Buying furniture in Canberra, ACT, offers a range of options that balance quality, style, and affordability to suit diverse needs and budgets.
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Whether furnishing an entire home or updating a single room, Canberra residents can find premium, locally accessible furniture stores with extensive selections and excellent customer service.
Canberra's furniture market is anchored by well-known stores such as Monster Furniture in Fyshwick, which features a broad array of affordable yet high-quality pieces-from sofas to dining sets-all in one convenient location. This store is recognized for combining premium furnishings with competitive pricing and accessibility, making it a preferred choice for many homeowners and renters in the ACT region[1]. Another notable option is Marco Furniture, also serving Canberra with a reputation for sophistication and top-rated service, providing stylish furniture selections with swift delivery across Australia[3].
For those interested in handcrafted, sustainably sourced furniture, Eclipse Handcrafted Furniture stands out by offering custom solid timber pieces designed to last a lifetime. Their craftsmanship appeals to clients who value originality and sustainability, with options available through their online gallery or showrooms in nearby cities[5].
Leather sofas that add just the right amount of Canberra class.
Canberra Modern Home Interiors
Space Saving Furniture Canberra
Leather sofas that add just the right amount of Canberra class.
Other stores such as Focus on Furniture in Fyshwick present a wide range of lounges, bedroom, and occasional furniture with an emphasis on value and customer experience[7].
Additionally, clearance and sale events like those from Warehouse Furniture Clearance offer significant discounts on various furniture styles, making it easier for buyers on tighter budgets to find suitable items[9].
Leather sofas that add just the right amount of Canberra class.
Explore Fyshwick Canberra where every furniture piece feels like home already.
Minimalist style perfect for Canberra homes that love space.
Lounge chairs that whisper luxury and sometimes squeak delightfully. Buy Furniture Canberra .
For shoppers seeking immediate delivery, Fusion Furniture in Fyshwick provides same-day options on popular furniture categories, combining quality with convenience[11].
In conclusion, buying furniture in Canberra, ACT, is facilitated by a vibrant furniture retail scene that caters to diverse tastes and price points. From large warehouses to boutique artisans, residents benefit from convenient locations, competitive pricing, and a variety of styles to create homes that reflect personal comfort and aesthetic preferences. Whether through traditional stores, handcrafted specialists, or clearance events, Canberra offers plentiful opportunities to furnish living spaces beautifully and affordably.
The area chosen for the capital had been inhabited by Aboriginal Australians for up to 21,000 years,[12] by groups including the Ngunnawal and Ngambri.[13]European settlement commenced in the first half of the 19th century, as evidenced by surviving landmarks such as St John's Anglican Church and Blundells Cottage. On 1 January 1901, federation of the colonies of Australia was achieved. Following a long dispute over whether Sydney or Melbourne should be the national capital,[14] a compromise was reached: the new capital would be built in New South Wales, so long as it was at least 100 mi (160 km) from Sydney. The capital city was founded and formally named as Canberra in 1913. A plan by the American architects Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin was selected after an international design contest, and construction commenced in 1913.[15][16] Unusual among Australian cities, it is an entirely planned city. The Griffins' plan featured geometric motifs and was centred on axes aligned with significant topographical landmarks such as Black Mountain, Mount Ainslie, Capital Hill and City Hill. Canberra's mountainous location makes it the only mainland Australian city where snow-capped mountains can be seen for much of the winter, although snow in the city itself is uncommon.
Canberra has been ranked among the world's best cities to live in and visit.[17][18][19][20][21] Although the Commonwealth Government remains the largest single employer in Canberra, it is no longer the majority employer. Other major industries have developed in the city, including in health care, professional services, education and training, retail, accommodation and food, and construction.[22] Compared to the national averages, the unemployment rate is lower and the average income higher; tertiary education levels are higher, while the population is younger. At the 2021 Census, 28.7% of Canberra's inhabitants were reported as having been born overseas.[23]
The word "Canberra" is derived from the Ngunnawal language of a local Ngunnawal or Ngambri clan who resided in the area and were referred to by the early British colonists as either the Canberry, Kanberri or Nganbra tribe.[26][27]Joshua John Moore, the first European land-owner in the region, named his grant "Canberry" in 1823 after these people. "Canberry Creek" and "Canberry" first appeared on regional maps from 1830, while the derivative name "Canberra" started to appear from around 1857.[28][29][30] Other early recorded variants of the spelling include "Canbury" (potentially influenced by the settlement of the same name in England), "Canburry" and "Kembery".[31]
Numerous local commentators, including the Ngunnawal elder Don Bell, have speculated upon possible meanings of "Canberra" over the years. These include "meeting place", "woman's breasts" and "the hollow between a woman's breasts".[32][33]
Alternative proposals for the name of the city during its planning included Austral, Australville, Aurora, Captain Cook, Caucus City, Cookaburra, Dampier, Eden, Eucalypta, Flinders, Gonebroke, Home, Hopetoun, Kangaremu, Myola, Meladneyperbane, New Era, Olympus, Paradise, Shakespeare, Sydmelperadbrisho, Swindleville, The National City, Union City, Unison, Wattleton, Wheatwoolgold, Yass-Canberra.[34][35][36]
The first peoples of the Canberra area include the Ngunnawal, Ngunawal and Ngambri peoples.[13] Other groups claiming a connection to the land include the Ngarigo (who also lived directly to the south) and the Ngambri-Guumaal.[26] Neighbouring groups include the Wandandian to the east, the Walgulu also to the south, Gandangara people to the north and Wiradjuri to the north-west.
The first British settlers into the Canberra area described two clans of Ngunnawal people resident to the vicinity. The Canberry or Nganbra clan lived mostly around Sullivan's Creek and had ceremonial grounds at the base of Galambary (Black Mountain), while the Pialligo clan had land around what is now Canberra Airport.[37][38] The people living here carefully managed and cultivated the land with fire, farmed yams, and hunted for food.[39]
Archaeological evidence of settlement in the region includes inhabited rock shelters, rock paintings and engravings, burial places, camps and quarry sites as well as stone tools and arrangements.[40] Artefacts suggests early human activity occurred at some point in the area 21,000 years previously.[12]
Still today, Ngunnawal men into the present conduct ceremony on the banks of the river, Murrumbidgee River. They travel upstream as they receive their Totems and corresponding responsibilities for land management. 'Murrum' means 'Pathway' and Bidgee means 'Boss'.[39]
The submerged limestone caves beneath Lake Burley Griffin contained Aboriginal rock art, some of the only sites in the region.[39]
Galambary (Black Mountain) is an important Aboriginal meeting and business site, predominantly for men's business. According to the Ngunnawal and Ngambri people, Mt Ainslie is primarily for place of women's business. Black Mountain and Mount Ainslie are referred to as women's breasts. Galambary was also used by Ngunnawal people as an initiation site, with the mountain itself said to represent the growth of a boy into a man.[39]
St John's Anglican Church, the oldest surviving public building in the inner city, consecrated in 1845Blundells Cottage, built around 1860,[41] is one of the few remaining buildings built by the first white settlers of Canberra.
In October 1820, Charles Throsby led the first British expedition to the area.[42][43][44][45] Four other expeditions occurred between 1820 and 1823 with the first accurate map being produced by explorer Mark John Currie in June 1823. By this stage, the area had become known as the Limestone Plains.[42][46]
British settlement of the area probably dates from late 1823, when a sheep station was formed on what is now the Acton Peninsula by James Cowan, the head stockman employed by Joshua John Moore.[47] Moore had received a land grant in the region in 1823 and formally applied to purchase the site on 16 December 1826. He named the property "Canberry". On 30 April 1827, Moore was told by letter that he could retain possession of 1,000 acres (405 ha) at Canberry.[48]
Other colonists soon followed Moore's example to take up land in the region. Around 1825, James Ainslie, working on behalf of the wealthy merchant Robert Campbell, arrived to establish a sheep station. He was guided to the region by a local Aboriginal girl who showed him the fine lands of her Pialligo clan.[37] The area then became the property of Campbell and it was initially named Pialligo before Campbell changed it to the Scottish title of Duntroon.[28][49][50] Campbell and his family built a dairy on the site in 1832, now regarded as the oldest standing European building in Canberra,[51][52][53] followed by the imposing stone house that is now the officers' mess of the Royal Military College, Duntroon.[54] The Campbells sponsored settlement by other farmer families to work their land, such as the Southwells of "Weetangera".[55]
Other notable early colonists included Henry Donnison, who established the Yarralumla estate—now the site of the official residence of the Governor-General of Australia—in 1827, and John Palmer who employed Duncan Macfarlane to form the Jerrabomberra property in 1828. A year later, John MacPherson established the Springbank estate, becoming the first British owner-occupier in the region.[28][56][57]
The Anglican church of St John the Baptist, in the suburb of Reid,[58] was consecrated in 1845, and is now the oldest surviving public building in the city.[59][60] St John's churchyard contains the earliest graves in the district.[61] It has been described as a "sanctuary in the city",[62][63] remaining a small English village-style church even as the capital grew around it. Canberra's first school, St John's School (now a museum), was situated next to the church and opened in the same year of 1845.[64] It was built to educate local settlers children,[65] including the Blundell children who lived in nearby Blundell's Cottage.[66]
As the European presence increased, the Indigenous population dwindled largely due to the destruction of their society, dislocation from their lands and from introduced diseases such as influenza, smallpox, alcoholism, and measles.[67][68]
The district's change from a rural area in New South Wales to the national capital started during debates over federation in the late 19th century.[69][70] Following a long dispute over whether Sydney or Melbourne should be the national capital,[14] a compromise was reached: the new capital would be built in New South Wales, so long as it was at least 100 mi (160 km) from Sydney,[69] with Melbourne to be the temporary seat of government while the new capital was built.[71] A survey was conducted across several sites in New South Wales with Bombala, southern Monaro, Orange, Yass, Albury, Tamworth, Armidale, Tumut, and Dalgety all discussed.[72] Dalgety was chosen by the federal parliament and it passed the Seat of Government Act 1904 confirming Dalgety as the site of the nation's capital. However, the New South Wales government refused to cede the required territory as they did not accept the site.[72] In 1906, the New South Wales Government finally agreed to cede sufficient land provided that it was in the Yass-Canberra region as this site was closer to Sydney.[69] Newspaper proprietor John Gale circulated a pamphlet titled 'Dalgety or Canberra: Which?' advocating Canberra to every member of the Commonwealth's seven state and federal parliaments. By many accounts, it was decisive in the selection of Canberra as the site in 1908 as was a result of survey work done by the government surveyorCharles Scrivener.[73] The NSW government ceded the district to the federal government in 1911 and the Federal Capital Territory was established.[69]
The Griffins' plan for Canberra
An international design competition was launched by the Department of Home Affairs on 30 April 1911, closing on 31 January 1912. The competition was boycotted by the Royal Institute of British Architects, the Institution of Civil Engineers and their affiliated bodies throughout the British Empire because the Minister for Home Affairs King O'Malley insisted that the final decision was for him to make rather than an expert in city planning.[74] A total of 137 valid entries were received. O'Malley appointed a three-member board to advise him but they could not reach unanimity. On 24 May 1911,[75] O'Malley came down on the side of the majority of the board with the design by Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin of Chicago, Illinois, United States, being declared the winner.[76][77] Second was Eliel Saarinen of Finland and third was Alfred Agache of Brazil but resident in Paris, France.[74] O'Malley then appointed a six-member board to advise him on the implementation of the winning design. On 25 November 1912, the board advised that it could not support the Griffins' plan in its entirety and suggested an alternative plan of its own devising. This plan ostensibly incorporated the best features of the three place-getting designs as well as of a fourth design by H. Caswell, R.C.G. Coulter and W. Scott-Griffiths of Sydney, the rights to which it had purchased. It was this composite plan that was endorsed by Parliament and given formal approval by O'Malley on 10 January 1913.[74] However, it was the Griffin plan which was ultimately proceeded with. In 1913, Walter Burley Griffin was appointed Federal Capital Director of Design and Construction and construction began.[78] On 23 February, King O'Malley drove the first peg in the construction of the future capital city.
In 1912, the government invited suggestions from the public as to the name of the future city. Almost 750 names were suggested. At midday on 12 March 1913,[79][80]Lady Denman, the wife of Governor-General Lord Denman, announced that the city would be named "Canberra" at a ceremony at Kurrajong Hill,[81][82][83] which has since become Capital Hill and the site of the present Parliament House.[84]Canberra Day is a public holiday observed in the ACT on the second Monday in March to celebrate the founding of Canberra.[68] After the ceremony, bureaucratic disputes hindered Griffin's work;[85] a Royal Commission in 1916 ruled his authority had been usurped by certain officials and his original plan was reinstated.[86] Griffin's relationship with the Australian authorities was strained and a lack of funding meant that by the time he was fired in 1920, little work had been done.[87][88] By this time, Griffin had revised his plan, overseen the earthworks of major avenues and established the Glenloch Cork Plantation.[89][90]
The Commonwealth government purchased the pastoral property of Yarralumla in 1913 to provide an official residence for the Governor-General of Australia in the new capital.[91] Renovations began in 1925 to enlarge and modernise the property.[92] In 1927, the property was officially dubbed Government House.[91] On 9 May that year, the Commonwealth parliament moved to Canberra with the opening of the Provisional Parliament House.[93][94] The Prime MinisterStanley Bruce had officially taken up residence in The Lodge a few days earlier.[95][96] Planned development of the city slowed significantly during the depression of the 1930s and during World War II.[97] Some projects planned for that time, including Roman Catholic and Anglican cathedrals, were never completed.[98] (Nevertheless, in 1973 the Roman Catholic parish church of St. Christopher was remodelled into St Christopher's Cathedral, Manuka, serving the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn. It is the only cathedral in Canberra.[99])
The largest event in Canberra up to World War II was the 24th Meeting of ANZAAS in January 1939. The Canberra Times described it as "a signal event ... in the history of this, the world's youngest capital city". The city's accommodation was not nearly sufficient to house the 1,250 delegates and a tent city had to be set up on the banks of the Molonglo River. One of the prominent speakers was H. G. Wells, who was a guest of the Governor-General Lord Gowrie for a week. This event coincided with a heatwave across south-eastern Australia during which the temperature in Canberra reached 108.5 degrees Fahrenheit (42.5 Celsius) on 11 January. On Friday, 13 January, the Black Friday bushfires caused 71 deaths in Victoria and Wells accompanied the Governor-General on his tour of areas threatened by fires.[103]
Immediately after the end of the war, Canberra was criticised for resembling a village and its disorganised collection of buildings was deemed ugly.[104][105][106] Canberra was often derisively described as "several suburbs in search of a city".[107] Prime Minister Sir Robert Menzies regarded the state of the national capital as an embarrassment.[108] Over time his attitude changed from one of contempt to that of championing its development. He fired two ministers charged with the development of the city for poor performance. Menzies remained in office for over a decade and in that time the development of the capital sped up rapidly.[109][110] The population grew by more than 50 per cent in every five-year period from 1955 to 1975.[110] Several Government departments, together with public servants, were moved to Canberra from Melbourne following the war.[111]Government housing projects were undertaken to accommodate the city's growing population.[112]
The National Capital Development Commission (NCDC) formed in 1957 with executive powers and ended four decades of disputes over the shape and design of Lake Burley Griffin — the centrepiece of Griffin's design — and construction was completed in 1964 after four years of work.[113] The completion of the lake finally laid the platform for the development of Griffin's Parliamentary Triangle.[114] Since the initial construction of the lake, various buildings of national importance have been constructed on its shores.[115]
On 9 May 1988, a larger and permanent Parliament House was opened on Capital Hill as part of Australia's bicentenary celebrations.[122][117] The Commonwealth Parliament moved there from the Provisional Parliament House, now known as Old Parliament House.[122]
In December 1988, the Australian Capital Territory was granted full self-government by the Commonwealth Parliament, a step proposed as early as 1965.[123] Following the first election on 4 March 1989,[124] a 17-member Legislative Assembly sat at temporary offices at 1 Constitution Avenue, Civic, on 11 May 1989.[125][126] Permanent premises were opened on London Circuit in 1994.[126] The Australian Labor Party formed the ACT's first government, led by the Chief Minister Rosemary Follett, who made history as Australia's first female head of government.[127][128] The 1990s also saw urban development begin in the district of Gungahlin in the far north of the ACT.[129][130]
The Skywhale and Skywhalepapa in 2021
Parts of Canberra were engulfed by bushfires on 18 January 2003 that killed four people, injured 435 and destroyed more than 500 homes as well as the major research telescopes of Australian National University's Mount Stromlo Observatory.[131]
Throughout 2013, several events celebrated the 100th anniversary of the naming of Canberra.[132] On 11 March 2014, the last day of the centennial year, the Canberra Centenary Column was unveiled in City Hill. Other works included The Skywhale, a hot air balloon designed by the sculptor Patricia Piccinini,[133] and StellrScope by visual media artist Eleanor Gates-Stuart.[134] On 7 February 2021, The Skywhale was joined by Skywhalepapa to create a Skywhale family, an event marked by Skywhale-themed pastries and beer produced by local companies as well as an art pop song entitled "We are the Skywhales".[135]
The native forest in the Canberra region was almost wholly eucalypt species and provided a resource for fuel and domestic purposes. By the early 1960s, logging had depleted the eucalypt, and concern about water quality led to the forests being closed. Interest in forestry began in 1915 with trials of a number of species including Pinus radiata on the slopes of Mount Stromlo. Since then, plantations have been expanded, with the benefit of reducing erosion in the Cotter catchment, and the forests are also popular recreation areas.[144]
The urban environs of the city of Canberra straddle the Ginninderra plain, Molonglo plain, the Limestone plain, and the Tuggeranong plain (Isabella's Plain).[145] The Molonglo River which flows across the Molonglo plain has been dammed to form the national capital's iconic feature Lake Burley Griffin.[146] The Molonglo then flows into the Murrumbidgee north-west of Canberra, which in turn flows north-west toward the New South Wales town of Yass. The Queanbeyan River joins the Molonglo River at Oaks Estate just within the ACT.[145]
A number of creeks, including Jerrabomberra and Yarralumla Creeks, flow into the Molonglo and Murrumbidgee.[145] Two of these creeks, the Ginninderra and Tuggeranong, have similarly been dammed to form Lakes Ginninderra and Tuggeranong.[147][148][149] Until recently the Molonglo River had a history of sometimes calamitous floods; the area was a flood plain prior to the filling of Lake Burley Griffin.[150][151]
Under the Köppen-Geiger classification, Canberra has an oceanic climate (Cfb).[152] In January, the warmest month, the average high is approximately 29 °C (84 °F); in July, the coldest month, the average high drops to approximately 12 °C (54 °F).
