have been visiting Australia well before the 17th century . Chinese , Malaysian and Arab sea Captains may also have landed in Northern Australia after the 15th century. Still Australia remained unexplored until 17th century. One reasons Australia remained undiscovered was that it was located off the trading corridor of the Indian and Pacific .
The first recorded European contact with Australia was in March 1606, when Dutch explorer Willem Janszoon called it New Holland . In 1642 Abel Tasman discovered Tasmania. The first english explorer was William Dampier in 1688. he was followed by James Cook . In 1768 captain James Cook left England on a three year expedition to the Pacific that also took him to Australia. Cook landed in Botany Bay on the eastern coast. He charted the region and named it New South Wales.
Britain decided to use its new outpost as a penal colony ; the first fleet of 11 ships carried about 1500 people – half of them convicts. The fleet arrived at Port Jackson, the cite of modern Sydney, on 26th January, 1788, and on this day every year Australia day is celebrated. In all, about 160 000 en and women were brouth to Australia as convicts. The transportation was ended in 1868. by this time many settlements were established. In 1901 all the separate parts of Australia were united into one country.
In 1851 gold was discovered in eastern Australia. This brought along the great gold rush . Thousands of people went to the new land to find fortune . Forty years later the gold was found in the west . The miners of the east had a very hard time, the water was scarce and the roads were bad. But then the railway was built .
Many of people who came to Australia to find gold stayed on to do other kinds of work. The found that Australia has other riches too, such as coal , copper , iron -ore, nickel , natural gas and more. The forests had good timber . Along seashorepearls and tortoise shells could be gathered. Some needed to manufacture such things as butter, cheese , shoes and clothing .

Geographical position

Australia is located in southern hemisphere. It’s the only continent except for Antarctica that is all south of equator. Sometimes Australia is called the Island Continent. There is a great reason why. It really is an island. It is 2880 km from the mainland of asia and is almost half way round the world from Europe . More that 9600 km separate it from America. Australia lies between the Pacific and Indian oceans. The Timor sea and the Arafura sea separate Australia from Indonesia. In the north the coast is washed by Great Australian Bight and the Indian ocean . In the northeast the Coral sea washes the coasts and in the southeast there is the Tasman sea which also separates Australia from New Zealand . The biggest island is Tasmania which is located in the south of the country.

Waterbodies

There are very few rivers in Australia. Australian temporary rivers are called the creeks – they are full only after it rains. The biggest rivers are in the east. Most of them are very short. The Murray river with its tributary the Darlinggives water for irrigation. Most of the lakes alsi have water after it rains only. Lake Eyre , the biggest, is one of the many salt lakes in Central Australia. Australia has much underground water. The Great Artesian Basin under the central Lowlands makes cattle -breeding possible thee. The network of artesian wells provides cattle with water.

Natural zones

The wet forests also called the rainforests occupy the narrow coastal region in the east. In the west they give place to grasslands with some trees called savannas. Farther west the trees disappear and the savannas give place to the bushlands. The real desert occupies the centre of the Western Plateau.
In the very southwest there are thin forests of evergreen trees.

Plants

A rich variety of plant can be found in the natural landscapes of Australia. A lot of species can be found in wet tropical forests in the north and in temperate rainforests in the south.
The biggest family of the native plants is the myrties. They include more than 500 species of eucalyptus, or gum trees. Only the big river red gum is seen everywhere. These can be found beside rivers and dry riverbeds. Some gum trees are valuable timber species and have been cut down for many years. Gum tree leaves are full of oils, which evaporate easily. That why the Blue Mountains are called like that, because the evaporateing eucalypt oils, which make the air blue.
Another big family of native plants is acacias. They are also known as wattles. There are about 900 species of wattles. The golden wattle is Australia’s native flower . Its gold flowers and green leaves have inspired the colours worn by many Australian sporting teams. In Australia bushfires are very often to happen . Because the trees and shrubs do not lose their leaves in winter , but grow throughout the year. But when the dry leaves and branches fall down, then there is a lot of dry material and theat helps busfires to burn.

