AUSTRALIA. Adelaide [´æd(ǝ)leɪd]Brisbane[´brɪzbən] Dampier[dæmpɪəɪ]

Adelaide [´æd(ǝ)leɪd]Brisbane[´brɪzbən] Dampier[dæmpɪəɪ]

Aussie [´ɒzɪ] Geelong[´dʒi:lɒŋ]Canberra[´kænbərə]

Australia[ͻ:´streɪlɪǝ]Melbourne[´mælbən] Darling [´dɑ:lɪŋ]

Ayers Rock[´eəz ´rɒk] Macquarie[´mækərɪ]Murray [´mʌrɪ]

Perth [pɜ:θ]Sydney[´sɪdnɪ] Tasmania [tæz´meɪrnɪǝ]

Flag	Coat of arms
Anthem: “Advance Australia Fair”	Royal anthem: “God Save the Queen”

Australia smallest conti­nent, between the Indian and Pacific oceans with the island state of Tasma­nia to the south, the conti­nent makes up the Com­mon­wealth of Austra­lia. Australia's capital is Can­berra. Its largest city is Sydney, closely followed in population by Melbourne. There are five continental states (Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and Western Australia, in addition to the aforementioned Tasmania) as well as the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory. Another name of Australia is Down Under.Australia is the flattest continent, has the oldest and least fertile soils, and is the driest inhabited continent. By far the largest part of Australia is desert or semi-arid. The official title is the Commonwealth of Australia and it is an independent sovereign state within The British Commonwealth of Nations. Australia is a constitu­tional monarchy, with the Queen of Great Britain at its head. The queen is represented by the Governor General, who is appointed by the Australian government.

The first human habitation of Australia is estimated to have occurred between 42,000 and 48,000 years ago. These first Australians were ancestors of the current Indigenous Australians; they arrived via land bridges and short sea-crossings from present-day South-Hast Asia. The aborigines spread throughout Australia and remained isolated from outside influences until the arrival of the Europeans. Most of these people were hunters-gatherers, with a complex oral culture and spiritual values based on reverence for the land and a belief in the Dreamtime. The east coast of Australia was discovered by captain Cook in 1770. From 1787 to 1867 Australia was a place where criminals were sent from Britain. The early settlers were very cruel to the aborigines. They were killed or driven away from their lands. The discovery of gold in 1851 brought many people to Australia and the character of the colony began to change. But still, the raising of sheep was for a long time the most important occupation for the Australians.

Towards the end of the 19^th century, the Australian colonies began to discuss some form of union. They formed a federation, the new constitution was introduced on January 1, 1901; and the birth of the new nation was celebrated. In fact, most Australians were of British and white Commonwealth origin. That is why the official language of Australia is English The principal religion was and remains Christianity (76%), with Roman Catholics and Anglicans predominating.

National symbols.The Australian national flag consists of the British Flag symbol and a larger blue field in which 5 stars are arranged in the form of the Southern Cross constellation. The large white star under the British Union Jack symbolizes 6 Australian states and 1 territory. The Australian coat of arms left features a kangaroo and an emu, supporting a shield showing the symbol of each State.

Culture. A significant feature of modern Australian society is the representation of a lot of cultures drawn from many lands by its people. Since 1788, the primary basis of Australian culture until the mid-20-th century has been Anglo-Celtic, although distinctive Australian features has been evolving from the environment and indigenous culture. Over the past fifty years, Australian culture has been strongly influenced by American popular culture (particularly television and cinema), large-scale immigra­tion from non-English-speaking countries, and Australia's Asian neigh­bours. The vigour and originality of the arts in Australia – literature, cinema, opera, music, painting, theatre, dance and crafts – have achieved international recognition. Australia has a long history of visual arts, starting with the cave and bark paintings of its indigenous peoples. From the lime of European settlement, a common theme in Australian art has been the Australian landscape, seen in the works of Arthur Streeton, Arthur Boyd and Albert Namatjira, among others. The traditions of indigenous Austra­lians are largely transmitted orally and are closely tied to ceremony and the telling of the stories of the Dreamtime. Australian Aboriginal music, dance and art have a palpable influence on contemporary Australian visual and performing arts. There is a symphony orchestra in each capital city, and a national opera company, Opera Australia, first made prominent by the renowned diva Dame Joan Sutherland; Australian music includes classical, jazz, and many popular genres.

Australian literature has also been influenced by the landscape; the works of writers such as Banjo Paterson and Henry Law son captured the experience of the Australian bush. The character of colonial Australia, as embodied in early literature, resonates with modern Australia and its perceived emphasis on egalitarianism, mateship, and anti-authoritarianism. In 1973, Patrick White was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, the only Australian to have achieved this; he is recognized as one of the great English-language writers of the 20-th century. Australian English is a major variety of the language; its grammar and spelling are largely based on those of British English, overlaid with a rich vernacular of unique lexical items and phrases, some of which have found their way into standard English.

Environment.Australia is the most droughty continent in the earth. Summer months are December, January and February. The average summer temperature is from 20 to 30 degrees above zero. Winter months are June, July and August. The average winter temperature is from 12 to 20 degrees above zero. The most part of the territory lies in tropics. Its southwestern territories lie in subtropics. As droughts are rather common and the amount of rainfall is rather small there are not many rivers in Australia. The largest rivers are the Darling and the Murray. The isolation of Australia from other continents explains much of the unusualness of Australian plant and animal life. There are forests in the southern and eastern parts of the country. The commonest tree of Australia is the eucalyptus. In the drier areas there is the Australian acacia or mimosa (the national emblem of the country). In those areas one can also find strange bottle trees. They preserve water in their trunks. Australia has a rich variety of endemic legume species that thrive in nutrient-poor soils because of their symbiosis with Rhizobia bacteria and mycorrhizal fungi.

One of the most attractive aspects of Australia is its fascinating assortment of peculiar animals. Nine tenth of animal species of Australia do not exist in other parts of the world. Some of them, like the kangaroo, koala bear, dingo, wallabies, platypus, Tasmanian devil (raccoon-like marsupial), wombat (bear-like marsupial), barking and frilled lizards cannot be found elsewhere. It is mainly due to the fact that for long prehistoric period (55 million years) this continent was quite isolated from the others.

Media in Australia is an important component of the Australian economy. Australian media is widely accessible and caters to a wide variety of audiences. There are two media outlets in Australia which are publicly funded: the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS). There are 2 national and 10 state/territory daily newspapers, 37 regional dailies and 470 other regional and suburban newspapers. The only national daily newspaper is The Australian, other notable newspapers are The Sydney Morning Herald, The Daily Telegraph, The Age, The Herald Sun (Melbourne) and the most prominent financial newspaper, The Australian Financial Review. The Australian Press Council is the self regulatory body of the print media. Regulation of the media in Australia is limited to a narrow range of specific areas. The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) is the broadcasting regulator for radio and television in Australia, and also the co-regulatory Online Content Scheme.

In addition to the public broadcasters which are available to almost all of Australia's population, there are three major commercial television networks: the Nine Network, the Seven Network and Network Ten.