Topic outline of Australia

:"For an alphabetical index of this subject, see the List of Australia-related articles."

Australia refers to both the continent of Australia and the country of Australia which is located there. Australia, the world's smallest continent, is in the southern hemisphere and lies within both the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

The country, the official name of which is the Commonwealth of Australia, comprises the mainland of the Australian continent, plus the major island of Tasmania, and a number of other islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.ref|Southern Ocean|N4 The neighbouring countries are Indonesia, East Timor, and Papua New Guinea to the north, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia to the north-east, and New Zealand to the south-east.

The Australian mainland has been inhabited for more than 42,000 years by Indigenous Australians. [ [http://news.softpedia.com/news/Both-Aborigines-and-Europeans-Rooted-in-Africa-54225.shtml Both Australian Aborigines and Europeans Rooted in Africa - 50,000 years ago] ] After sporadic visits by fishermen from the north and then European discovery by Dutch explorers in 1606, [MacKnight, CC (1976)."The Voyage to Marege: Macassan Trepangers in Northern Australia." Melbourne University Press] the eastern half of Australia was later claimed by the British in 1770 and initially settled through penal transportation as part of the colony of New South Wales, commencing on 26 January 1788. As the population grew and new areas were explored, another five largely self-governing Crown Colonies were established during the 19th century.

The following topic outline is provided as an overview of and introduction to Australia:

__TOC__

* Pronunciation:
* Adjective: Australian
* International rankings of Australia

Geography of Australia

: "Main articles: Australia (continent), Australia, and Geography of Australia"

* Australia is: a continent and a country
* Location:
** Australia is a region or subregion of:
*** The World (Australia is a continent on the planet Earth)
**** Southern Hemisphere and Eastern Hemisphere
**** Oceania
***** Australasia
** Australia lies within:
*** Indian Ocean
*** Pacific Ocean
**** South Pacific Ocean
** Extreme points of Australia
* Population of Australia: 21,370,000 people Cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs%40.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/1647509ef7e25faaca2568a900154b63?OpenDocument|title=Population clock|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|accessdate=2008-07-22] (2008 estimate) - 53rd most populous country
* Area of Australia: unit sqkm|7741220|0|lk=on - 6th largest country
*

Environment of Australia

* Climate of Australia
** Effects of global warming on Australia
** Ecoregions of Australia
** Renewable energy in Australia
* Geology of Australia
* National parks of Australia
* Protected areas of Australia
* Wildlife of Australia
** Flora of Australia
** Fauna of Australia
*** Birds of Australia
*** Mammals of Australia

koala.
kangaroo.
Saltwater Crocodile is the largest species of crocodile in the world.

---

An_emu.

Geographic features of Australia

* Fjords of Australia - none
* Glaciers of Australia - none
* Islands of Australia
* Lakes of Australia
* Mountains of Australia
** Volcanoes in Australia
* Rivers of Australia
* Valleys of Australia
* Waterfalls of Australia
* World Heritage Sites in Australia

Regions of Australia

* Ecoregions in Australia

Multi-state regions

* Barkly Tableland
* Capital Country
* Eastern states of Australia
* East Coast of Australia
* Lake Eyre Basin
* Murray-Darling Basin
* Northern Australia
* The Nullarbor
* Outback
* Southern Australia

Administrative divisions of Australia

: "Main article: States and territories of Australia"

States of Australia

*
*
*
*
*
*

Territories of Australia

Mainland territories of Australia

*
*
*

External territories of Australia

*
*
*
*
*
*
*

Local government areas (municipalities) of Australia

* Capital of Australia: Canberra
* Cities of Australia

Demography of Australia

: "Main article: Demographics of Australia"

Government and politics of Australia

: "Main articles: Australian governments, Government of Australia, and Politics of Australia"

* Form of government: federative constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy
* Capital of Australia: Canberra

*Elections in Australia
** 1901 - 1972 - 1974 - 1975 - 1977 - 1980 - 1983 - 1984 - 1987 - 1990 - 1993 - 1996 - 1998 - 2001 - 2004 - 2007 - "next"
**Australian electoral system
*** Compulsory voting
*** Preferential voting
**Divisions of the Australian House of Representatives
* Human rights in Australia
* Political parties in Australia
** Liberal Party of Australia
** Australian Labor Party
** National Party of Australia
** Australian Democrats
** Australian Greens
* Political scandals of Australia
* Republicanism in Australia
* Taxation in Australia

Federal government of Australia

Branches of the government of Australia

Executive branch of the government of Australia

* Head of state: Queen of Australia (Queen Elizabeth II)
** Head of state's representative: Governor-General (Michael Jeffery)
* Head of government: Prime Minister of Australia (Kevin Rudd)
*Cabinet
*Federal Executive Council

Legislative branch of the government of Australia

*Parliament of Australia
**Australian Senate
**Australian House of Representatives
***Opposition Leader (currently: Malcolm Turnbull)

Judicial branch of the government of Australia

*High Court of Australia
*Australian court hierarchy
*Constitution of Australia

Military of Australia

* Command
** Commander-in-chief: Governor-General as the Queen's representative.
*** Minister for Defence of Australia
**** ADF
* Forces
** Army of Australia: Australian Army
** Navy of Australia: Royal Australian Navy
** Air force of Australia: Royal Australian Air Force
** Special forces of Australia
* Military history of Australia
* Military ranks of Australia