Frost is common in the winter months. Snow is rare in the CBD (central business district) due to being on the leeward (eastern) side of the dividing range, but the surrounding areas get annual snowfall through winter and often the snow-capped Brindabella Range can be seen from the CBD. The last significant snowfall in the city centre was in 1968.[136] Canberra is often affected by foehn winds, especially in winter and spring, evident by its anomalously warm maxima relative to altitude.
The highest recorded maximum temperature was 44.0 °C (111.2 °F) on 4 January 2020.[153] Winter 2011 was Canberra's warmest winter on record, approximately 2 °C (4 °F) above the average temperature.[154]
Long-term temperature increase in Canberra
The lowest recorded minimum temperature was −10.0 °C (14.0 °F) on the morning of 11 July 1971.[136] Light snow falls only once in every few years, and is usually not widespread and quickly dissipates.[136]
Canberra is protected from the west by the Brindabellas which create a strong rain shadow in Canberra's valleys.[136] Canberra gets 100.4 clear days annually.[155] Annual rainfall is the third lowest of the capital cities (after Adelaide and Hobart)[156] and is spread fairly evenly over the seasons, with late spring bringing the highest rainfall.[157]Thunderstorms occur mostly between October and April,[136] owing to the effect of summer and the mountains. The area is generally sheltered from a westerly wind, though strong northwesterlies can develop. A cool, vigorous afternoon easterly change, colloquially referred to as a 'sea-breeze' or the 'Braidwood Butcher',[158][159] is common during the summer months[160] and often exceeds 40 km/h in the city. Canberra is also less humid than the nearby coastal areas.[136]
Canberra was severely affected by smoke haze during the 2019/2020 bushfires. On 1 January 2020, Canberra had the worst air quality of any major city in the world, with an AQI of 7700 (USAQI 949).[161]
Climate data for Canberra Airport Comparison (1991–2010 averages, extremes 1939–2023); 578 m AMSL; 35.30° S, 149.20° E
Canberra is a planned city and the inner-city area was originally designed by Walter Burley Griffin, a major 20th-century American architect.[165] Within the central area of the city near Lake Burley Griffin, major roads follow a wheel-and-spoke pattern rather than a grid.[166] Griffin's proposal had an abundance of geometric patterns, including concentric hexagonal and octagonal streets emanating from several radii.[166] However, the outer areas of the city, built later, are not laid out geometrically.[167]
Lake Burley Griffin was deliberately designed so that the orientation of the components was related to various topographical landmarks in Canberra.[168][169] The lakes stretch from east to west and divided the city in two; a land axis perpendicular to the central basin stretches from Capital Hill—the eventual location of the new Parliament House on a mound on the southern side—north northeast across the central basin to the northern banks along Anzac Parade to the Australian War Memorial.[105] This was designed so that looking from Capital Hill, the War Memorial stood directly at the foot of Mount Ainslie. At the southwestern end of the land axis was Bimberi Peak,[169] the highest mountain in the ACT, approximately 52 km (32 mi) south west of Canberra.[143]
The straight edge of the circular segment that formed the central basin of Lake Burley Griffin was perpendicular to the land axis and designated the water axis, and it extended northwest towards Black Mountain.[169] A line parallel to the water axis, on the northern side of the city, was designated the municipal axis.[170] The municipal axis became the location of Constitution Avenue, which links City Hill in Civic Centre and both Market Centre and the Defence precinct on Russell Hill. Commonwealth Avenue and Kings Avenue were to run from the southern side from Capital Hill to City Hill and Market Centre on the north respectively, and they formed the western and eastern edges of the central basin. The area enclosed by the three avenues was known as the Parliamentary Triangle, and formed the centrepiece of Griffin's work.[169][170]
The Griffins assigned spiritual values to Mount Ainslie, Black Mountain, and Red Hill and originally planned to cover each of these in flowers. That way each hill would be covered with a single, primary colour which represented its spiritual value.[171] This part of their plan never came to fruition, as World War I slowed construction and planning disputes led to Griffin's dismissal by Prime Minister Billy Hughes after the war ended.[87][88][172]
The urban areas of Canberra are organised into a hierarchy of districts, town centres, group centres, local suburbs as well as other industrial areas and villages. There are seven residential districts, each of which is divided into smaller suburbs, and most of which have a town centre which is the focus of commercial and social activities.[173] The districts were settled in the following chronological order:
Canberra Central, mostly settled in the 1920s and 1930s, with expansion up to the 1960s,[174] 25 suburbs
Gungahlin, settled in the early 1990s, 18 suburbs (3 not yet developed)
Molonglo Valley, development began in 2010, 13 suburbs planned.
The Canberra Central district is substantially based on Walter Burley Griffin's designs.[169][170][177] In 1967 the then National Capital Development Commission adopted the "Y Plan" which laid out future urban development in Canberra around a series of central shopping and commercial area known as the 'town centres' linked by freeways, the layout of which roughly resembled the shape of the letter Y,[178] with Tuggeranong at the base of the Y and Belconnen and Gungahlin located at the ends of the arms of the Y.[178]
Development in Canberra has been closely regulated by government,[179][180] both through planning processes and the use of crown lease terms that have tightly limited the use of parcels of land. Land in the ACT is held on 99-year crown leases from the national government, although most leases are now administered by the Territory government.[181] There have been persistent calls for constraints on development to be liberalised,[180] but also voices in support of planning consistent with the original 'bush capital' and 'urban forest' ideals that underpin Canberra's design.[182]
Many of Canberra's suburbs are named after former Prime Ministers, famous Australians, early settlers, or use Aboriginal words for their title.[183]Street names typically follow a particular theme; for example, the streets of Duffy are named after Australian dams and reservoirs, the streets of Dunlop are named after Australian inventions, inventors and artists and the streets of Page are named after biologists and naturalists.[183] Most diplomatic missions are located in the suburbs of Yarralumla, Deakin, and O'Malley.[184] There are three light industrial areas: the suburbs of Fyshwick, Mitchell, and Hume.[185]
Panorama of Canberra and Lake Burley Griffin set against the backdrop of distant New South Wales, taken from the Telstra Tower
Floriade is held in Commonwealth Park every spring. It is the largest flower festival in the Southern Hemisphere, employing and encouraging environmental practises, including the use of green energy.[186]
The average Canberran was responsible for 13.7 tonnes of greenhouse gases in 2005.[187] In 2012, the ACT Government legislated greenhouse gas targets to reduce its emissions by 40 per cent from 1990 levels by 2020, 80 per cent by 2050, with no net emissions by 2060.[188] The government announced in 2013 a target for 90% of electricity consumed in the ACT to be supplied from renewable sources by 2020,[189] and in 2016 set an ambitious target of 100% by 2020.[190][191]
In 1996, Canberra became the first city in the world to set a vision of no waste, proposing an ambitious target of 2010 for completion.[192] The strategy aimed to achieve a waste-free society by 2010, through the combined efforts of industry, government and community.[193] By early 2010, it was apparent that though it had reduced waste going to landfill, the ACT initiative's original 2010 target for absolutely zero landfill waste would be delayed or revised to meet the reality.[194][195]
Plastic bags made of polyethylene polymer with a thickness of less than 35 μm were banned from retail distribution in the ACT from November 2011.[196][197][198] The ban was introduced by the ACT Government in an effort to make Canberra more sustainable.[197]
Of all waste produced in the ACT, 75 per cent is recycled.[199] Average household food waste in the ACT remains above the Australian average, costing an average $641 per household per annum.[200]
Canberra's annual Floriade festival features a large display of flowers every Spring in Commonwealth Park. The organisers of the event have a strong environmental standpoint, promoting and using green energy, "green catering", sustainable paper, the conservation and saving of water.[186] The event is also smoke-free.[186]
ACT Legislative Assembly
and the statue Ethos (Tom Bass, 1961)
There is no local council or city government for the city of Canberra. The Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly performs the roles of both a city council for the city and a territory government for the rest of the Australian Capital Territory.[126] However, the vast majority of the population of the Territory reside in Canberra and the city is therefore the primary focus of the ACT Government.
The assembly consists of 25 members elected from five districts using proportional representation. The five districts are Brindabella, Ginninderra, Kurrajong, Murrumbidgee and Yerrabi, which each elect five members.[201] The Chief Minister is elected by the Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) and selects colleagues to serve as ministers alongside him or her in the Executive, known informally as the cabinet.[126]
Whereas the ACT has federally been dominated by Labor,[202][203] the Liberals have been able to gain some footing in the ACT Legislative Assembly and were in government during a period of
6+1⁄2 years from 1995 and 2001. Labor took back control of the Assembly in 2001.[127] At the 2004 election, Chief Minister Jon Stanhope and the Labor Party won 9 of the 17 seats allowing them to form the ACT's first majority government.[127] Since 2008, the ACT has been governed by a coalition of Labor and the Greens.[127][204][205] As of 2022[update], the Chief Minister was Andrew Barr from the Australian Labor Party.
The Australian federal government retains some influence over the ACT government. In the administrative sphere, most frequently this is through the actions of the National Capital Authority which is responsible for planning and development in areas of Canberra which are considered to be of national importance or which are central to Griffin's plan for the city,[206] such as the Parliamentary Triangle, Lake Burley Griffin, major approach and processional roads, areas where the Commonwealth retains ownership of the land or undeveloped hills and ridge-lines (which form part of the Canberra Nature Park).[206][207][208] The national government also retains a level of control over the Territory Assembly through the provisions of the Australian Capital Territory (Self-Government) Act 1988.[209] This federal act defines the legislative power of the ACT assembly.[210]
The ACT was given its first federal parliamentary representation in 1949 when it gained a seat in the House of Representatives, the Division of Australian Capital Territory.[211][212] However, until 1966, the ACT member could only vote on matters directly affecting the territory and did not count for purposes of forming government.[212] In 1974, the ACT was allocated two Senate seats and the House of Representatives seat was divided into two.[211] A third was created in 1996, but was abolished in 1998 because of changes to the regional demographic distribution.[202] At the 2019 election, the third seat has been reintroduced as the Division of Bean.
The House of Representatives seats have mostly been held by Labor and usually by comfortable margins.[202][203] The Labor Party has polled at least seven percentage points more than the Liberal Party at every federal election since 1990 and their average lead since then has been 15 percentage points.[127] The ALP and the Liberal Party held one Senate seat each until the 2022 election when Independent candidate David Pocock unseated the Liberal candidate Zed Seselja.[213]
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) provides all of the constabulary services in the territory in a manner similar to state police forces, under a contractual agreement with the ACT Government.[214] The AFP does so through its community policing arm ACT Policing.[215]
Canberra has the lowest rate of crime of any capital city in Australia as of 2019[update].[221] As of 2016[update], the most common crimes in the ACT were property related crimes, unlawful entry with intent and motor vehicle theft. They affected 2,304 and 966 people (580 and 243 per 100,000 persons respectively). Homicide and related offences—murder, attempted murder and manslaughter, but excluding driving causing death and conspiracy to murder—affect 1.0 per 100,000 persons, which is below the national average of 1.9 per 100,000. Rates of sexual assault (64.4 per 100,000 persons) are also below the national average (98.5 per 100,000).[222][223][224] However the 2017 crime statistics showed a rise in some types of personal crime, notably burglaries, thefts and assaults.
Just under a third of Canberrans are employed in the public sector, working in government departments such as the ACT Government
In February 2020, the unemployment rate in Canberra was 2.9% which was lower than the national unemployment rate of 5.1%.[225] As a result of low unemployment and substantial levels of public sector and commercial employment, Canberra has the highest average level of disposable income of any Australian capital city.[226] The gross average weekly wage in Canberra is $1827 compared with the national average of $1658 (November 2019).[227]
The median house price in Canberra as of February 2020 was $745,000, lower than only Sydney among capital cities of more than 100,000 people, having surpassed Melbourne and Perth since 2005.[227][228][229] The median weekly rent paid by Canberra residents is higher than rents in all other states and territories.[230] As of January 2014 the median unit rent in Canberra was $410 per week and median housing rent was $460, making the city the third most expensive in the country.[231] Factors contributing to this higher weekly rental market include; higher average weekly incomes, restricted land supply,[232] and inflationary clauses in the ACT Residential Tenancies Act.[233]
Bunda Street in Canberra's shopping district; tourism, retail and hospitality are also major employers.
The city's main industry is public administration and safety, which accounted for 27.1% of Gross Territory Product in 2018-19 and employed 32.49% of Canberra's workforce.[234][22] The headquarters of many Australian Public Service agencies are located in Canberra, and Canberra is also host to several Australian Defence Force establishments, most notably the Australian Defence Force headquarters and HMAS Harman, which is a naval communications centre that is being converted into a tri-service, multi-user depot.[235] Other major sectors by employment include Health Care (10.54%), Professional Services (9.77%), Education and Training (9.64%), Retail (7.27%), Accommodation & Food (6.39%) and Construction (5.80%).
The former RAAF Fairbairn, adjacent to the Canberra Airport was sold to the operators of the airport,[236] but the base continues to be used for RAAF VIP flights.[237][238] A growing number of software vendors have based themselves in Canberra, to capitalise on the concentration of government customers; these include Tower Software and RuleBurst.[239][240] A consortium of private and government investors is making plans for a billion-dollar data hub, with the aim of making Canberra a leading centre of such activity in the Asia-Pacific region.[241] A Canberra Cyber Security Innovation Node was established in 2019 to grow the ACT's cyber security sector and related space, defence and education industries.[242]
High-density residential apartments in Belconnen; Canberra has one of the fastest growing populations in the nation[243]
At the 2021 census, the population of Canberra was 453,558,[243] up from 395,790 at the 2016 census,[244] and 355,596 at the 2011 census.[245] Canberra has been the fastest-growing city in Australia in recent years, having grown 23.3% from 2011 to 2021.[243]
Canberrans are relatively young, highly mobile and well educated. The median age is 35 years and only 12.7% of the population is aged over 65 years.[244] Between 1996 and 2001, 61.9% of the population either moved to or from Canberra, which was the second highest mobility rate of any Australian capital city.[246] A 2024 report from the Australian Bureau of Statistics indicates that 49% of ACT residents aged 15–74 held a bachelor's degree or higher, the highest proportion among all Australian states and territories.[247]
According to statistics collected by the National Australia Bank and reported in The Canberra Times, Canberrans on average give significantly more money to charity than Australians in other states and territories, for both dollar giving and as a proportion of income.[248]
The 2021 census showed that 28.7% of Canberra's inhabitants were born overseas.[23] Of inhabitants born outside Australia, the most prevalent countries of birth were India, England, China and Nepal.[250]
At the 2021 census, 71.3% of people spoke only English at home, down from 72.7% in 2016. The other languages most commonly spoken at home were Mandarin (3.2%), Nepali (1.3%), Vietnamese (1.1%), Punjabi (1.1%) and Hindi (1.0%).[23]
In 2021, the main religious affiliation in the ACT was Christianity (38.1%). This proportion has decreased over time as people reporting non-Christian religions and no religious affiliation have increased. The most common religions were Hinduism (4.5%), Islam (3.2%) and Buddhism (2.8%). 44.2% described themselves as having no religion.[244]
ANU School of Art (formerly the Canberra High School)
The two main tertiary institutions are the Australian National University (ANU) in Acton and the University of Canberra (UC) in Bruce, with over 10,500 and 8,000 full-time-equivalent students respectively.[251][252] Established in 1946,[253] the ANU has always had a strong research focus and is ranked among the leading universities in the world and the best in Australia by The Times Higher Education Supplement and the Shanghai Jiao Tong World University Rankings.[252][254] There are two religious university campuses in Canberra: Signadou in the northern suburb of Watson is a campus of the Australian Catholic University;[255] St Mark's Theological College in Barton is part of the secular Charles Sturt University.[256] The ACT Government announced on 5 March 2020 that the CIT campus and an adjoining carpark in Reid would be leased to the University of New South Wales (UNSW) for a peppercorn lease, for it to develop as a campus for a new UNSW Canberra.[257] UNSW released a master plan in 2021 for a 6,000 student campus to be realised over 15 years at a cost of $1 billion.[258]
Tertiary level vocational education is also available through the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT), with campuses in Bruce, Reid, Gungahlin, Tuggeranong and Fyshwick.[264] The combined enrolment of the CIT campuses was over 28,000 students in 2019.[265] Following the transfer of land in Reid for the new UNSW Canberra, a new CIT Woden is scheduled to be completed by 2025.[266]
In 2016 there were 132 schools in Canberra; 87 were operated by the government and 45 were private.[267] During 2006, the ACT Government announced closures of up to 39 schools, to take effect from the end of the school year, and after a series of consultations unveiled its Towards 2020: Renewing Our Schools policy.[268] As a result, some schools closed during the 2006–08 period, while others were merged; the creation of combined primary and secondary government schools was to proceed over a decade. The closure of schools provoked significant opposition.[269][270][271] Most suburbs were planned to include a primary and a nearby preschool; these were usually located near open areas where recreational and sporting activities were easily available.[272] Canberra also has the highest percentage of non-government (private) school students in Australia, accounting for 40.6 per cent of ACT enrollments.[273]
The National Museum of Australia established in 2001 records Australia's social history and is one of Canberra's more architecturally daring buildings.
The Canberra Museum and Gallery in the city is a repository of local history and art, housing a permanent collection and visiting exhibitions.[280] Several historic homes are open to the public: Lanyon and Tuggeranong Homesteads in the Tuggeranong Valley,[281][282] Mugga-Mugga in Symonston,[283] and Blundells' Cottage in Parkes all display the lifestyle of the early European settlers.[41]Calthorpes' House in Red Hill is a well-preserved example of a 1920s house from Canberra's very early days.[284]Strathnairn Homestead is an historic building which also dates from the 1920s.