Animals

Scientists estimate that the continent is home to more that one million animal and plant species. Many of these are found nowhere else on the planet . Among these animals are kangaroos, wombats and koalas. They carry their babies in pouches. There are platypuses and tiny anteaters (echidnas)too, which are the only mammals in the worls that lay eggs . Among the birds are emus, lyrebirds and black swans. When a platypus specimen first reached to Europe people thought it was a fake , sewn together from birds and other animals. The platypus, the strangest of Australia’s animals, is a living reminder of ancient, exctinct creatures.
The best known animal that lives in Australia is the kangaroo ofcourse. There are about 50 species of kangaroo, ranging in size from the big red kangaroo of the outback to wallabies and smaller rat-kangaroos. Kangaroos are marsupials too. Their babies develop inside their mother’s pouch .
About half of Australia’s 230 mammal species are marsupials. As well as meat- eating Tasmanian devils , possums, bandicoots and ofcourse kangaroos, wombats and koalas. The largest meat-eating marsupial Tasmanian Tiger is probably extinct .
Most of Australian native animals move around at night. But the birds which are very colourful are easy to see. There are about 750 species ofbirds in Australia.
Two types of crocodiles, the saltwater crocodile and the freshwater crocodile can be found in the north.
The dingo or the native dog is not really an Australian native. It has brought from Asia around 3500 years ago. The dingo is an efficient sheep hunter. To protect sheep the dog fence was built in 1964.

Climate

Australia is the driest continent in the world except Antarctica. It has very low average rainfalls. About 70 per cent of the country is arid or semi-arid and cannot support agriculture . The north part of the countrygets about 300 mm rain a year. Much of the rain soakes into the ground and does not form any rivers or lakes. Monsoon winds bring most air during summer . This is the time of high rainfall. It’s known as the wet season . High temperature also means that a lot of moisture evaporates or is used by plants. In the southern two thirds of the country the climate is temperate to cool. Winter temperatures can be lower but not freezing. There are four seasons. The seasons are opposite of our seasons. When we have summer in Australia there is winter. In Australia droughts and floods are very usual- the draught is caused by El Nino, a weather pattern which happened when the southern Pacific ocean heats up- this causes the wind direction to reverse . An El Nino occurs every four years, causing draught and bushfires. Drought are followed by floods.

States and Territories

The states are:

South Australia – its capital city is Adelaide and most of it is dry desert land. Its huge industry is motor vehicle industry. It is very warm and some people live in the town of Coober Pedy that lies underground to get protection from the heat . Many opals are found and mines in South Australia.

New South Wales – its capital city is Sydney and it has a total land mass area of 800 000 sq km. The major agricultural activity is dheep farming and a major industrial activity is steel production and manufacturing .

Queensland – its capital is Brisbane and it has a total land mass of 1 727 000 sq km. Its population is 3,5 million people. There are two climate sones in Queensland. The major agricultural activity is beef cattle farming and a major industrial activity is mining coal and other minerals. Now tourism is a major industry also. The koala lives only in Queensland.

Western Australia – its capital is Perth and it is the largest of Australian states. It occupies 2,25 million sq km. The major agricultural industries are beef, wheat and timber and the major industry is mining iron-ore, bauxite, gold and diamonds .

Victoria – its capital is Melbourne and it is the smallest mainland state. It only occupies 3 per cent of the total land mass of Australia. Its major industry is food production and processing . Victoria has a tepmerate climate.

Tasmania – Its an island situated 150 km south of the most southern point of Victoria. It occupies 68 000 sq km and its capital city is Hobart. The major agricultural crops are potatoes, other vegetables, hops and apples. Sheep, cattle and pigs are also raised. The major industries are mining and manufacturing.
The territories are:

Australian Capital Territory – its capital city is Canberra. Canberra occupies more than one third of the total land mass of ACT.