Foreign relations of Australia

* Anglo-Australian relations
* ANZUS
* Australia-Indonesia relations
* Australia-New Zealand relations
* Australia and the United Nations
* Japanese-Australian relations
* Sino-Australian relations
* United States-Australia relations

International organization membership

Australia is a member of:
* Association of Southeast Asian Nations
* United Nations

Law and order in Australia

* Citizenship
* Constitution of Australia
* Crime in Australia
* Law enforcement in Australia
** National law enforcement agencies
*** Australian Federal Police (AFP)
*** Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)
*** Australian Crime Commission (ACC)
*** Australian Customs Service (ACS)
*** Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS)
*** Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)
*** Australian Taxation Office (ATO)
** Regional law enforcement agencies - the following policing agencies are regulated by their respective State or Territory Government and are highly visible:
***New South Wales Police Force
***Northern Territory Police
***Queensland Police Service
***South Australia Police
***Tasmania Police
***Victoria Police
***Western Australia Police

State and territory governments of Australia

* Governors of the Australian states
* Parliaments of the Australian states and territories
* Premiers of the Australian states
* Government of New South Wales
* Government of Queensland
* Government of South Australia
* Government of Tasmania
* Government of Victoria
* Government of Western Australia
* Government of the Australian Capital Territory
* Government of the Northern Territory

Local government in Australia

*Local Government Areas in Australia

History of Australia

: "Main articles: History of Australia, Timeline of Australian history
* Prehistory of Australia
* Australian archaeology
* European exploration of Australia
* History of Australia (1788-1850)
* History of Australia (1851-1900)
* History of Australia (1901-1945)
* History of Australia since 1945
* Australian Federation
* Constitutional history of Australia
* Immigration history of Australia
* Stamps and postal history of Australia
* Stolen Generation

History of the states of Australia

* History of New South Wales
* History of Queensland
* History of South Australia
* History of Tasmania
* History of Victoria
* History of Western Australia

Culture of Australia

: "Main article: Culture of Australia"

* Architecture of Australia
* Cuisine of Australia
* Dance of Australia
* Festivals in Australia
* Folklore of Australia
* Humour in Australia
* Languages of Australia
** Australian English
* Media of Australia
** Television in Australia
* National symbols of Australia
** Coat of arms of Australia
** Flag of Australia
** National anthems of Australia:
*** Official national anthem: Advance Australia Fair
*** Royal anthem: God Save the Queen
* People of Australia
** Australian diaspora
** Australian of the Year
** Indigenous Australians
*** Australian Aborigines
*** Torres Strait Islanders
* Prostitution in Australia
* Public holidays in Australia
* Religion in Australia
** Buddhism in Australia
** Christianity in Australia
** Hinduism in Australia
** Judaism in Australia
** Islam in Australia
** Sikhism in Australia
* World Heritage Sites in Australia

The Arts in Australia

* Art of Australia
* Cuisine
* Literature of Australia
* Music of Australia
**
** Indigenous Australian music
** Australian country music
** Australian hip hop
** Australian jazz
** Australian rock
** Music of immigrant communities in Australia
* Theatre in Australia
* Cinema of Australia

Sport in Australia

: "Main article: Sport in Australia"

* Australia at the Olympics
* Football in Australia

Economy of Australia

: "Main article: Economy of Australia"

* Economic rank (by nominal GDP): 14th (fourteenth)

* Agriculture in Australia
* Communications in Australia
* Companies of Australia
* Currency of Australia: Australian dollar
* Economic history of Australia
* Energy policy of Australia
** Effects of global warming on Australia
** Garnaut Climate Change Review
** Wind power in Australia
** Solar power in Australia
** Carbon capture and storage in Australia
* Mining in Australia
** Coal mining in Australia
* Tourism in Australia
* Transport in Australia
* Reserve Bank of Australia
* Australian Securities Exchange
* Economic history of Australia
* Median household income in Australia and New Zealand

Economy of the states of Australia

* Economy of New South Wales
* Economy of Queensland
* Economy of South Australia
* Economy of Tasmania
* Economy of Victoria
* Economy of Western Australia

Education in Australia

: "Main articles: Education in Australia and Lists of schools in Australia"

* Public and private education in Australia
* Universities in Australia
** Group of Eight

Education in the states of Australia

* Education in New South Wales
* Education in Queensland
* Education in South Australia
* Education in Tasmania
* Education in Victoria
* Education in Western Australia
* Education in the Australian Capital Territory

Infrastructure of Australia

* Communications in Australia
** Internet in Australia
* Energy in Australia
* Health care in Australia
* Transportation in Australia
** Airports in Australia
** Rail transport in Australia
** Road transport in Australia
* Water supply and sanitation in Australia

See also

* Continent
* English Wikipedia
* List of Australia-related articles (alphabetical index)
* List of Australia-related topics
* List of basic geography topics
* List of international rankings

References

External links

*
* [http://www.dfat.gov.au/geo/australia/ About Australia] from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
*
* [http://www.gov.au/ Governments of Australia Entry Point] (Federal, State & Territory)
* [http://www.australia.gov.au/ Australian Government Entry Portal]
* [http://www.abs.gov.au/ Australian Bureau of Statistics]
* [http://www.community.gov.au/ Community organisations portal]
* [http://www.australia.gov.au/44 Cultural Institutions]
* [http://www.australia.com/ Tourism Australia]
*
*