Canberra has many venues for live music and theatre: the Canberra Theatre and Playhouse which hosts many major concerts and productions;[285] and Llewellyn Hall (within the ANU School of Music), a world-class concert hall are two of the most notable.[286] The Street Theatre is a venue with less mainstream offerings.[286]The Albert Hall was the city's first performing arts venue, opened in 1928. It was the original performance venue for theatre groups such as the Canberra Repertory Society.[287]
The annual Skyfire fireworks display over Lake Burley Griffin, held during the Enlighten Festival
Stonefest was a large annual festival, for some years one of the biggest festivals in Canberra.[288][289] It was downsized and rebranded as Stone Day in 2012.[290] There are numerous bars and nightclubs which also offer live entertainment, particularly concentrated in the areas of Dickson, Kingston and the city.[291] Most town centres have facilities for a community theatre and a cinema, and they all have a library.[292] Popular cultural events include the National Folk Festival, the Royal Canberra Show, the Summernats car festival, Enlighten festival, the National Multicultural Festival in February and the Celebrate Canberra festival held over 10 days in March in conjunction with Canberra Day.[293]
Toku in the Canberra-Nara Peace Park, which is located in the Lennox Gardens
Canberra maintains sister-city relationships with both Nara, Japan and Beijing, China. Canberra has friendship-city relationships with both Dili, East Timor and Hangzhou, China.[294] City-to-city relationships encourage communities and special interest groups both locally and abroad to engage in a wide range of exchange activities. The Canberra Nara Candle Festival held annually in spring, is a community celebration of the Canberra Nara Sister City relationship.[295] The festival is held in Canberra Nara Park on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin.[296]
The history of Canberra was told in the 1938 radio feature Canberra the Great.
As Australia's capital, Canberra is the most important centre for much of Australia's political reportage and thus all the major media, including the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, the commercial television networks, and the metropolitan newspapers maintain local bureaus. News organisations are represented in the press gallery, a group of journalists who report on the national parliament. The National Press Club of Australia in Barton has regular television broadcasts of its lunches at which a prominent guest, typically a politician or other public figure, delivers a speech followed by a question-and-answer session.[297]
Canberra has a daily newspaper, The Canberra Times, which was established in 1926.[298][299] There are also several free weekly publications, including news magazines CityNews and Canberra Weekly as well as entertainment guide BMA Magazine. BMA Magazine first went to print in 1992; the inaugural edition featured coverage of the NirvanaNevermind tour.[300]
There are a number of AM and FM stations broadcasting in Canberra (AM/FM Listing). The main commercial operators are the Capital Radio Network (2CA and 2CC), and Austereo/ARN (104.7 and Mix 106.3). There are also several community operated stations.
A DAB+ digital radio trial is also in operation, it simulcasts some of the AM/FM stations, and also provides several digital only stations (DAB+ Trial Listing).
Five free-to-air television stations service Canberra:
Each station broadcasts a primary channel and several multichannels. Of the three main commercial networks:
WIN airs a half-hour local WIN News each weeknight at 6pm, produced from a newsroom in the city and broadcast from studios in Wollongong.
Network 10 airs short local news updates throughout the day, produced and broadcast from its Hobart studios. It previously aired a regional edition of Nine News from Sydney each weeknight at 6pm, featuring opt-outs for Canberra and the ACT when it was a Nine affiliate.
Seven airs short local news and weather updates throughout the day, produced and broadcast from its Canberra studios.
Prior to 1989, Canberra was serviced by just the ABC, SBS and Capital Television (CTC), which later became Ten Capital in 1994 then Southern Cross Ten in 2002 then Channel 9/Southern Cross Nine in 2016 and finally Channel 10 in 2021, with Prime Television (now Prime7) and WIN Television arriving as part of the Government's regional aggregation program in that year.[301]
The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) is located in the Canberra suburb of Bruce.[314] The AIS is a specialised educational and training institution providing coaching for elite junior and senior athletes in a number of sports. The AIS has been operating since 1981 and has achieved significant success in producing elite athletes, both local and international.[314] The majority of Australia's team members and medallists at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney were AIS graduates.[315]
Canberra has numerous sporting ovals, golf courses, skate parks, and swimming pools that are open to the public. Tennis courts include those at the National Sports Club, Lyneham, former home of the Canberra Women's Tennis Classic. A Canberra-wide series of bicycle paths are available to cyclists for recreational and sporting purposes. Canberra Nature Parks have a large range of walking paths, horse and mountain bike trails. Water sports like sailing, rowing, dragon boating and water skiing are held on Canberra's lakes.[316][317] The Rally of Canberra is an annual motor sport event, and from 2000 to 2002, Canberra hosted the Canberra 400 event for V8 Supercars on the temporary Canberra Street Circuit, which was located inside the Parliamentary Triangle.
A popular form of exercise for people working near or in the Parliamentary Triangle is to do the "bridge to bridge walk/run" of about 5 km around Lake Burley Griffin, crossing the Commonwealth Avenue Bridge and Kings Avenue Bridge, using the paths beside the lake. The walk takes about 1 hour, making it ideal for a lunchtime excursion. This is also popular on weekends. Such was the popularity during the COVID-19isolation in 2020 that the ACT Government initiated a 'Clockwise is COVID-wise' rule for walkers and runners.[318]
Canberra has two large public hospitals, the approximately 600-bed Canberra Hospital—formerly the Woden Valley Hospital—in Garran and the 174-bed Calvary Public Hospital in Bruce. Both are teaching institutions.[319][320][321][322] The largest private hospital is the Calvary John James Hospital in Deakin.[323][324] Calvary Private Hospital in Bruce and Healthscope's National Capital Private Hospital in Garran are also major healthcare providers.[319][321]
The automobile is by far the dominant form of transport in Canberra.[330] The city is laid out so that arterial roads connecting inhabited clusters run through undeveloped areas of open land or forest, which results in a low population density;[331] this also means that idle land is available for the development of future transport corridors if necessary without the need to build tunnels or acquire developed residential land. In contrast, other capital cities in Australia have substantially less green space.[332]
Canberra's districts are generally connected by parkways—limited access dual carriageway roads[330][333] with speed limits generally set at a maximum of 100 km/h (62 mph).[334][335] An example is the Tuggeranong Parkway which links Canberra's CBD and Tuggeranong, and bypasses Weston Creek.[336] In most districts, discrete residential suburbs are bounded by main arterial roads with only a few residential linking in, to deter non-local traffic from cutting through areas of housing.[337]
In an effort to improve road safety, traffic cameras were first introduced to Canberra by the Kate Carnell Government in 1999.[338] The traffic cameras installed in Canberra include fixed red-light and speed cameras and point-to-point speed cameras; together they bring in revenue of approximately $11 million per year in fines.[338]
ACTION, the government-operated bus service, provides public transport throughout the city.[339]CDC Canberra provides bus services between Canberra and nearby areas of New South Wales of (Murrumbateman and Yass)[340] and as Qcity Transit (Queanbeyan).[341] A light rail line commenced service on 20 April 2019 linking the CBD with the northern district of Gungahlin.[342] A planned Stage 2A of Canberra's light rail network will run from Alinga Street station to Commonwealth Park, adding three new stops at City West, City South and Commonwealth Park.[343] In February 2021 ACT Minister for Transport and City Services Chris Steel said he expects construction on Stage 2A to commence in the 2021-22 financial year, and for "tracks to be laid" by the next Territory election in 2024.[344] At the 2016 census, 7.1% of the journeys to work involved public transport, while 4.5% walked to work.[244]
There are two local taxi companies. Aerial Capital Group enjoyed monopoly status until the arrival of Cabxpress in 2007.[345] In October 2015 the ACT Government passed legislation to regulate ride sharing, allowing ride share services including Uber to operate legally in Canberra.[346][347][348] The ACT Government was the first jurisdiction in Australia to enact legislation to regulate the service.[349] Since then many other ride sharing and taxi services have started in ACT namely Ola, Glide Taxi[350] and GoCatch[351]
An interstate NSW TrainLink railway service connects Canberra to Sydney.[352]Canberra railway station is in the inner south suburb of Kingston.[353] Between 1920 and 1922 the train line crossed the Molonglo River and ran as far north as the city centre, although the line was closed following major flooding and was never rebuilt, while plans for a line to Yass were abandoned. A 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) gauge construction railway was built in 1923 between the Yarralumla brickworks and the provisional Parliament House; it was later extended to Civic, but the whole line was closed in May 1927.[354] Train services to Melbourne are provided by way of a NSW TrainLink bus service which connects with a rail service between Sydney and Melbourne in Yass, about a one-hour drive from Canberra.[352][355]
Plans to establish a high-speed rail service between Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney,[356] have not been implemented, as the various proposals have been deemed economically unviable.[357][358] The original plans for Canberra included proposals for railed transport within the city,[359] however none eventuated.[359] The phase 2 report of the most recent proposal, the High Speed Rail Study, was published by the Department of Infrastructure and Transport on 11 April 2013.[360] A railway connecting Canberra to Jervis Bay was also planned but never constructed.[361]
Canberra has one of the highest rates of active travel of all Australian major cities, with 7.1 per cent of commuters walking or cycling to work in 2011.[367] An ACT Government survey conducted in late 2010 found that Canberrans walk an average of 26 minutes each day.[368] According to The Canberra Times in March 2014, Canberra's cyclists are involved in an average of four reported collisions every week.[369] The newspaper also reported that Canberra is home to 87,000 cyclists, translating to the highest cycling participation rate in Australia; and, with higher popularity, bike injury rates in 2012 were twice the national average.[370]
Since late 2020, two scooter-sharing systems have been operational in Canberra: orange scooters from Neuron Mobility and purple scooters from Beam Mobility,[371] both Singapore-based companies that operate in many Australian cities. These services cover much of Canberra Central and Central Belconnen, with plans to expand coverage to more areas of the city in 2022.[372]
The government-owned Icon Water manages Canberra's water and sewerage infrastructure.[374]ActewAGL is a joint venture between ACTEW and AGL, and is the retail provider of Canberra's utility services including water, natural gas, electricity, and also some telecommunications services via a subsidiary TransACT.[375]
Canberra's water is stored in four reservoirs, the Corin, Bendora and Cotter dams on the Cotter River and the Googong Dam on the Queanbeyan River. Although the Googong Dam is located in New South Wales, it is managed by the ACT government.[376] Icon Water owns Canberra's two wastewater treatment plants, located at Fyshwick and on the lower reaches of the Molonglo River.[377][378]
Electricity for Canberra mainly comes from the national power grid through substations at Holt and Fyshwick (via Queanbeyan).[379] Power was first supplied from the Kingston Powerhouse near the Molonglo River, a thermal plant built in 1913, but this was finally closed in 1957.[380][381] The ACT has four solar farms, which were opened between 2014 and 2017: Royalla (rated output of 20 megawatts, 2014),[382]Mount Majura (2.3 MW, 2016),[373]Mugga Lane (13 MW, 2017)[383] and Williamsdale (11 MW, 2017).[384] In addition, numerous houses in Canberra have photovoltaic panels or solar hot water systems. In 2015 and 2016, rooftop solar systems supported by the ACT government's feed-in tariff had a capacity of 26.3 megawatts, producing 34,910 MWh. In the same year, retailer-supported schemes had a capacity of 25.2 megawatts and exported 28,815 MWh to the grid (power consumed locally was not recorded).[385]
There are no wind-power generators in Canberra, but several have been built or are being built or planned in nearby New South Wales, such as the 140.7 megawatt Capital Wind Farm. The ACT government announced in 2013 that it was raising the target for electricity consumed in the ACT to be supplied from renewable sources to 90% by 2020,[189] raising the target from 210 to 550 megawatts.[386] It announced in February 2015 that three wind farms in Victoria and South Australia would supply 200 megawatts of capacity; these are expected to be operational by 2017.[387] Contracts for the purchase of an additional 200 megawatts of power from two wind farms in South Australia and New South Wales were announced in December 2015 and March 2016.[388][389] The ACT government announced in 2014 that up to 23 megawatts of feed-in-tariff entitlements would be made available for the establishment of a facility in the ACT or surrounding region for burning household and business waste to produce electricity by 2020.[390]
The ACT has the highest rate with internet access at home (94 per cent of households in 2014–15).[391]
In addition, Canberra has the following friendship cities:
Hangzhou, China: The ACT Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Hangzhou Municipal People's Government on 29 October 1998. The Agreement was designed to promote business opportunities and cultural exchanges between the two cities.[393]
Dili, East Timor: The Canberra Dili Friendship Agreement was signed in 2004, aiming to build friendship and mutual respect and promote educational, cultural, economic, humanitarian and sporting links between Canberra and Dili.[394]
^In accordance with the Australian Bureau of Statistics source, England, Scotland, Mainland China and the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau are listed separately
^As a percentage of 373,561 persons who nominated their ancestry at the 2016 census.
^The Australian Bureau of Statistics has stated that most who nominate "Australian" as their ancestry are part of the Anglo-Celtic group.[249]
^Of any ancestry. Includes those identifying as Aboriginal Australians or Torres Strait Islanders. Indigenous identification is separate to the ancestry question on the Australian Census and persons identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander may identify any ancestry.
^Of any ancestry. Includes those identifying as Aboriginal Australians or Torres Strait Islanders. Indigenous identification is separate to the ancestry question on the Australian Census and persons identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander may identify any ancestry.
^Augmented Electoral Commission for the Australian Capital Territory (July 2018). "Redistribution of the Australian Capital Territory into electoral divisions"(PDF). Archived(PDF) from the original on 16 September 2018. Retrieved 16 September 2018. The electoral divisions described in this report came into effect from Friday 13 July 2018 ... However, members of the House of Representatives will not represent or contest these electoral divisions until ... a general election.
^"Canberra map". Britannica. 2013. Archived from the original on 28 February 2020. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
^ abFlood, J. M.; David, B.; Magee, J.; English, B. (1987), "Birrigai: a Pleistocene site in the south eastern highlands", Archaeology in Oceania, 22: 9–22, doi:10.1002/j.1834-4453.1987.tb00159.x
^ abDavison, Graeme; Hirst, John; Macintyre, Stuart, eds. (1998). The Oxford Companion to Australian History. Oxford University Press. pp. 464–465, 662–663. ISBN9780195535976.
^ abcSelkirk, Henry (1923). "The Origins of Canberra". The Journal of the Royal Australian Historical Society. 9: 49–78. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
^Cambage, Richard Hind (1919). "Part X, The Federal Capital Territory". Notes on the Native Flora of New South Wales. Linnean Society of New South Wales. Archived from the original on 1 March 2014. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
^Koch, Harold (2009). "The methodology of reconstructing Indigenous placenames: Australian Capital Territory and south-eastern New South Wales". In Koch, Harold; Hercus, Luise (eds.). Aboriginal Placenames: Naming and Renaming the Australian Landscape(PDF). ANU E Press. pp. 155–56.
^Frei, Patricia. "Discussion on the Meaning of 'Canberra'". Canberra History Web. Patricia Frei. Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
^Hull, Crispin (6 February 2009). "European settlement and the naming of Canberra". Canberra – Australia's National Capital. Crispin Hull. Archived from the original on 26 April 2010. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
^"CANBERRA BLACKS". Sydney Morning Herald. No. 27, 886. New South Wales, Australia. 21 May 1927. p. 11. Retrieved 24 May 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
^"LETTERS". Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 31 January 1934. p. 6. Archived from the original on 28 July 2013. Retrieved 8 October 2012.
^Wilson, Randall (2012). Sanctuary in the city: the Anglican Church of St John the Baptist Canberra. The Anglican Church of St John the Baptist, Canberra. ISBN9780646574455.
^"Discover our territory". Canberra History. Canberra & District Historical Society. Archived from the original on 12 September 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
^Minty, A. E. (1973). "Lake Burley Griffin, Australia". In Ackermann, William C.; White, Gilbert F.; Worthington, E. B. (eds.). Man-Made Lakes: Their Problems and Environmental Effects. American Geophysical Union. p. 804.
^Laverty, Jo (21 May 2009). "The Belconnen Remand Centre". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 29 April 2013. Retrieved 23 April 2010.
^All of the land in the ACT land is held by the government.
^s68 allows for an annual increase linked to a Rental Housing CPI index, which is usually significantly higher than CPI. For 2008 this deems an increase up to 10.12% as not excessive on the face of it.
^"CMTED Brief". ACT Government. Archived from the original on 12 March 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
^Atkinson, Ann; Knight, Linsay; McPhee, Margaret (1996). The Dictionary of Performing Arts in Australia: Opera, Dance, Music. Allen & Unwin. pp. 46–47. ISBN1-86448-005-X.
^ abDaly, Margo (2003). Rough Guide to Australia. Rough Guides. p. 67. ISBN1-84353-090-2.
^Fallon, Naomi; Scanlon, Joni (11 October 2012). "Stone rolls on". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 5 November 2015.
^"Canberra Nara Park". ACT Government Territory and Municipal Services. 9 October 1999. Archived from the original on 17 September 2013. Retrieved 17 September 2013.
^"Speaker archive". National Press Club of Australia. Archived from the original on 19 April 2010. Retrieved 13 May 2010.
^"BMA comes of age". 666 ABC Canberra. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 24 March 2013. Archived from the original on 7 October 2013. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
^"Lake Burley Griffin reopens". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 16 November 2007. Archived from the original on 18 February 2011. Retrieved 26 July 2010.
Furniture refers to objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., stools, chairs, and sofas), eating (tables), storing items, working, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks). Furniture is also used to hold objects at a convenient height for work (as horizontal surfaces above the ground, such as tables and desks), or to store things (e.g., cupboards, shelves, and drawers). Furniture can be a product of design and can be considered a form of decorative art. In addition to furniture's functional role, it can serve a symbolic or religious purpose. It can be made from a vast multitude of materials, including metal, plastic, and wood. Furniture can be made using a variety of woodworking joints which often reflects the local culture.
