About Bond University

Australia

Statistics

You will not be tested on these, but we thought you might like to know some basics about Australia.

Total Area:

7,682,292 square kilometers (2,966,133 square miles)

Capital City:

Canberra (inland from the East Coast and halfway between Sydney and Melbourne)

Population:

20.7 million

Ethnic Composition:

  • 85% European origin;
  • 9% Asian;
  • 3% Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islanders
  • 3% Other

Language:

English is the official national language; however, given Australia’s multicultural diversity, many other languages are also spoken.

Religions:

The 2006 census identified that 64% of Australians call themselves Christian: 26% identifying themselves as Roman Catholic and 19% as Anglican. Five percent of Australians identify themselves as followers of non-Christian religions (including Buddhist, Muslim and Hindu), and 19% are categorised as having "No Religion".

Government:

The Commonwealth of Australia is a constitutional, federal democracy. There are two major political groups that form government: the Australian Labor Party, and the Coalition which is a grouping of two parties: the Liberal Party, and its minor partner, the National Party.

The Labor Party, led by Prime Minister of Australia Kevin Rudd, was elected to power in December 2007.

Fact File:

Australia has generated nine Nobel Prize winners in the fields of science, medicine (winners for 2005), literature and immunology.

Australia is also the world's largest island and is the only country that is also a continent. It also has more beaches (7,000 in total) than any other nation.

Australia was the first place in the world where women were allowed to vote (in 1896).

And best of all, Australia was named as the second best country in the world to live in, behind Norway and ahead of Canada, in the 2006/ 2007 Human Development Report produced by the United Nations.