Northern Territory – it’s capital is Darwin and it occupies 1,35 million sq km. Almost 19 per cent of the population was born in other countries. The major industries are the mining of mineral deposits, and the production of oil and gas. The beef cattle industry is strong and tourism is the fastest growing industry.
Most of Australia is called the Outback – It is unhabited land and most of it is desert or bushlands.

Industry

Australia is an outstanding producer of primary products . The country doesn’t import almost any foods . Australia produces foods itself. Australia is a major exporter of wheat, meats, dairy products and ofcourse wool. The country produces more than 25 per cent of the world’s yearly output of wool. The Merino wool is also famous all over the world.
Australia is also very rich in minerals. Coal, bauxite, old, iron ore, diamonds, natural gas and nickel can be found in Australia. Western Australia has become the most important region of mineral production. Mining is an important branch of Australia’s industry too. The famous mining are is broken Hill in New South Wales. It’s one of the largest productions of lead, zinc, copper and uranium. Australia is also rich in precious and semi precious stoned. Black opals and pink diamonds are thought to be very valuable.
Most of Australia’s oil and natural gas comes from fields found in the Bass Strait. Oil has been found in South Australia and Western Australia.
Agriculture of Australia depends totally on climate. In the eastern part of the northern Territory peanuts, sugarcanes and fruits are grown . Cattle raised in all of Australia’s states and territories. Tasmania is famous for its fruits, especially apples. Special varieties of grapes are grown in the murray valley for the production of raisins

First settlers and aborigines

The first people who arrived australia were the Aborigines. They arrived there about 50 000 years ago. The word ‘aboriginal’ means ‘the first’ or ‘earliest known’. The word was first used in Italy and Greece to describe people who lived there.
More than 30 000 years ago the population of the world was small. People lived in family groups. There wereno cities or anything like that. There were no cultivated crops, animals werenot herded for food and metalworking was yet to be discovered.
It is not known from where the aboriginals began their journey, but it is certain that they used some kind of a craft to cross the water between the islands to the north and reach the southern continent. This voyage is the earliest evidence of sea travel by prehistoric men.
The first aborigines found an Australia with a better environment than today. Large animals now extinct provided more meat than the animals which we are familiar with. Some parts of the continent were richer in vegetable food, but there were no cultivated crops or animals that could be domesticated such as cattle and sheep.
As Australia was isolated from the rest of the world, Aboriginals had very little contact with other people from whom to borrow tehniques, to trade good, to acquire crop seeds or animals.
Each clan grouping occupied a well-defined area of land. The group belonged with, or to the land – as well the animals and plants. They had no idea of being able to buy or sell land, the land was given long ago, in the Dreamtime. Aborigines were limited to the food, which they had growing naturally in their area. But they knew when, where and how to find anything edible. But food was not obtained without effort. Inland, the search for water was a life and death matter. Aborigines survived where the others would have died. They drained dew, and obtained water from certain trees and roots . They even squeezed frogs , which store water in their bodies.

Sports

In Australia outdoor sports are very popular. Many people enjoy surfing, swimming , boating and other water sports. Many people play golf and tennis . Australians begin to play team sports in primary school and many continue to play them throughout life. The most popular team games are cricket, Australian football , rugby and soccer .
Australia has produced many world-famous athletes, especially in tennis, golf and swimmin. Australians have won numeroyues Olympic medals in swimmin, athletics, cycling and yachtind. The world famous swimmer Ian James Thorpe was also born is Australia. He has won 5 golden, 3 silver and one bronze medal in the Olympic Games. This is more than any other Australian.

Culture

Since its discovery by Europeans more than 200 years ago, Australia has seen lots of changes . Just like all other countries in the worls, Australia has its own unique culture nd lifestyle. People from every corner of the world have moved to Australia and contributed their divercity to the Australian culture. For a long time, Australia was thought to be a country of sheep farmers and gold miners. But today’s Australia is one of the most urbanized countries in the worlds.
There are a lot of famous singers and bands in Australia. Probably the most famous is Kylie Minogue or AC/DC. Australia also has a long history od film production. Notable production includes “The Matrix ” and “The Star Wars”. Many USA producers have moved their productions to Australian studios.