People have been using natural objects, such as tree stumps, rocks and moss, as furniture since the beginning of human civilization and continues today in some households/campsites. Archaeological research shows that from around 30,000 years ago, people started to construct and carve their own furniture, using wood, stone, and animal bones. Early furniture from this period is known from artwork such as a Venus figurine found in Russia, depicting the goddess on a throne. The first surviving extant furniture is in the homes of Skara Brae in Scotland, and includes cupboards, dressers and beds all constructed from stone. Complex construction techniques such as joinery began in the early dynastic period of ancient Egypt. This era saw constructed wooden pieces, including stools and tables, sometimes decorated with valuable metals or ivory. The evolution of furniture design continued in ancient Greece and ancient Rome, with thrones being commonplace as well as the klinai, multipurpose couches used for relaxing, eating, and sleeping. The furniture of the Middle Ages was usually heavy, oak, and ornamented. Furniture design expanded during the Italian Renaissance of the fourteenth and fifteenth century. The seventeenth century, in both Southern and Northern Europe, was characterized by opulent, often gilded Baroque designs. The nineteenth century is usually defined by revival styles. The first three-quarters of the twentieth century are often seen as the march towards Modernism. One unique outgrowth of post-modern furniture design is a return to natural shapes and textures.[1]
The English word furniture is derived from the French word fourniture,[2] the noun form of fournir, which means to supply or provide.[3] Thus fourniture in French means supplies or provisions.[4] The English usage, referring specifically to household objects, is specific to that language;[5] French and other Romance languages as well as German use variants of the word meubles, which derives from Latinmobilia, meaning "moveable goods".[6]
The practice of using natural objects as rudimentary pieces of furniture likely dates to the beginning of human civilization.[7] Early humans are likely to have used tree stumps as seats, rocks as rudimentary tables, and mossy areas for sleeping.[7] During the late Paleolithic or early Neolithic period, from around 30,000 years ago, people began constructing and carving their own furniture, using wood, stone and animal bones.[8] The earliest evidence for the existence of constructed furniture is a Venus figurine found at the Gagarino site in Russia, which depicts the goddess in a sitting position, on a throne.[9] A similar statue of a seated woman was found in Çatalhöyük in Turkey, dating to between 6000 and 5500 BCE.[7] The inclusion of such a seat in the figurines implies that these were already common artefacts of that age.[9]
A range of unique stone furniture has been excavated in Skara Brae, a Neolithic village in Orkney, Scotland The site dates from 3100 to 2500 BCE and due to a shortage of wood in Orkney, the people of Skara Brae were forced to build with stone, a readily available material that could be worked easily and turned into items for use within the household. Each house shows a high degree of sophistication and was equipped with an extensive assortment of stone furniture, ranging from cupboards, dressers, and beds to shelves, stone seats, and limpet tanks. The stone dresser was regarded as the most important as it symbolically faces the entrance in each house and is therefore the first item seen when entering, perhaps displaying symbolic objects, including decorative artwork such as several Neolithic carved stone balls also found at the site.
The Seated Woman of Çatalhöyük, a figurine discovered in Turkey and dated to approximately 6000 BC, is evidence that furniture already existed by that point.
A dresser with shelves furnishes a house in Skara Brae, a settlement in what is now Scotland that was occupied from about 3180–2500 BC
Ancient furniture has been excavated from the 8th-century BCE Phrygiantumulus, the Midas Mound, in Gordion, Turkey. Pieces found here include tables and inlaid serving stands. There are also surviving works from the 9th–8th-century BCE Assyrian palace of Nimrud. The earliest surviving carpet, the Pazyryk Carpet was discovered in a frozen tomb in Siberia and has been dated between the 6th and 3rd century BCE.
Civilization in ancient Egypt began with the clearance and irrigation of land along the banks of the River Nile,[10] which began in about 6000 BCE. By that time, society in the Nile Valley was already engaged in organized agriculture and the construction of large buildings.[11] At this period, Egyptians in the southwestern corner of Egypt were herding cattle and also constructing large buildings. Mortar was in use by around 4000 BCE The inhabitants of the Nile Valley and delta were self-sufficient and were raising barley and emmer (an early variety of wheat) and stored it in pits lined with reed mats.[12] They raised cattle, goats and pigs and they wove linens and baskets.[12] Evidence of furniture from the predynastic period is scarce, but samples from First Dynasty tombs indicate an already advanced use of furnishings in the houses of the age.[13]
During the Dynastic Period, which began in around 3200 BCE, Egyptian art developed significantly, and this included furniture design.[14] Egyptian furniture was primarily constructed using wood, but other materials were sometimes used, such as leather,[15] and pieces were often adorned with gold, silver, ivory and ebony, for decoration.[15] Wood found in Egypt was not suitable for furniture construction, so it had to be imported into the country from other places,[14] particularly Phoenicia.[16] The scarcity of wood necessitated innovation in construction techniques. The use of scarf joints to join two shorter pieces together and form a longer beam was one example of this,[17] as well as construction of veneers in which low quality cheap wood was used as the main building material, with a thin layer of expensive wood on the surface.[18]
The earliest used seating furniture in the dynastic period was the stool, which was used throughout Egyptian society, from the royal family down to ordinary citizens.[19] Various different designs were used, including stools with four vertical legs, and others with crossed splayed legs; almost all had rectangular seats, however.[19] Examples include the workman's stool, a simple three legged structure with a concave seat, designed for comfort during labour,[20] and the much more ornate folding stool, with crossed folding legs,[21] which were decorated with carved duck heads and ivory,[21] and had hinges made of bronze.[19] Full chairs were much rarer in early Egypt, being limited to only wealthy and high ranking people, and seen as a status symbol; they did not reach ordinary households until the 18th dynasty.[22] Early examples were formed by adding a straight back to a stool, while later chairs had an inclined back.[22] Other furniture types in ancient Egypt include tables, which are heavily represented in art, but almost nonexistent as preserved items – perhaps because they were placed outside tombs rather than within,[23] as well as beds and storage chests.[24][25]
Stool with woven seat; 1991–1450 BC; wood & reed; height: 13 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Jewelry chest of Sithathoryunet; 1887–1813 BC; ebony, ivory, gold, carnelian, blue faience and silver; height: 36.7 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Chair of Hatnefer; 1492–1473 BC; boxwood, cypress, ebony & linen cord; height: 53 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Throne of Tutankhamun; 1336–1327 BC; wood covered with sheets of gold, silver, semi-precious and other stones, faience, glass and bronze; height: 1 m; Egyptian Museum (Cairo)
Three illustrations of ancient Greek chairs, each being notated with a letter: a, b-klismos, and c-chair
Historical knowledge of Greek furniture is derived from various sources, including literature, terracotta, sculptures, statuettes, and painted vases.[26] Some pieces survive to this day, primarily those constructed from metals, including bronze, or marble.[26] Wood was an important and common material in Greek furniture, both domestic and imported.[26] A common technique was to construct the main sections of the furniture with cheap solid wood, then apply a veneer using an expensive wood, such as maple or ebony.[26] Greek furniture construction also made use of dowels and tenons for joining the wooden parts of a piece together.[26] Wood was shaped by carving, steam treatment, and the lathe, and furniture is known to have been decorated with ivory, tortoise shell, glass, gold or other precious materials.[27]
The modern word "throne" is derived from the ancient Greek thronos (Greek singular: θρÏŒνος), which was a seat designated for deities or individuals of high status/hierarchy or honor.[28] The colossal chryselephantine statue of Zeus at Olympia, constructed by Phidias and lost in antiquity, featured the god Zeus seated on an elaborate throne, which was decorated with gold, precious stones, ebony and ivory, according to Pausanias.[29] Other Greek seats included the klismos, an elegant Greek chair with a curved backrest and legs whose form was copied by the Romans and is now part of the vocabulary of furniture design,[30] the backless stool (diphros), which existed in most Greek homes,[31] and folding stool.[32] The kline, used from the late seventh century BCE,[33] was a multipurpose piece used as a bed, but also as a sofa and for reclining during meals.[34] It was rectangular and supported on four legs, two of which could be longer than the other, providing support for an armrest or headboard.[35] Mattresses, rugs, and blankets may have been used, but there is no evidence for sheets.[34]
In general, Greek tables were low and often appear in depictions alongside klinai.[36] The most common type of Greek table had a rectangular top supported on three legs, although numerous configurations exist, including trapezoid and circular.[37] Tables in ancient Greece were used mostly for dining purposes – in depictions of banquets, it appears as though each participant would have used a single table, rather than a collective use of a larger piece.[38] Tables also figured prominently in religious contexts, as indicated in vase paintings, for example, the wine vessel associated with Dionysus, dating to around 450 BCE and now housed at the Art Institute of Chicago.[39]Chests were used for storage of clothes and personal items and were usually rectangular with hinged lids.[37] Chests depicted in terracotta show elaborate patterns and design, including the Greek fret.[34]
Foot in the form of a sphinx; circa 600 BC; bronze; overall: 27.6 x 20.3 x 16.5 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City)
Rod tripod stand; early 6th century BC; bronze; overall: 75.2 x 44.5 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Pelike which depicts a boy carrying furniture for a symposium (drinking party), in the Ashmolean Museum (Oxford, UK)
Roman furniture was based heavily on Greek furniture, in style and construction. Rome gradually superseded Greece as the foremost culture of Europe, leading eventually to Greece becoming a province of Rome in 146 BC. Rome thus took over production and distribution of Greek furniture, and the boundary between the two is blurred. The Romans did have some limited innovation outside of Greek influence, and styles distinctly their own.[40]
Roman furniture was constructed principally using wood, metal and stone, with marble and limestone used for outside furniture. Very little wooden furniture survives intact, but there is evidence that a variety of woods were used, including maple, citron, beech, oak, and holly. Some imported wood such as satinwood was used for decoration. The most commonly used metal was bronze, of which numerous examples have survived, for example, headrests for couches and metal stools. Similar to the Greeks, Romans used tenons, dowels, nails, and glue to join wooden pieces together, and also practised veneering.[40]
Couch and footstool with bone carvings and glass inlays; 1st–2nd century AD; wood, bone and glass; couch: 105.4 × 76.2 × 214.6 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City)
Unlike the ancient western civilizations of Egypt, Greece, and Rome, there is comparatively little evidence of furniture from the 5th to the 15th century.[41] Very few extant pieces survive, and evidence in literature is also scarce.[41] It is likely that the style of furniture prevalent in late antiquity persisted throughout the Middle Ages.[41] For example, a throne similar to that of Zeus is depicted in a sixth-century diptych,[41] while the Bayeux tapestry shows Edward the Confessor and Harold seated on seats similar to the Roman sella curulis.[42] The furniture of the Middle Ages was usually heavy, oak, and ornamented with carved designs.
The Hellenistic influence upon Byzantine furniture can be seen through the use of acanthus leaves, palmettes, bay and olive leaves as ornaments. Oriental influences manifest through rosettes, arabesques and the geometric stylisation of certain vegetal motifs. Christianity brings symbols in Byzantine ornamentation: the pigeon, fishes, the lamb and vines.[43] The furniture from Byzantine houses and palaces was usually luxurious, highly decorated and finely ornamented. Stone, marble, metal, wood and ivory are used. Surfaces and ornaments are gilded, painted plychrome, plated with sheets of gold, emailed in bright colors, and covered in precious stones. The variety of Byzantine furniture is pretty big: tables with square, rectangle or round top, sumptuous decorated, made of wood sometimes inlaid, with bronze, ivory or silver ornaments; chairs with high backs and with wool blankets or animal furs, with coloured pillows, and then banks and stools; wardrobes were used only for storing books; cloths and valuable objects were kept in chests, with iron locks; the form of beds imitated the Roman ones, but have different designs of legs.[44]
The main ornament of Gothic furniture and all applied arts is the ogive. The geometric rosette accompanies the ogive many times, having a big variety of forms. Architectural elements are used at furniture, at the beginning with purely decorative reasons, but later as structure elements. Besides the ogive, the main ornaments are: acanthus leaves, ivy, oak leaves, haulms, clovers, fleurs-de-lis, knights with shields, heads with crowns and characters from the Bible. Chests are the main type of Gothic furniture used by the majority of the population. Usually, the locks and escutcheon of chests have also an ornamental scope, being finely made.[45]
Gothic coffret (Minnekästchen); circa 1325–1350; oak, inlay, tempera, wrought-iron mounts; overall: 12.1 x 27.3 x 16.5 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City)
Gothic chest; late 15th century; wood; 30.2 x 29.2 x 39.4 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Gothic chest; late 15th century; walnut and iron; overall: 47 x 38.7 x 75.9 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Along with the other arts, the Italian Renaissance of the fourteenth and fifteenth century marked a rebirth in design, often inspired by the Greco-Roman tradition. A similar explosion of design, and renaissance of culture in general occurred in Northern Europe, starting in the fifteenth century.
The 17th century, in both Southern and Northern Europe, was characterized by opulent, often gilded Baroque designs that frequently incorporated a profusion of vegetal and scrolling ornament. Starting in the eighteenth century, furniture designs began to develop more rapidly. Although there were some styles that belonged primarily to one nation, such as Palladianism in Great Britain or Louis Quinze in French furniture, others, such as the Rococo and Neoclassicism were perpetuated throughout Western Europe.
During the 18th century, the fashion was set in England by the French art. In the beginning of the century Boulle cabinets were at the peak of their popularity and Louis XIV was reigning in France. In this era, most of the furniture had metal and enamelled decorations in it and some of the furniture was covered in inlays of marbles lapis lazuli, and porphyry and other stones. By mid-century this Baroque style was displaced by the graceful curves, shining ormolu, and intricate marquetry of the Rococo style, which in turn gave way around 1770 to the more severe lines of Neoclassicism, modeled after the architecture of ancient Greece and Rome.[52] Creating a mass market for furniture, the distinguished London cabinet maker Thomas Chippendale's The Gentleman and Cabinet Maker's Director (1754) is regarded as the "first comprehensive trade catalogue of its kind".[53]
There is something so distinct in the development of taste in French furniture, marked out by the three styles to which the three monarchs have given the name of "Louis Quatorze", "Louis Quinze", and "Louis Seize". This will be evident to anyone who will visit, first the Palace of Versailles, then the Grand Trianon, and afterwards the Petit Trianon.[54]
Baroque four-poster bed from the Château d'Effiat; c.1650; natural walnut, chiselled Genoa silk velvet and embroidered silks; 295 cm; Louvre[55]
Baroque pier table; 1685–1690; carved, gessoed, and gilded wood, with a marble top; 83.6 × 128.6 × 71.6 cm; Art Institute of Chicago (US)[56]
Baroque cupboard; by André Charles Boulle; c.1700; ebony and amaranth veneering, polychrome woods, brass, tin, shell, and horn marquetry on an oak frame, gilt-bronze; 255.5 x 157.5 cm; Louvre[57]
Baroque commode; by André Charles Boulle; c.1710-1732; walnut veneered with ebony and marquetry of engraved brass and tortoiseshell, gilt-bronze mounts, antique marble top; 87.6 x 128.3 x 62.9 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City)[58]
Baroque slant-front desk; by Heinrich Ludwig Rohde or Ferdinand Plitzner; c.1715–1725; marquetry with maple, amaranth, mahogany, and walnut on spruce and oak; 90 × 84 × 44.5 cm; Art Institute of Chicago[59]
Rococo console table; 18th century; carved and gilded wood, marble top; 63.2 × 60 × 25.4 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Rococo commode; by Charles Cressent; c.1745–1749; pine and oak veneered with amaranth and bois satiné, walnut, oak, pine; gilt-bronze, portoro marble top; 87.6 x 139.7 x 57.8 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Rococo side table (commode en console); by Bernard II van Risamburgh; c.1755-1760; Japanese lacquer, gilt-bronze and Sarrancolin marble top; height: 90.2 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Louis XVI style roll-top desk of Marie-Antoinette; by Jean-Henri Riesener; 1784; oak and pine frame, sycamore, amaranth and rosewood veneer, bronze gilt; 103.6 x 113.4 cm; Louvre[63]
Louis XVI style writing table of Marie-Antoinette; by Adam Weisweiler; 1784; oak, ebony and sycamore veneer, Japanese lacquer, steel, bronze gilt; 73.7 x 81. 2 cm; Louvre[63]
Louis XVI style folding stool (pliant); 1786; carved and painted beechwood, covered in pink silk; 46.4 × 68.6 × 51.4 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Louis XVI style armchair (fauteuil) from Louis XVI's Salon des Jeux at Saint Cloud; 1788; carved and gilded walnut, gold brocaded silk (not original); overall: 100 × 74.9 × 65.1 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Chevy Chase Sideboard by Gerrard Robinson. Often considered to be one of the finest furniture pieces of the 19th century and an icon of Victorian furniture.
The nineteenth century is usually defined by concurrent revival styles, including Gothic, Neoclassicism, and Rococo. The design reforms of the late century introduced the Aesthetic movement and the Arts and Crafts movement. Art Nouveau was influenced by both of these movements. Shaker-style furniture became popular during this time in North America as well.
Empire desk chair; c.1805–1808; mahogany, gilt bronze and satin-velvet upholstery; 87.6 × 59.7 × 64.8 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City)
Empire console table; 1804–1814; mahogany, gilded bronze, chiseled gilded bronze and fossil gray marble; 91.5 x 154 x 73.5 cm; Musée des Arts Décoratifs (Paris)[64]
This design was in many ways rooted in necessity and emphasizes both form and materials. Early British Colonial American[vague] chairs and tables are often constructed with turned spindles and chair backs often constructed with steaming to bend the wood. Wood choices tend to be deciduous hardwoods with a particular emphasis on the wood of edible or fruit bearing trees such as cherry or walnut.[69]
Industrialisation, Post-Modernism, and the Internet have allowed furniture design to become more accessible to a wider range of people than ever before. There are many modern styles of furniture design, each with roots in Classical, Modernist, and Post-Modern design and art movements. The growth of Maker Culture across the Western sphere of influence has encouraged higher participation and development of new, more accessible furniture design techniques. One unique outgrowth of this post-modern furniture design trajectory is live edge, which incorporates the natural surface of a tree as part of a furniture object, heralding a resurgence of these natural shapes and textures within the home.[1] Additionally, the use of epoxy resin has become more prevalent in DIY furniture styles.
Stainless Steel Table with FSC Teca Wood – Brazil Ecodesign
Great efforts from individuals, governments, and companies has led to the manufacturing of products with higher sustainability known as Ecodesign. This new line of furniture is based on environmentally friendly design. Its use and popularity are increasing each year.[70]
The use of uncarved wood and bamboo and the use of heavy lacquers are well known Chinese styles. It is worth noting that Chinese furniture varies dramatically from one dynasty to the next. Chinese ornamentation is highly inspired by paintings, with floral and plant life motifs including bamboo trees, chrysanthemums, waterlilies, irises, magnolias, flowers and branches of cherry, apple, apricot and plum, or elongated bamboo leaves; animal ornaments include lions, bulls, ducks, peacocks, parrots, pheasants, roosters, ibises and butterflies. The dragon is the symbol of earth fertility, and of the power and wisdom of the emperor. Lacquers are mostly populated with princesses, various Chinese people, soldiers, children, ritually and daily scenes. Architectural features tend toward geometric ornaments, like meanders and labyrinths. The interior of a Chinese house was simple and sober. All Chinese furniture is made of wood, usually ebony, teak, or rosewood for heavier furniture (chairs, tables and benches) and bamboo, pine and larch for lighter furniture (stools and small chairs).[71]
Traditional Japanese furniture is well known for its minimalist style, extensive use of wood, high-quality craftsmanship and reliance on wood grain instead of painting or thick lacquer. Japanese chests are known as Tansu, known for elaborate decorative iron work, and are some of the most sought-after of Japanese antiques. The antiques available generally date back to the Tokugawa and Meiji periods. Both the technique of lacquering and the specific lacquer (resin of Rhus vernicifera) originated in China, but the lacquer tree also grows well in Japan. The recipes of preparation are original to Japan: resin is mixed with wheat flour, clay or pottery powder, turpentine, iron powder or wood coal. In ornamentation, the chrysanthemum, known as kiku, the national flower, is a very popular ornament, including the 16-petal chrysanthemum symbolizing the Emperor. Cherry and apple flowers are used for decorating screens, vases and shÅji. Common animal ornaments include dragons, carps, cranes, gooses, tigers, horses and monkeys; representations of architecture such as houses, pavilions, towers, torii gates, bridges and temples are also common. The furniture of a Japanese house consists of tables, shelves, wardrobes, small holders for flowers, bonsais or for bonkei, boxes, lanterns with wooden frames and translucent paper, neck and elbow holders, and jardinieres.[72]
Chinese pedestal desk; 1644–1911; huanghuali wood (yellow flowering pear) with brass fittings; Portland Art Museum (Portland, Oregon, USA)
Japanese chest with cartouche showing figures on donkeys in a landscape; 1750–1800; carved red lacquer on wood core with metal fittings and jade lock; 30.64 x 30.16 x 12.7 cm; Los Angeles County Museum of Art (USA)
Japanese tiered food Box with stand; late 18th century; red lacquer over a wood core, with litharge painting and engraved gold designs; overall: 53 x 68 cm; Cleveland Museum of Art
Japanese writing table; early 20th century; lacquered wood with silver fittings and various other materials; height: 12.3 cm, length: 60.96 cm, width: 36.83 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City)
Seating is amongst the oldest known furniture types, and authors including Encyclopædia Britannica regard it as the most important.[2] In addition to the functional design, seating has had an important decorative element from ancient times to the present day. This includes carved and sculpted pieces intended as works of art, as well as the styling of seats to indicate social importance, with senior figures or leaders granted the use of specially designed seats.[2]
The simplest form of seat is the chair,[73] which is a piece of furniture designed to allow a single person to sit down, which has a back and legs, as well as a platform for sitting.[74] Chairs often feature cushions made from various fabrics.[75]
Ancient Egyptian armchair of Tutankhamun; 1336–1326 BC; wood, ebony, ivory and gold leaf; height: 71 cm; Exposition of Tutankhamun Treasure in Paris (2019)
Louis XVI armchair (Fauteuil à la reine); 1780–1785; carved and gilded walnut, and embroidered silk satin; height: 102.2 cm, width: 74.9 cm, depth: 77.8 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Louis XVI settee; designed in circa 1786, woven 1790–91, settee frame from the second half 19th century; carved and gilded wood, with wool and silk; 107.3 × 191.5 × 71.1 cm; Metropolitan Museum of Art
Making of log furniture: cutting a bar stool from a piece of log
All different types of woods have unique signature marks that can help in easy identification of the type. Hardwood and softwood are the two main categories for wood.
Both hardwoods and softwoods are used in furniture manufacturing, and each has its own specific uses. Deciduous trees, which have broad leaves that change color periodically throughout the year, are the source of hardwood. Coniferous trees, also known as cone-bearing trees, have small leaves or needles that stay on the tree throughout the year.[76][77]
Common softwoods used include pine, redwood and yew. Higher quality furniture tends to be made out of hardwood, including oak, maple, mahogany, teak, walnut, cherry and birch. Highest quality wood will have been air dried to rid it of its moisture.[78]
A popular furniture hardwood is American black cherry. Cherry is a light reddish brown to brown color that intensifies into a rich color as it ages, and grows mostly in the eastern United States. Cherry has a tighter grain than birch and is softer. Much cherry lumber is narrow, and it has been utilized to make many lovely classic furniture pieces.[76]
Birch is a sturdy, durable, even-textured hardwood that is common in the United States and Canada. The wood appears white or creamy yellow to light brown with a crimson tinge in its natural state. Birch is frequently stained to complement other types of wood in furniture. Birch is used to make a lot of transparent, cabinet-grade plywood because it absorbs stain well and finishes beautifully. Birch is frequently used to construct interior doors and cupboards in addition to furniture.[76]
Rubberwood is a widely used material in modern Asian furniture manufacturing.[79] Affordable and fast-growing, it is often employed as a sustainable substitute for traditional Western hardwoods, allowing manufacturers to replicate the look and feel of classic lumber in contemporary furniture.[80]
Known for its durability and sustainability, wood is widely used in furniture manufacturing. Dining tables are among the most common furniture made from wood, and there are many types of wooden tables—such as acacia, birch, mango, and oak.
Restoring a piece of furniture may imply attempting to repair and revive the original finish in some way. More often than not, this entails removing the existing treatment and preparing the raw wood for a new finish. Methods for repair depend on what kind of wood it is: solid or veneered, hardwood or softwood, open grained or closed grained. These variables can sometimes decide if a piece of furniture is worth repairing, as well as the type of repairs and finish it will require if it is restored. The 3 methods of restoring furniture are rejuvenate, repair, and refinish.
Rejuvenate The piece can easily be restored by just cleaning and waxing the surface while preserving the current finish. It works on wooden furniture that is still in good shape and is the simplest way to clean it.
Repair This process can fix dents and cracks by touching up some worn-out areas without removing the surface with this technique, the finish can be maintained while repairing the object with specialized products.
Refinish Remove anything that is left for example any paint with a finish-stripper product or lightly sanding the area down and then applying wood finish like oil wax in order to protect the secure the wood.[76]
Cleaning Remove dirt, dust, and grime from the furniture using a mild soap or specialized furniture cleaner.
Installment by L. Gargantini for the Bolzano fair, 1957. Photo by Paolo Monti (Fondo Paolo Monti, BEIC).
EN 527 Office furniture – Work tables and desks: This European standard specifies requirements and test methods for office work tables and desks, ensuring their functionality and safety.
EN 1335 Office furniture – Office work chair: This European standard sets requirements for office chairs, focusing on ergonomics and comfort to promote user well-being and productivity.
ANSI/BIFMA X 5.1 Office Seating: This American National Standard, published by the Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturers Association (BIFMA), provides requirements for the performance and durability of office seating.
DIN 4551 Office furniture; revolving office chair: This German standard covers revolving office chairs with adjustable backrests, armrests, and height, ensuring their quality and safety.
EN 581 Outdoor furniture – Seating and tables for camping, domestic and contract use: This European standard specifies the requirements for outdoor seating and tables used in various settings, including camping and domestic use.
EN 1728:2014 Furniture – Seating – Test methods for the determination of strength and durability: This European standard outlines test methods to assess the strength and durability of seating furniture, last updated in 2014.
EN 1730:2012 Furniture – Test methods for the determination of stability, strength, and durability: This European standard provides test methods to evaluate the stability, strength, and durability of various types of furniture.
BS 4875 Furniture. Strength and stability of furniture: This British Standard focuses on determining the stability of non-domestic storage furniture, helping ensure its safety and reliability.
EN 747 Furniture – Bunk beds and high beds – Test methods for the determination of stability, strength, and durability: This European standard sets test methods to assess the stability, strength, and durability of bunk beds and high beds.
EN 13150 Workbenches for laboratories – Safety requirements and test methods: This European standard specifies safety requirements and test methods for laboratory workbenches to ensure safe working conditions.
EN 1729 Educational furniture, chairs, and tables for educational institutions: This European standard outlines requirements for educational furniture, including chairs and tables, to support comfort and ergonomics in educational settings.
RAL-GZ 430Furniture standard from Germany: RAL is a German standardization organization, and RAL-GZ 430 provides guidelines and standards for various types of furniture in Germany.
NEN 1812Furniture standard from the Netherlands: NEN is the Dutch Institute for Standardization, and NEN 1812 sets standards for furniture in the Netherlands.
GB 28007-2011Children's furniture – General technical requirements for children's furniture: This Chinese standard specifies technical requirements for children's furniture designed and manufactured for children aged 3 to 14.
BS 5852: 2006 Methods of test for assessment of the ignitability of upholstered seating: This British Standard outlines test methods to assess the ignitability of upholstered seating, both by smoldering and flaming ignition sources.
BS 7176: This British Standard specifies requirements for the resistance to ignition of upholstered furniture used in non-domestic settings through composite testing. These standards help ensure the quality, safety, and performance of various types of furniture in different regions and applications. Manufacturers and consumers often use these standards as guidelines to meet specific requirements and ensure product reliability.
^Linda Maria Gigante, "Funerary Art," in The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece and Rome, Vol. 1, ed. Michael Gagarin and Elaine Fantham (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010), 246.
^Guhl, E.; Koner, W. (1989). Everyday Life in Greek and Roman Times. New York: Crescent. p. 133.
^Vazaca, Marina (1999). Muzeul NaÈ›ional de Artă al României Ghidul ColecÈ›iilor (in Romanian). Muzeul NaÈ›ional de Artă al României. p. 70. ISBN2-7118-3840-4.
A final good or consumer good is a final product ready for sale that is used by the consumer to satisfy current wants or needs, unlike an intermediate good, which is used to produce other goods. A microwave oven or a bicycle is a final good.
When used in measures of national income and output, the term "final goods" includes only new goods. For example, gross domestic product (GDP) excludes items counted in an earlier year to prevent double counting based on resale of items. In that context, the economic definition of goods also includes what are commonly known as services.
A microwave oven, c. 2005: an example of a final good or consumer good
Various legal definitions exist for consumer products, depending on jurisdiction. One such definition is found in the United States' Consumer Product Safety Act, which provides extensive explanation of consumer products.
CONSUMER PRODUCT.- The term ‘‘consumer product’’ means any article, or component part thereof, produced or distributed (i) for sale to a consumer for use in or around a permanent or temporary household or residence, a school, in recreation, or otherwise, or (ii) for the personal use, consumption, or enjoyment of a consumer in or around a permanent or temporary household or residence, a school, in recreation, or otherwise; but such term does not include— (A) any article which is not customarily produced or distributed for sale to, or use or consumption by, or enjoyment of, a consumer,
It then goes on to list eight additional specific exclusions and further details.[1]
Consumer durable goods usually have a significant lifespan, which tends to be at least one year, based on the guarantee or warranty period. The maximum life depends upon the durability of the product or goods. Examples include tools, cars, and boats. On the other hand, capital goods, which are tangible in nature, such as machinery or building or any other equipment that can be used in manufacturing of final product, are durable goods with limited lifespans that are determined by manufacturers before their sale. The longevity and the often-higher cost of durable goods usually cause consumers to postpone expenditures on them, which makes durables the most volatile (or cost-dependent) component of consumption.
Consumer nondurable goods are purchased for immediate use or for use very soon. Generally, the lifespan of nondurable goods is from a few minutes to up to three years: food, beverages, clothing, shoes and gasoline are examples. In everyday language, nondurable goods get consumed or "used up".
Consumer services are intangible in nature. They cannot be seen, felt or tasted by the consumer but still give satisfaction to the consumer. They are also inseparable and variable in nature: they are thus produced and consumed simultaneously. Examples are haircuts, medical treatments, auto repairs and landscaping.
Convenience goods, shopping goods, and specialty goods are also known as "red goods", "yellow goods", and "orange goods", respectively, under the yellow, red and orange goods classification system.
Convenience goods are frequently used and readily available. Generally, convenience goods fall under the category of nondurable goods, such as fast food, cigarettes and tobacco, which are typically low-cost. Convenience goods are primarily sold by wholesalers or retailers in large volumes to ensure widespread availability to consumers. Convenience goods can further be classified into staple and impulse categories.
Staple convenience consumer goods are basic necessities for consumers. These goods are easily available and in large quantities, such as milk, bread, and sugar.
Impulse convenience consumer goods do not belong to the priority list of the consumer. They are purchased without any prior planning, just on the basis of the impulse: potato wafers, candies, ice cream, cold drinks, etc.
Shopping consumer goods are the goods which take lot of time and proper planning before making purchase decision; in this case consumer does a lot of selection and comparison based on various parameters such as cost, brand, style, comfort etc., before buying an item. Shopping goods are costlier than convenience goods and are durable in nature. Consumer goods companies usually try to set up their shops and show rooms in active shopping areas to attract customer attention and their main focus is to do much advertising and promotion to attract more customers.
Examples, include clothing items, televisions, radios, footwear, home furnishings, etc.
Specialty goods are unique in nature; these are unusual and luxurious items available in the market. Specialty goods are mostly purchased by the upper classes of society as they are expensive in nature and difficult to afford for the middle and lower classes. Companies advertise their goods targeting the upper class. These goods do not fall under the category of necessity; rather they are purchased on the basis personal preference or desire. Brand name, uniqueness, and special features of an item are major attributes which attract customers and make them buy such products.
Examples include antiques, jewelry, wedding dresses, cars, etc.
Unsought goods belong to neither the necessity group of consumer goods list nor to specialty goods. They are always available in the market but are purchased by very few consumers, either based on their interest or their need for some specific reasons. The general public does not purchase such goods often.
Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is the sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and then sells in smaller quantities to consumers for a profit. Retailers are the final link in the supply chain from producers to consumers.
Retail markets and shops have a long history, dating back to antiquity. Some of the earliest retailers were itinerant peddlers. Over the centuries, retail shops were transformed from little more than "rude booths" to the sophisticated shopping malls of the modern era. In the digital age, an increasing number of retailers are seeking to reach broader markets by selling through multiple channels, including both bricks and mortar and online retailing. Digital technologies are also affecting the way that consumers pay for goods and services. Retailing support services may also include the provision of credit, delivery services, advisory services, stylist services and a range of other supporting services. Retail workers are the employees of such stores.
Most modern retailers typically make a variety of strategic level decisions including the type of store, the market to be served, the optimal product assortment, customer service, supporting services, and the store's overall market positioning. Once the strategic retail plan is in place, retailers devise the retail mix which includes product, price, place, promotion, personnel, and presentation.
The word retail comes from the Old French verb retaillier, meaning "to shape by cutting" (c. 1365). It was first recorded as a noun in 1433 with the meaning of "a sale in small quantities" from the Middle French verb retailler meaning "a piece cut off, shred, scrap, paring".[1] At present, the meaning of the word retail (in English, French, Dutch, German and Spanish) refers to the sale of small quantities of items to consumers (as opposed to wholesale).
Retail refers to the activity of selling goods or services directly to consumers or end-users.[2] Some retailers may sell to business customers, and such sales are termed non-retail activity. In some jurisdictions or regions, legal definitions of retail specify that at least 80 percent of sales activity must be to end-users.[3] In the banking industry "wholesale" usually refers to wholesale banking, providing tailored services to large customers, in contrast with retail banking, providing standardized services to large numbers of smaller customers.
Retailing often occurs in retail stores or service establishments, but may also occur through direct selling such as through vending machines, door-to-door sales or electronic channels.[4] Although the idea of retail is often associated with the purchase of goods, the term may be applied to service providers that sell to consumers. Retail service providers include retail banking, tourism, insurance, private healthcare, private education, private security firms, legal firms, publishers, public transport, and others. For example, a tourism provider might have a retail division that books travel and accommodation for consumers plus a wholesale division that purchases blocks of accommodation, hospitality, transport, and sightseeing which are subsequently packaged into a holiday tour for sale to retail travel agents.
Some retailers badge their stores as "wholesale outlets" offering "wholesale prices". While this practice may encourage consumers to imagine that they have access to lower prices, while being prepared to trade-off reduced prices for cramped in-store environments, in a strictly legal sense, a store that sells the majority of its merchandise directly to consumers, is defined as a retailer rather than a wholesaler. Different jurisdictions set parameters for the ratio of consumer to business sales that define a retail business.
Obtaining goods in the required quantities and locating them where consumers will purchase them are core retail activities, so purchasing and supply management are essential features of a retail strategy.[5]
The distinction between "strategic" and "managerial" decision-making is commonly used to distinguish "two phases having different goals and based on different conceptual tools. Strategic planning concerns the choice of policies aiming at improving the competitive position of the firm, taking account of challenges and opportunities proposed by the competitive environment. On the other hand, managerial decision-making is focused on the implementation of specific targets."[6]
In retailing, the strategic plan is designed to set out the vision and provide guidance for retail decision-makers and provide an outline of how the product and service mix will optimize customer satisfaction. As part of the strategic planning process, it is customary for strategic planners to carry out a detailed environmental scan which seeks to identify trends and opportunities in the competitive environment, market environment, economic environment and statutory-political environment. The retail strategy is normally devised or reviewed every three to five years by the chief executive officer. The profit margins of retailers depend largely on their ability to achieve market competitive transaction costs.
Customer analysis – Market segmentation, demographic, geographic, and psychographic profile, values and attitudes, shopping habits, brand preferences, analysis of needs and wants, and media habits
Internal analysis – Other capacities including human resource capability, technological capability, financial capability, ability to generate scale economies or economies of scope, trade relations, reputation, positioning, and past performance
Competition analysis – Availability of substitutes, competitor's strengths and weaknesses, perceptual mapping, competitive trends
Review of product mix – :: Sales per square foot, stock-turnover rates, profitability per product line
Review of distribution channels – Lead-times between placing order and delivery, cost of distribution, cost efficiency of intermediaries
Evaluation of the economics of the strategy – Cost-benefit analysis of planned activities
At the conclusion of the retail analysis, retail marketers should have a clear idea of which groups of customers are to be the target of marketing activities. Not all elements are, however, equal, often with demographics, shopping motivations, and spending directing consumer activities.[8] Retail research studies suggest that there is a strong relationship between a store's positioning and the socio-economic status of customers.[9] In addition, the retail strategy, including service quality, has a significant and positive association with customer loyalty.[10] A marketing strategy effectively outlines all key aspects of firms' targeted audience, demographics, preferences. In a highly competitive market, the retail strategy sets up long-term sustainability. It focuses on customer relationships, stressing the importance of added value, customer satisfaction and highlights how the store's market positioning appeals to targeted groups of customers.[11]
A retail mix is devised for the purpose of coordinating day-to-day tactical decisions. The retail marketing mix typically consists of six broad decision layers including product decisions, place decisions, promotion, price, personnel and presentation (also known as physical evidence). The retail mix is loosely based on the marketing mix, but has been expanded and modified in line with the unique needs of the retail context. A number of scholars have argued for an expanded marketing, mix with the inclusion of two new Ps, namely, Personnel and Presentation since these contribute to the customer's unique retail experience and are the principal basis for retail differentiation. Yet other scholars argue that the Retail Format (i.e. retail formula) should be included.[12] The modified retail marketing mix that is most commonly cited in textbooks is often called the 6 Ps of retailing (see diagram at right).[13][14]
A typical supermarket carries an assortment of between 30,000 and 60,000 different products.
The primary product-related decisions facing the retailer are the product assortment (what product lines, how many lines and which brands to carry); the type of customer service (high contact through to self-service) and the availability of support services (e.g. credit terms, delivery services, after sales care). These decisions depend on careful analysis of the market, demand, competition as well as the retailer's skills and expertise.
Customer service is the "sum of acts and elements that allow consumers to receive what they need or desire from [the] retail establishment." Retailers must decide whether to provide a full service outlet or minimal service outlet, such as no-service in the case of vending machines; self-service with only basic sales assistance or a full service operation as in many boutiques and speciality stores. In addition, the retailer needs to make decisions about sales support such as customer delivery and after sales customer care.
Sellers of souvenirs are typically located in high traffic areas such as this London souvenir stand situated near a railway station on a busy street corner.
Place decisions are primarily concerned with consumer access and may involve location, space utilisation and operating hours. Retailers may consider a range of both qualitative and quantitative factors to evaluate to potential sites under consideration. Macro factors include market characteristics (demographic, economic and socio-cultural), demand, competition and infrastructure (e.g. the availability of power, roads, public transport systems). Micro factors include the size of the site (e.g. availability of parking), access for delivery vehicles. A major retail trend has been the shift to multi-channel retailing. To counter the disruption caused by online retail, many bricks and mortar retailers have entered the online retail space, by setting up online catalogue sales and e-commerce websites. However, many retailers have noticed that consumers behave differently when shopping online. For instance, in terms of choice of online platform, shoppers tend to choose the online site of their preferred retailer initially, but as they gain more experience in online shopping, they become less loyal and more likely to switch to other retail sites.[15]Online stores are usually available 24 hours a day, and many consumers across the globe have Internet access both at work and at home.
Extensive use of the terminal digit 'nine' suggests that psychological pricing is at play.
The broad pricing strategy is normally established in the company's overall strategic plan. In the case of chain stores, the pricing strategy would be set by head office. Broadly, there are six approaches to pricing strategy mentioned in the marketing literature: operations-oriented,[16] revenue-oriented,[16] customer-oriented,[16]value-based,[17][18]relationship-oriented,[19] and socially-oriented.[20] When decision-makers have determined the broad approach to pricing (i.e., the pricing strategy), they turn their attention to pricing tactics. Tactical pricing decisions are shorter term prices, designed to accomplish specific short-term goals. Pricing tactics that are commonly used in retail include discount pricing,[21]everyday low prices,[22] high-low pricing,[22][23]loss leaders, product bundling,[24] promotional pricing, and psychological pricing.[25] Two strategies to entice the buyer, money back guarantee and buy one get one free, were devised by 18th-century retail entrepreneur Josiah Wedgwood.[26][27] Retailers must also plan for customer preferred payment modes – e.g. cash, credit, lay-by, Electronic Funds Transfer at Point-of-Sale (EFTPOS). All payment options require some type of handling and attract costs.[28] Contrary to common misconception, price is not the most important factor for consumers, when deciding to buy a product.[29]
One of the most well-known cross-selling sales scripts comes from McDonald's. "Would you like fries with that?"
Because patronage at a retail outlet varies, flexibility in scheduling is desirable. Employee scheduling software is sold, which, using known patterns of customer patronage, more or less reliably predicts the need for staffing for various functions at times of the year, day of the month or week, and time of day. Usually needs vary widely. Conforming staff utilization to staffing needs requires a flexible workforce which is available when needed but does not have to be paid when they are not, part-timeworkers; as of 2012 70% of retail workers in the United States were part-time. This may result in financial problems for the workers, who while they are required to be available at all times if their work hours are to be maximized, may not have sufficient income to meet their family and other obligations.[30] Retailers can employ different techniques to enhance sales volume and to improve the customer experience, such as Add-on, Upsell or Cross-sell; Selling on value;[31] and knowing when to close the sale.[32]
Transactional marketing aims to find target consumers, then negotiate, trade, and finally end relationships to complete the transaction. In this one-time transaction process, both parties aim to maximize their own interests. As a result, transactional marketing raises follow-up problems such as poor after-sales service quality and a lack of feedback channels for both parties. In addition, because retail enterprises needed to redevelop client relationships for each transaction, marketing costs were high and customer retention was low. All these downsides to transactional marketing gradually pushed the retail industry towards establishing long-term cooperative relationships with customers. Through this lens, enterprises began to focus on the process from transaction to relationship.[33] While expanding the sales market and attracting new customers is very important for the retail industry, it is also important to establish and maintain long term good relationships with previous customers, hence the name of the underlying concept, "relational marketing". Under this concept, retail enterprises value and attempt to improve relationships with customers, as customer relationships are conducive to maintaining stability in the current competitive retail market, and are also the future of retail enterprises.
Modern technologies are often displayed in clean environments with much empty space.The retail servicescape includes the appearance, equipment, display space, retail counters, signage, layout and functionality of a retail outlet. Pictured: Harrods food court
Presentation refers to the physical evidence that signals the retail image. Physical evidence may include a diverse range of elements – the store itself including premises, offices, exterior facade and interior layout, websites, delivery vans, warehouses, staff uniforms. The environment in which the retail service encounter occurs is sometimes known as the retail servicescape.[34] The store environment consists of many elements such as aromas, the physical environment (furnishings, layout, and functionality), ambient conditions (lighting, air temperature, and music) as well as signs, symbols, and artifacts (e.g. sales promotions, shelf space, sample stations, visual communications). Retail designers pay close attention to the front of the store, which is known as the decompression zone. In order to maximize the number of selling opportunities, retailers generally want customers to spend more time in a retail store. However, this must be balanced against customer expectations surrounding convenience, access and realistic waiting times.[35] The way that brands are displayed is also part of the overall retail design. Where a product is placed on the shelves has implications for purchase likelihood as a result of visibility and access.[36] Ambient conditions, such as lighting, temperature and music, are also part of the overall retail environment.[37] It is common for a retail store to play music that relates to their target market.[38]
Two different strands of research have investigated shopper behaviour. One is primarily concerned with shopper motivations. The other stream of research seeks to segment shoppers according to common, shared characteristics. To some extent, these streams of research are inter-related, but each stream offers different types of insights into shopper behaviour.
People who shop for pleasure are known as recreational shoppers. The recreational shopper has its origins in the grand European shopping arcades. Pictured: The gentry in a Dutch lace shop in the 17th century
Babin et al. carried out some of the earliest investigations into shopper motivations and identified two broad motives: utilitarian and hedonic. Utilitarian motivations are task-related and rational. For the shopper with utilitarian motives, purchasing is a work-related task that is to be accomplished in the most efficient and expedient manner. On the other hand, hedonic motives refer to pleasure. The shopper with hedonic motivations views shopping as a form of escapism where they are free to indulge fantasy and freedom. Hedonic shoppers are more involved in the shopping experience.[39]
Many different shopper profiles can be identified. Retailers develop customised segmentation analyses for each unique outlet. However, it is possible to identify a number of broad shopper profiles. One of the most well-known and widely cited shopper typologies is that developed by Sproles and Kendal in the mid-1980s.[40][41][42] Sproles and Kendall's consumer typology has been shown to be relatively consistent across time and across cultures.[43][44] Their typology is based on the consumer's approach to making purchase decisions.[45]
Quality conscious/Perfectionist: Quality-consciousness is characterised by a consumer's search for the very best quality in products; quality conscious consumers tend to shop systematically making more comparisons and shopping around.
Brand-conscious: Brand-consciousness is characterised by a tendency to buy expensive, well-known brands or designer labels. Those who score high on brand-consciousness tend to believe that the higher prices are an indicator of quality and exhibit a preference for department stores or top-tier retail outlets.
Recreation-conscious/Hedonistic: Recreational shopping is characterised by the consumer's engagement in the purchase process. Those who score high on recreation-consciousness regard shopping itself as a form of enjoyment.
Price-conscious: A consumer who exhibits price-and-value consciousness. Price-conscious shoppers carefully shop around seeking lower prices, sales or discounts and are motivated by obtaining the best value for money.
Novelty/fashion-conscious: characterised by a consumer's tendency to seek out new products or new experiences for the sake of excitement; who gain excitement from seeking new things; they like to keep up-to-date with fashions and trends, variety-seeking is associated with this dimension.
Impulsive: Impulsive consumers are somewhat careless in making purchase decisions, buy on the spur of the moment and are not overly concerned with expenditure levels or obtaining value. Those who score high on impulsive dimensions tend not to be engaged with the object at either a cognitive or emotional level.
Confused (by overchoice): characterised by a consumer's confusion caused by too many product choices, too many stores or an overload of product information; tend to experience information overload.
Habitual/brand loyal: characterised by a consumer's tendency to follow a routine purchase pattern on each purchase occasion; consumers have favourite brands or stores and have formed habits in choosing; the purchase decision does not involve much evaluation or shopping around.
Some researchers have adapted Sproles and Kendall's methodology for use in specific countries or cultural groups.[46] Consumer decision styles are important for retailers and marketers because they describe behaviours that are relatively stable over time and for this reason, they are useful for market segmentation.
Australia's Officeworks retails everything for the home office or small commercial office; stationery, furniture, electronics, communications devices, copying, printing and photography services, coffee, tea and light snacks.Apple's concept stores include video walls, Wi-Fi and desks to provide an immersive customer experience.A general store in Scarsdale, Victoria, Australia operates as a post-office, newsagent, petrol station, video hire, grocer and take-away food retailer. This type of store is referred to locally as a milk bar.A local store named "Luovon puoji" in the Hailuoto Island, Finland
Retail formats (also known as retail formulas) influence the consumer's store choice and addresses the consumer's expectations. At its most basic level, a retail format is a simple marketplace, that is; a location where goods and services are exchanged. In some parts of the world, the retail sector is still dominated by small family-run stores, but large retail chains are increasingly dominating the sector, because they can exert considerable buying power and pass on the savings in the form of lower prices. Many of these large retail chains also produce their own private labels which compete alongside manufacturer brands. Considerable consolidation of retail stores has changed the retail landscape, transferring power away from wholesalers and into the hands of the large retail chains.[47] In Britain and Europe, the retail sale of goods is designated as a service activity. The European Service Directive applies to all retail trade including periodic markets, street traders and peddlers.
When discussing the impact of technology on shopping and retail, e-commerce is often the first thing that comes to mind for retailers. However, technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence, computer vision and the Internet of Things have used data to transform every part of the shopping experience, from browsing to checkout.[51]
It is important for organizations to embrace digital disruption in order to gain a competitive advantage. When an industry experiences digital disruption, it typically signals that consumer needs are shifting. Retailers enhance their analytics process and make better informed decisions thanks to big data, artificial intelligence, computer vision, and the Internet of Things. The use of data by retailers is mostly evident in the following aspects, based on the above-mentioned new technologies:[52][53]
Enhance marketing by Personalizing customer experience
Optimize supply chain management
Adjust prices to maximize profits
Many leading brands actively target tourists who travel specifically to shop or allocate a significant portion of their spending to retail while on vacation. According to the Global Retail Tourism Market Report 2019–2023, the global shopping tourism market was valued at approximately $1.2 trillion in 2018. The report projected steady growth, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.7% between 2019 and 2023. Building on this trend, Kogan Page published the book Leading Travel and Tourism Retail in 2023, offering an in-depth analysis of the travel retail sector and its evolution in the post-COVID era.
Marketplace at Trajan's Forum, the earliest known example of permanent retail shopfrontsGrand Bazaar, Istanbul (interior). Established in 1455, it is thought to be the oldest continuously operating covered market.
Retail markets have existed since ancient times. Archaeological evidence for trade, probably involving barter systems, dates back more than 10,000 years. As civilizations grew, barter was replaced with retail trade involving coinage. Selling and buying are thought to have emerged in Asia Minor (modern Turkey) in around the 7th-millennium BCE.[54] In ancient Greece, markets operated within the agora, an open space where, on market days, goods were displayed on mats or temporary stalls.[55] In ancient Rome, trade took place in the forum.[56] The Roman forum was arguably the earliest example of a permanent retail shop-front.[57]
Research from July 2008 suggests that China exhibited a rich history of early retail systems.[58] From as early as 200 BCE, Chinese packaging and branding were used to signal family, place names and product quality, and the use of government imposed product branding was used between 600 and 900 CE.[59] Eckhart and Bengtsson have argued that during the Song dynasty (960–1127), Chinese society developed a consumerist culture, where a high level of consumption was attainable for a wide variety of ordinary consumers rather than just the elite.[60]
In Medieval England and Europe, relatively few permanent shops were to be found; instead, customers walked into the tradesman's workshops where they discussed purchasing options directly with tradesmen.[61] In the more populous cities, a small number of shops were beginning to emerge by the 13th century.[62] Outside the major cities, most consumable purchases were made through markets or fairs.[63] Market-places appear to have emerged independently outside Europe. The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul is often cited as the world's oldest continuously operating market; its construction began in 1455. The Spanish conquistadors wrote glowingly of markets in the Americas. In the 15th century, the Mexica (Aztec) market of Tlatelolco was the largest in all the Americas.[64]
The retail service counter was an innovation of the 18th century.
By the 17th century, permanent shops with more regular trading hours were beginning to supplant markets and fairs as the main retail outlet. Provincial shopkeepers were active in almost every English market town.[65] As the number of shops grew, they underwent a transformation. The trappings of a modern shop, which had been entirely absent from the 16th- and early 17th-century store, gradually made way for store interiors and shopfronts that are more familiar to modern shoppers. Prior to the 18th century, the typical retail store had no counter, display cases, chairs, mirrors, changing rooms, etc. However, the opportunity for the customer to browse merchandise, touch and feel products began to be available, with retail innovations from the late 17th and early 18th centuries.[66]
Galeries de bois at au Palais-Royal, one of the earliest shopping arcades in Europe
By the late 18th century, grand shopping arcades began to emerge across Europe and in the Antipodes. A shopping arcade refers to a multiple-vendor space, operating under a covered roof. Typically, the roof was constructed of glass to allow for natural light and to reduce the need for candles or electric lighting. Some of the earliest examples of shopping arcade appeared in Paris, due to its lack of pavement for pedestrians.[67] While the arcades were the province of the bourgeoisie, a new type of retail venture emerged to serve the needs of the working poor. John Stuart Mill wrote about the rise of the co-operative retail store, which he witnessed first-hand in the mid-19th century.[68]
Department stores, such as Le Bon Marché of France, appeared from the mid-19th century.
The modern era of retailing is defined as the period from the industrial revolution to the 21st century.[69] In major cities, the department store emerged in the mid- to late 19th century, and permanently reshaped shopping habits, and redefined concepts of service and luxury.[70] Many of the early department stores were more than just a retail emporium; rather they were venues where shoppers could spend their leisure time and be entertained.[71] Retail, using mail order, came of age during the mid-19th century. Although catalogue sales had been used since the 15th century, this method of retailing was confined to a few industries such as the sale of books and seeds. However, improvements in transport and postal services led several entrepreneurs on either side of the Atlantic to experiment with catalogue sales.[72]
In the post-war period, an American architect, Victor Gruen developed a concept for a shopping mall; a planned, self-contained shopping complex complete with an indoor plaza, statues, planting schemes, piped music, and car-parking. Gruen's vision was to create a shopping atmosphere where people felt so comfortable, they would spend more time in the environment, thereby enhancing opportunities for purchasing. The first of these malls opened at Northland Mall near Detroit in 1954.[73] Throughout the twentieth century, a trend towards larger store footprints became discernible. The average size of a U.S. supermarket grew from 31,000 square feet (2,900 m2) square feet in 1991 to 44,000 square feet (4,100 m2) square feet in 2000.[74] By the end of the twentieth century, stores were using labels such as "mega-stores" and "warehouse" stores to reflect their growing size.[75] The upward trend of increasing retail space was not consistent across nations and led in the early 21st century to a 2-fold difference in square footage per capita between the United States and Europe.[76]
As the 21st century takes shape, some indications suggest that large retail stores have come under increasing pressure from online sales models and that reductions in store size are evident.[77] Under such competition and other issues such as business debt,[78] there has been a noted business disruption called the retail apocalypse in recent years which several retail businesses, especially in North America, are sharply reducing their number of stores, or going out of business entirely.
Among retailers and retails chains a lot of consolidation has appeared over the last couple of decades. Between 1988 and 2010, worldwide 40,788 mergers and acquisitions with a total known value of US$2.255 trillion have been announced.[79] The largest transactions with involvement of retailers in/from the United States have been: the acquisition of Albertson's Inc. for US$17 billion in 2006,[80] the merger between Federated Department Stores Inc with May Department Stores valued at 16.5 bil. USD in 2005[81] – now Macy's, and the merger between Kmart Holding Corp and Sears Roebuck & Co with a value of US$10.9 billion in 2004.[82]
Between 1985 and 2018 there have been 46,755 mergers or acquisitions conducted globally in the retail sector (either acquirer or target from the retail industry). These deals cumulate to an overall known value of around US$2,561 billion. The three major Retail M&A waves took place in 2000, 2007 and lately in 2017. However the all-time high in terms of number of deals was in 2016 with more than 2,700 deals. In terms of added value 2007 set the record with the US$225 billion.[83]
Here is a list of the top ten largest deals (ranked by volume) in the Retail Industry:[citation needed]
The National Retail Federation and Kantar annually rank the nation's top retailers according to sales.[86] The National Retail Federation also separately ranks the 100 fastest-growing U.S. retailers based on increases in domestic sales.[87][86]
Since 1951, the U.S. Census Bureau has published the Retail Sales report every month. It is a measure of consumer spending, an important indicator of the US GDP. Retail firms provide data on the dollar value of their retail sales and inventories. A sample of 12,000 firms is included in the final survey and 5,000 in the advanced one. The advanced estimated data is based on a subsample from the US CB complete retail and food services sample.[88]
Retail is the largest private-sector employer in the United States, supporting 52 million working Americans.[89]
In 2011, the grocery market in six countries of Central Europe was worth nearly €107bn, 2.8% more than the previous year when expressed in local currencies. The increase was generated foremost by the discount stores and supermarket segments, and was driven by the skyrocketing prices of foodstuffs. This information is based on the latest PMR report entitled Grocery retail in Central Europe 2012[90]
Japan has the largest number of vending machines per capita.
National accounts show a combined total of retail and wholesale trade, with hotels and restaurants. in 2012 the sector provides over a fifth of GDP in tourist-oriented island economies, as well as in other major countries such as Brazil, Pakistan, Russia, and Spain. In all four of the latter countries, this fraction is an increase over 1970, but there are other countries where the sector has declined since 1970, sometimes in absolute terms, where other sectors have replaced its role in the economy. In the United States the sector has declined from 19% of GDP to 14%, though it has risen in absolute terms from $4,500 to $7,400 per capita per year. In China the sector has grown from 7.3% to 11.5%, and in India even more, from 8.4% to 18.7%. Emarketer predicts China will have the largest retail market in the world in 2016.[91]
In 2016, China became the largest retail market in the world.[84]
In the Republic of Armenia, retail trade has been increasing recently. In October 2022, it increased by 23.1% year by year, which was the most considerable rise since April 2021, faster than the 20.7 per cent increase recorded a month earlier. Retail dropped by 1.9% after accumulating 2.1%in the earlier month. For the first 10 months of 2022, retail sales increased by 15.5% by measuring the exact time of 2021. Among its bordering countries, on retail trade percentage of GDP, Armenia ranks more increased than Turkey, but it is still lower than Georgia.[92]
restrictions on foreign investment in retailers, in terms of both absolute amount of financing provided and percentage share of voting stock (e.g. common stock) purchased
unfavorable taxation structures, especially those designed to penalize or keep out "big box" retailers (see "Regulatory" above)
absence of developed supply-chain and integrated IT management
constant advances in product design resulting in constant threat of product obsolescence and price declines for existing inventory
partially due to loss in business: lack of work-force, often including management, that is properly educated and trained
lack of educational infrastructure enabling prospective market entrants to respond to the above challenges
direct e-tailing (for example, through the Internet) and direct delivery to consumers from manufacturers and suppliers, cutting out any retail middle man.[93]
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^Sproles, G.B., & Kendall, E.L., "A methodology for profiling consumers' decision-marking styles", Journal of Consumer Affairs, Vol., 20 No. 2, 1986, pp. 267–79
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The name Australia (pronounced /əˈstreɪliə/ in Australian English)[27] is derived from the Latin Terra Australis Incognita ('unknown southern land'), a name used for a hypothetical continent in the Southern Hemisphere since ancient times.[28] Several 16th-century cartographers used the word Australia on maps, but not to identify modern Australia.[29]
When the Dutch began visiting and mapping Australia in the 17th century, they called the continent New Holland. The name Australia was popularised by the explorer Matthew Flinders, who circumnavigated the continent in 1803. However, when his account of his voyage was published in 1814, the name Terra Australis was used.[28]
Human habitation of the Australian continent is estimated to have begun 50,000 to 65,000 years ago,[18][19][20][21] with the migration of people by land bridges and short sea crossings from what is now Southeast Asia.[18] It is uncertain how many waves of immigration may have contributed to these ancestors of modern Aboriginal Australians.[32][33] The Madjedbebe rock shelter in Arnhem Land is possibly the oldest site showing the presence of humans in Australia.[19][20][34] The oldest human remains found are the Lake Mungo remains, which have been dated to around 42,000 years ago.[35]
Torres Strait Islander people first settled their islands at least 2,500 years ago.[51][52] Culturally and linguistically distinct from mainland Aboriginal peoples, they were seafarers and obtained their livelihood from seasonal horticulture and the resources of their reefs and seas. Agriculture also developed on some islands and villages appeared by the 1300s.[51] By the mid-18th century in northern Australia, contact, trade and cross-cultural engagement had been established between local Aboriginal groups and Makassantrepangers, visiting from present-day Indonesia.[53][54][55]
The Dutch East India Company ship, Duyfken, captained by Willem Janszoon, made the first documented European landing in Australia in 1606.[56] Later that year, Luís Vaz de Torres sailed to the north of Australia through Torres Strait, along New Guinea's southern coast.[57]Abel Tasman's voyage of 1642 was the first known European expedition to reach Van Diemen's Land. On his second voyage of 1644, he mapped the north coast of Australia south of New Guinea. Following Tasman's voyages, the Dutch were able to make almost complete maps of Australia's northern and western coasts and much of its southern and south-eastern Tasmanian coasts. They named the continent New Holland.[58]
Most early settlers were convicts, transported for petty crimes and assigned as labourers or servants to "free settlers" (willing immigrants). Once emancipated, convicts tended to integrate into colonial society. Aboriginal resistance, convict rebellions and bushranging were sometimes suppressed under martial law.[62][63] The 1808 Rum Rebellion, carried out by officers of the New South Wales Corp, led to a temporary military junta.[64] During the next two decades, social and economic reforms, together with the establishment of a Legislative Council and Supreme Court, saw the penal colony transition to a civil society.[65]
The indigenous population declined for 150 years following European settlement, mainly due to infectious disease.[66] British colonial authorities did not sign any treaties with Aboriginal groups.[67][68] As settlement expanded, tens of thousands of Indigenous people and thousands of settlers were killed in frontier conflicts, which many historians argue included acts of genocide by settlers.[69][70] Settlers dispossessed surviving Indigenous peoples of most of their land.[69]
The six colonies individually gained responsible government between 1855 and 1890, managing most of their own affairs while remaining part of the British Empire.[78] The Colonial Office in London retained control of some matters, notably foreign affairs.[79] The colonial parliaments progressively extended voting rights to adult men from 1856, with women's suffrage on equal terms following between the 1890s and 1900s. Some colonies introduced racial restrictions on voting from 1885.[80]
From 1901, Australia was a self-governing dominion within the British Empire.[92] It was one of the founding members of the League of Nations in 1920,[93] and the United Nations in 1945.[94] The Statute of Westminster 1931 ended the ability of the UK to legislate for Australia at the federal level without Australia's consent. Australia adopted it in 1942, but it was backdated to 1939 to confirm the validity of legislation passed during World War II.[95]
In the three decades following World War II, Australia experienced significant increases in living standards, leisure time and suburban development.[107] Governments encouraged a large wave of immigration from across Europe and called these migrants "New Australians". High immigration was justified to Australians using the slogan "populate or perish,"[108] and from the 1960s the white Australia policy was gradually relaxed.[109]
Following the abolition of the last vestiges of the White Australia policy in 1973,[117] Australia's demography and culture transformed as a result of a large and ongoing wave of non-European immigration, mostly from Asia.[118] The late 20th century also saw an increasing focus on foreign policy ties with other Asia–Pacific nations.[119] The Australia Acts of 1986 severed the remaining constitutional ties between Australia and the United Kingdom while maintaining the monarch in her independent capacity as Queen of Australia.[120][121] In a 1999 constitutional referendum, 55% of voters rejected abolishing the monarchy and becoming a republic.[122]
Following the September 11 attacks on the United States, Australia joined the United States in fighting the Afghanistan War from 2001 to 2021 and the Iraq War from 2003 to 2009.[123] The nation's trade relations also became increasingly oriented towards East Asia in the 21st century, with China becoming the nation's largest trading partner by a large margin.[124]
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, from March 2020 lockdowns and other restrictions on public gatherings and movement across the national and state borders were implemented by the Federal, state and territory governments. Following the rollout of vaccines in 2021, these restrictions were gradually eased. In October 2023, Australia declared that COVID-19 was no longer a communicable disease incident of national significance.[125]
Mainland Australia lies between latitudes 9° and 44° south, and longitudes 112° and 154° east.[8] Surrounded by the Indian and Pacific oceans, Australia is separated from Asia by the Arafura and Timor seas, with the Coral Sea lying off the Queensland coast, and the Tasman Sea lying between Australia and New Zealand. The Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef, lies a short distance off the north-east coast and extends for more than 2,300 km (1,400 mi).[127]
Most of Australia is arid or semi-arid.[132] In 2021, Australia had 10% of the global permanent meadows and pastureland.[133]Forest cover is around 17% of Australia's land area.[134][135] The Australian mainland is relatively flat, with an average height of 325 metres (1,066 ft) compared with 870 metres (2,850 ft) for all continents.[136] The Great Dividing Range runs along most of eastern Australia, dividing the central lowlands from the eastern highlands.[137] At 2,228 m (7,310 ft), Mount Kosciuszko is the highest mountain on the mainland. Taller are Mawson Peak, at 2,745 m (9,006 ft), on Heard Island, and, in the Australian Antarctic Territory, Mount McClintock and Mount Menzies, at 3,492 m (11,457 ft) and 3,355 m (11,007 ft) respectively.[137]
Uluru in the semi-arid region of Central Australia
The Murray-Darling is the major river system, draining most of inland New South Wales and Southern Queensland towards Lake Alexandrina and the sea in South Australia. There are also smaller coastal river systems, inland drainage systems such as the Lake Eyre system, and salt lake systems in central and western Australia.[138] Australia's rivers have the lowest discharge into the sea of any continent. The mainland's flat, arid profile also makes its rivers slow-moving, resulting in a build up of salt on the land.[139] Salinisation adversely affects Australia's soil which is, on average, poor in nutrients compared with world standards.[140]
Australia's population is concentrated on the coastal fringes. About 95% of the population lives within 100 km of the coast; the world average is 39%.[141] Australia's population density is 3.5 inhabitants per square kilometre,[24] which is one of the lowest in the world.[141] However, there is a large concentration of the population in cities along the temperate south-eastern coastline, and population density exceeds 38 inhabitants per square kilometre in central Melbourne.[24]
Formerly part of the Rodinia and Gondwanasupercontinents,[142] Australia completely separated from Antarctica about 35 million years ago and continued drifting northwards.[143] When the Last Glacial Period ended, rising sea levels separated the Australian mainland from New Guinea about 8,000 years ago and from Tasmania about 6,000 years ago.[143]
Australia lies well within the Australian tectonic plate. The mainland is relatively stable geologically, with no major mountain building, active volcanoes or tectonic faults.[144] However, the Australian plate is moving north-northeast at a rate of about 6 to 7 cm a year and is currently in collision with the Eurasian plate and Pacific plate.[145] The resulting intratectonic stresses lead to relatively high seismic activity for a geologically stable landmass. There were 18 earthquakes with a moment magnitude of greater than 6 between 1901 and 2017.[145] The Newcastle earthquake of 1989 was Australia's deadliest, killing 13 people.[146] There were active volcanoes on the eastern mainland as recently as 4,600 years ago,[147] and this is reflected in Aboriginal place names and creation stories.[148] Currently, volcanism occurs in the remote Heard Island and McDonald Islands.[149]
The Australian continental crust was created in three cycles from the oldest Archaeancratons in the west to the younger orogenic formations in the east (built about 541 million to 252 million years ago).[147][150] The oldest Australian surface rocks date to the Archaean period. Some in Western Australia are older than 3.7 billion years and others in South Australia are over 3.1 billion years old. The oldest zircon crystals on Earth, dating back 4.4 billion years, have been found in Western Australia. However, about 80 per cent of Australia is covered by sedimentary rocks and regolith that are less than 250 million years old.[147]
The Australian climate ranges from wet tropical in the northeast and northwest to arid in the centre. The coastal south is temperate and humid with winter freezing and snow in the southeastern highlands and Tasmania. The climate is influenced by Australia's position in the "horse latitudes", which tends to bring arid conditions.[152] Overall, the Australian mainland is the driest inhabited continent, with an average annual rainfall of 470 millimetres (19 in).[132] About 70% of the country is arid or semi-arid,[132] and about 18% is desert.[153]
The climate is also influenced by various systems such as the El Niño–Southern Oscillation, the Indian Ocean Dipole and the Southern Annular Mode.[154] Australia has unusual variability in rainfall within years and between years, leading to frequent droughts and flooding. Cyclones and rain depressions are common in tropical Australia. The summer monsoon brings significant rainfall to northern Australia and low pressure cells bring winter rainfall in the south. The hottest regions are in the northwest of the country and the coolest in the southeast. Bushfire conditions are common in southern Australia.[152]
Climate change from increased greenhouse gas emissions has led to a 1.5 °C rise in Australian temperatures since 1910 and an increase in extreme heat and heavy rainfall events. There has been a reduction in rainfall from April to October in southern Australia since 1970 and a longer bushfire season since the 1950s. Rainfall has increased in northern Australia since the 1970s. The number of tropical cyclones has fallen since 1982 and alpine snow has decreased since the late 1950s. Sea levels are rising around Australia and the surrounding oceans are becoming more acidic.[154]
In January 2025, there were 168,386 named species on the Australian National Species List.[160] However, it is estimated that 70% of Australian species have not been discovered and classified and that there may be 600,000 Australian native species. In general, knowledge of vertebrates and flowering plants is better than for invertebrates and fungi. It is estimated that less that 10% of Australia's fungi and insects have been named.[161]
About 10% of the world's known plant species are found in Australia.[162] Many of these have adapted to the arid climate, variable rainfall and nutrient-poor soil. Deserts and xeric shrubland cover about 70% of the mainland. Acacia, banksia and eucalypts have spread over much of Australia. Many plants have hard and long-living leaves, and are rich in carbon, poor in nutrients, and well adapted to bushfires.[163]
About two-thirds of the world's 330 species of marsupials are native to Australia.[164] Australian placental mammals (overwhelmingly bats, rats and mice) also make up almost 47% of the world's land mammal species.[165] Australia has about 10% of the world's known reptile species.[166] There are also about 320,500 invertebrate species, of which insects are the largest class, accounting for more than 75% of all animal species.[167] Australia has over 15,000 known species of fungi, although it is possible that tens of thousands more exist.[168]
Australia's wildlife show many adaptations to their environments. As the leaves of most plants are poor in nutrients, Australia has a high proportion of birds, insects and marsupials, such as the honey possum, that feed on nectar and pollen. The koala is an exception, specialising in feeding on eucalyptus leaves.[169][170] Nutritionally poor flora and variable rainfall also favour animals with lower energy requirements, including snakes, lizards, and hopping marsupials such as the kangaroo and wallaby. There is, however, evidence of convergent evolution of Australia's marsupials and the placental mammals of other continents living in similar environments. For example, the extinct thylacine (Tasmanian tiger) had similarities with the placental wolf, marsupial moles with the golden moles of Africa, and hopping mice with the hopping rodents of other arid regions.[170]
There were major extinctions of Australia's vertebrates, including its megafauna, around 46 thousand years ago, and there is an ongoing scientific debate over the role of human activity and climate change in these extinctions. The contraction of the range of the Tasmanian tiger and Tasmanian devil to that island around 4,000 to 5,000 years ago is also consistent with changes on the mainland including an increasing human population, the introduction of the dingo, and the greater use of fire and new stone tool technologies.[171][172]
Over the past two centuries, Australia has lost more mammal species than any other continent. Overall, 100 Australian species are listed as extinct or extinct in the wild. In June 2021, over 1,000 animal and plant species were listed by Australian governments as endangered or critically endangered.[173] The major threats to endangered species are landscape change, ecosystem disruption, introduced species such as the feral cat and red fox, and climate change.[174]
Executive: the Australian Government, led by the prime minister (the leader of the party or coalition with a majority in the House of Representatives), their chosen Cabinet and other ministers; formally appointed by the governor-general[183]
Following elections on 3 May 2025, the prime minister is Anthony Albanese of the Australian Labor Party.[184]Charles III reigns as King of Australia and is represented in Australia by the governor-general at the federal level and by the governors at the state level, who by section 63 of the Constitution and convention act on the advice of their ministers.[185][186] Thus, in practice the governor-general acts as a legal figurehead for the actions of the prime minister and the Cabinet. The governor-general may in some situations exercise reserve powers: powers exercisable in the absence of, or contrary to, ministerial advice. When these powers may be exercised is governed by convention and their precise scope is unclear. The most notable exercise of these powers was the dismissal of the Whitlam government in the constitutional crisis of 1975.[187]
In the Senate (the upper house), there are 76 senators: twelve each from the states and two each from the mainland territories (the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory).[188] The House of Representatives (the lower house) has 150 members elected from single-member electoral divisions, commonly known as "electorates" or "seats", allocated to states on the basis of population, with each of the current states guaranteed a minimum of five seats.[189] The lower house has a maximum term of three years, but this is not fixed and governments usually dissolve the house early for an election at some point in the 6 months before the maximum.[190] Elections for both chambers are generally held simultaneously with senators having overlapping six-year terms except for those from the territories, whose terms are not fixed but are tied to the electoral cycle for the lower house. Thus, only 40 of the 76 places in the Senate are put to each election unless the cycle is interrupted by a double dissolution.[188]
Australia's electoral system uses preferential voting for the House of Representatives and all state and territory lower house elections (with the exception of Tasmania and the ACT which use the Hare-Clark system). The Senate and most state upper houses use the proportional system which combines preferential voting with proportional representation for each state. Voting and enrolment is compulsory for all enrolled citizens 18 years and older in every jurisdiction.[191][192][193] The party with majority support in the House of Representatives forms the government and its leader becomes prime minister. The governor-general appoints the prime minister and may dismiss one who has lost the confidence of parliament or acts illegally.[194] As Australia is a Westminster parliamentary democracy with a powerful and elected upper house, its system has sometimes been called a "Washminster mutation",[180] or semi-parliamentary.[195]
There are two major political groups that have usually formed government federally: the Australian Labor Party and the Coalition which is a grouping of the Liberal Party and its minor partner, the National Party.[196][197] At the state level of government, the relationship between the Nationals and the Liberal Party differs, with the parties merged in Queensland and the Northern Territory (federal parliamentarians, however, sit in either the Liberal or National party room); in coalition in New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia; and in competition with the Liberals in South Australia and Tasmania.[198] Within Australian political culture, the Labor Party is considered centre-left and the Coalition is considered centre-right.[199] Independent members and several minor parties have achieved representation in Australian parliaments, mostly in upper houses. The Australian Greens are the third largest party by both vote and membership.[200][201][when?]
The states have the general power to make laws except in the few areas where the constitution grants the Commonwealth (the federal level of government) exclusive powers.[203][204] The Commonwealth can only make laws on topics listed in the constitution but its laws prevail over those of the states to the extent of any inconsistency.[205][206] Since Federation, the Commonwealth's power relative to the states has significantly increased due to the increasingly wide interpretation given to listed Commonwealth powers – and because of the states' heavy financial reliance on Commonwealth grants.[207][208]
Each state and major mainland territory has its own parliament—unicameral in the Northern Territory, the ACT and Queensland, and bicameral in the other states. The lower houses are known as the Legislative Assembly (the House of Assembly in South Australia and Tasmania); the upper houses are known as the Legislative Council. The head of the government in each state is the premier and in each territory the chief minister. The King is represented in each state by a governor. At the Commonwealth level, the King's representative is the governor-general.[186]
Australia is a member of several defence, intelligence and security groupings including the Five Eyes intelligence alliance with the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and New Zealand; the ANZUS alliance with the United States and New Zealand; the AUKUS security treaty with the United States and United Kingdom; the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue with the United States, India and Japan; the Five Power Defence Arrangements with New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Malaysia and Singapore; and the Reciprocal Access defence and security agreement with Japan.[224][225][226]
The power over foreign policy is highly concentrated in the prime minister and the national security committee, with major decision such as joining the 2003 invasion of Iraq made without prior Cabinet approval.[237][238] Similarly, the Parliament does not play a formal role in foreign policy and the power to declare war lies solely with the executive government.[239] The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade supports the executive in its policy decisions.[240]
In 2021–22, Australia's generation of electricity was sourced from black coal (37.2%), brown coal (12%), natural gas (18.8%), hydro (6.5%), wind (11.1%), solar (13.3%), bio-energy (1.2%) and others (1.7%).[276][277] Total consumption of energy in this period was sourced from coal (28.4%), oil (37.3%), gas (27.4%) and renewables (7%).[278] From 2012 to 2022, the energy sourced from renewables has increased 5.7%, while energy sourced from coal has decreased 2.6%. The use of gas also increased by 1.5% and the use of oil stayed relatively stable with a reduction of only 0.2%.[279]
In 2020, Australia produced 27.7% of its electricity from renewable sources,[280] exceeding the target set by the Commonwealth government in 2009 of 20% renewable energy by 2020.[281] A new target of 82% per cent renewable energy by 2030 was set in 2022[282] and a target for net zero emissions by 2050 was set in 2021.[283]
In 2019, Australia spent $35.6 billion on research and development, allocating about 1.79% of GDP.[284] A 2022 study by the industry lobby group, The Tech Council of Australia, stated that the Australian technology sector combined contributes $167 billion a year to the economy and employs 861,000 people.[285] In 2022, startup ecosystems in Sydney and Melbourne were valued at $34 billion.[286] Australia ranked 22nd in the Global Innovation Index 2025.[287][288]
With only 0.3% of the world's population, Australia contributed over 4% of the world's published research in 2020,[289] making it one of the top 10 research contributors in the world.[290]CSIRO, Australia's national science agency, contributes 10% of all research in the country, while the rest is carried out by universities.[289] Australian achievements include the invention of atomic absorption spectroscopy,[291] the essential components of Wi-Fi technology,[292] and the development of the first commercially successful polymer banknote.[293] As of 2024[update], 13 Australian scientists have been awarded the Nobel Prize in physics, chemistry or medicine,[294] and two have been awarded the Fields Medal.[295]
The population of Australia is estimated to be 28,125,300 as of 5 November 2025.[10] It is the 54th[297] most populous country in the world and the most populous Oceanian country.
Australia is also highly urbanised, with 67% of the population living in the Greater Capital City Statistical Areas (metropolitan areas of the state and mainland territorial capital cities) in 2018.[298] Metropolitan areas with more than one million inhabitants are Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.[24]
In common with many other developed countries, Australia is experiencing a demographic shift towards an older population, with more retirees and fewer people of working age. In 2021, the average age of the population was 39 years.[299]
Australia has five cities (including their suburbs) that have populations larger than one million people. The majority of Australia's population lives near coastlines.[300]
Australian residents by country of birth (2021 census)
Between 1788 and the Second World War, the vast majority of settlers and immigrants came from the British Isles (principally England, Ireland and Scotland), although there was significant immigration from China and Germany during the 19th century. Following Federation in 1901, the white Australia policy was strengthened, restricting further migration from these areas. However, this policy was relaxed following WW2, and in the decades following, Australia received a large wave of immigration from across Europe, with many more immigrants arriving from Southern and Eastern Europe than in previous decades. All overt racial discrimination ended in 1973, with multiculturalism becoming official policy.[302] Subsequently, there has been a large and continuing wave of immigration from across the world, with Asia being the largest source of immigrants in the 21st century.[303]
Today, Australia has the world's eighth-largest immigrant population, with immigrants accounting for 30% of the population, the highest proportion among major Western nations.[304][305] In 2022–23, 212,789 permanent migrants were admitted to Australia, with a net migration population gain of 518,000 people inclusive of non-permanent residents.[306][307] Most entered on skilled visas,[303] however the immigration program also offers visas for family members and refugees.[308]
English has no legal status in Australia but it is the de facto official and national language due to its widespread established use.[313][314]Australian English is a major variety of the language with a distinctive accent and lexicon,[315] and differs slightly from other varieties of English in grammar and spelling.[316]General Australian serves as the standard dialect.[317] The Australian sign language known as Auslan was used at home by 16,242 people at the time of the 2021 census.[318]
At the 2021 census, English was the only language spoken in the home for 72% of the population. The next most common languages spoken at home were Mandarin (2.7%), Arabic (1.4%), Vietnamese (1.3%), Cantonese (1.2%) and Punjabi (0.9%).[319]
More than 250 Australian Aboriginal languages are thought to have existed at the time of first European contact.[320] The National Indigenous Languages Survey (NILS) for 2018–19 found that more than 120 Indigenous language varieties were in use or being revived, although 70 of those in use were endangered.[321] The 2021 census found that 167 Indigenous languages were spoken at home by 76,978 Indigenous Australians — Yumplatok (Torres Strait Creole), Djambarrpuyngu (a YolÅ‹u language) and Pitjantjatjara (a Western Desert language) were among the most widely spoken.[322] NILS and the Australian Bureau of Statistics use different classifications for Indigenous Australian languages.[323]
Australia has no state religion; section 116 of the Australian Constitution prohibits federal legislation that would establish any religion, impose any religious observance, or prohibit the free exercise of any religion.[324] However, the states still retain the power to pass religiously discriminatory laws.[325]
In 2021, just under 8,000 people declared an affiliation with traditional Aboriginal religions.[4] In Australian Aboriginal mythology and the animist framework developed in Aboriginal Australia, the Dreaming is a sacred era in which ancestral totemic spirit beings formed The Creation. The Dreaming established the laws and structures of society and the ceremonies performed to ensure continuity of life and land.[328]
Australia's life expectancy of 83 years (81 years for males and 85 years for females)[329] is the fifth-highest in the world. It has the highest rate of skin cancer in the world,[330] while cigarette smoking is the largest preventable cause of death and disease, responsible for 7.8% of the total mortality and disease. Ranked second in preventable causes is hypertension at 7.6%, with obesity third at 7.5%.[331][332] Australia ranked 35th in the world in 2012 for its proportion of obese women[333] and near the top of developed nations for its proportion of obese adults;[334] 63% of its adult population is either overweight or obese.[335]
Australia spent around 9.91% of its total GDP to health care in 2021.[336] It introduced a national insurance scheme in 1975.[337] Following a period in which access to the scheme was restricted, the scheme became universal once more in 1981 under the name of Medicare.[338] The program is nominally funded by an income tax surcharge known as the Medicare levy, currently at 2%.[339] The states manage hospitals and attached outpatient services, while the Commonwealth funds the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (subsidising the costs of medicines) and general practice.[337]
Australia has the highest ratio of international students per capita in the world, with Melbourne ranking fifth among the 2023 QS Best Student Cities (University of Melbourne pictured).
School attendance, or registration for home schooling,[340] is compulsory throughout Australia. Education is primarily the responsibility of the individual states and territories; however, the Commonwealth has significant influence through funding agreements.[341] Since 2014, a national curriculum developed by the Commonwealth has been implemented by the states and territories.[342] Attendance rules vary between states, but in general children are required to attend school from the age of about 5 until about 16.[343][344] In some states (Western Australia, Northern Territory and New South Wales), children aged 16–17 are required to either attend school or participate in vocational training, such as an apprenticeship.[345][346][347][348] According to the 2022 PISA evaluations, Australian 15-year-olds ranked ninth in the OECD for reading and science and tenth for maths. However, less than 60% of Australian students achieved the National Proficiency Standard – 51% in maths, 58% in science and 57% in reading.[349][350]
Australia has an adult literacy rate that was estimated to be 99% in 2003.[351] However, a 2011–2012 report for the Australian Bureau of Statistics found that 44% of the population does not have high literary and numeracy competence levels, interpreted by others as suggesting that they do not have the "skills needed for everyday life".[352][353][354]
Australia has 37 government-funded universities and three private universities, as well as a number of other specialist institutions that provide approved courses at the higher education level.[355] The OECD places Australia among the most expensive nations to attend university.[356] There is a state-based system of vocational training, known as TAFE, and many trades conduct apprenticeships for training new tradespeople.[357] About 58% of Australians aged from 25 to 64 have vocational or tertiary qualifications[358] and the tertiary graduation rate of 49% is the highest among OECD countries. 30.9% of Australia's population has attained a higher education qualification, which is among the highest percentages in the world.[359][360][361]
Australia has the highest ratio of international students per head of population in the world by a large margin, with 812,000 international students enrolled in the nation's universities and vocational institutions in 2019.[362][363] Accordingly, in 2019, international students represented on average 26.7% of the student bodies of Australian universities. International education therefore represents one of the country's largest exports and has a pronounced influence on the country's demographics, with a significant proportion of international students remaining in Australia after graduation on various skill and employment visas.[364] Education is Australia's third-largest export, after iron ore and coal, and contributed more than $28 billion to the economy in the 2016–17 financial year.[N 12][289]
Many Australians identify egalitarianism, mateship, irreverence and a lack of formality as part of their national identity.[372][373][374] These find expression in Australian slang, as well as Australian humour, which is often characterised as dry, irreverent and ironic.[375][376] New citizens and visa holders are required to commit to "Australian values", which are identified by the Department of Home Affairs as including: a respect for the freedom of the individual; recognition of the rule of law; opposition to racial, gender and religious discrimination; and an understanding of the "fair go", which is said to encompass the equality of opportunity for all and compassion for those in need.[377] What these values mean, and whether Australians uphold them, has been debated since before Federation.[378][379][380][381]
In the performing arts, Aboriginal peoples have traditions of religious and secular song, dance and rhythmic music often performed in corroborees.[50] At the beginning of the 20th century, Nellie Melba was one of the world's leading opera singers,[396] and later popular music acts such as the Bee Gees, AC/DC, INXS and Kylie Minogue achieved international recognition.[397] Many of Australia's performing arts companies receive funding through the Australian government's Australia Council.[398] There is a symphony orchestra in each state,[399] and a national opera company, Opera Australia,[400] well known for its famous sopranoJoan Sutherland.[401] Ballet and dance are represented by The Australian Ballet and various state companies. Each state has a publicly funded theatre company.[402]
Australia has two public broadcasters (the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and the multicultural Special Broadcasting Service), three commercial television networks, several pay-TV services,[410] and numerous public, non-profit television and radio stations. Each major city has at least one daily newspaper,[410] and there are two national daily newspapers, The Australian and The Australian Financial Review.[410] In 2024, Reporters Without Borders placed Australia 39th on a list of 180 countries ranked by press freedom, behind New Zealand (19th) and the United Kingdom (23rd), but ahead of the United States (55th).[411] This relatively low ranking is primarily because of the limited diversity of commercial media ownership in Australia;[412] most print media are under the control of News Corp Australia (59%) and Nine Entertainment (23%).[413]
Most Indigenous Australian groups subsisted on a diet of native fauna and flora, otherwise called bush tucker.[414] It has increased in popularity among non-Indigenous Australians since the 1970s, with examples such as lemon myrtle, the macadamia nut and kangaroo meat now widely available.[415][416]
Post-war migrants transformed Australian cuisine, bringing with them their culinary traditions and contributing to new fusion dishes.[420] Italians introduced espresso coffee and, along with Greeks, helped develop Australia's café culture, of which the flat white and avocado toast are now considered Australian staples.[421][422]Pavlovas, lamingtons, Vegemite and Anzac biscuits are also often called iconic Australian foods.[423]
Australia is a leading exporter and consumer of wine.[424]Australian wine is produced mainly in the southern, cooler parts of the country.[425] The nation also ranks highly in beer consumption,[426] with each state and territory hosting numerous breweries.
The most popular sports in Australia by adult participation are: swimming, athletics, cycling, soccer, golf, tennis, basketball, surfing, netball and cricket.[428]
Australia has professional leagues for four football codes, whose relative popularity is divided geographically.[436] Originating in Melbourne in the 1850s, Australian rules football attracts the most television viewers in all states except New South Wales and Queensland, where rugby league holds sway, followed by rugby union.[437]Soccer, while ranked fourth in television viewers and resources, has the highest overall participation rates.[438]
The surf lifesaving movement originated in Australia in the early 20th century, following the relaxation of laws prohibiting daylight bathing on Australian beaches. The volunteer lifesaver is one of the country's icons.[439][440]
^Australia also has a royal anthem, "God Save the King", which may be played in place of or alongside the national anthem when members of the royal family are present. If not played alongside the royal anthem, the national anthem is instead played at the end of an official event.[1]
^Sydney is the largest city based on Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Greater Capital City Statistical Areas (GCCSAs). These represent labour markets and the functional area of Australian capital cities.[2] Melbourne is larger based on ABS Significant Urban Areas (SUAs). These represent Urban Centres, or groups of contiguous Urban Centres, that contain a population of 10,000 people or more.[3]
^The religion question is optional in the Australian census.
^Includes those who nominate "Australian" as their ancestry.[4] The Australian Bureau of Statistics has stated that most who nominate "Australian" as their ancestry have at least partial Anglo-CelticEuropean ancestry.[312]
^Each person may nominate more than one ancestry, so the total may exceed 100%.[309]
^The Australian Bureau of Statistics has stated that most who nominate "Australian" as their ancestry have at least partial Anglo-CelticEuropean ancestry.[312]
^Those who nominated their ancestry as "Australian Aboriginal". Does not include Torres Strait Islanders. This relates to nomination of ancestry and is distinct from persons who identify as Indigenous (Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander), which is a separate question.
^Indigenous identification is separate to the ancestry question on the Australian Census and persons identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander may identify any ancestry.
^"Australian National Anthem". Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. 19 January 2022. Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
^ ab"Population clock and pyramid". Australian Bureau of Statistics website. Commonwealth of Australia. 5 March 2024. Archived from the original on 8 February 2024. Retrieved 5 March 2024. The population estimate shown is automatically calculated daily at 00:00 UTC and is based on data obtained from the population clock on the date shown in the citation.
^Clarke, Jacqueline; Clarke, Philip (10 August 2014). "Putting 'Australia' on the map". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 2 March 2022. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
^Williams, Elizabeth (2015). "Complex hunter-gatherers: a view from Australia". Antiquity. 61 (232). Cambridge University Press: 310–321. doi:10.1017/S0003598X00052182. S2CID162146349.
^"Torres Strait Islands". Encyclopædia Britannica. 2023 [1998]. Archived from the original on 15 June 2024. Retrieved 17 November 2024. Torres Strait Islands, island group in the Torres Strait, north of Cape York Peninsula, Queensland, Australia, and south of the island of New Guinea. [...] They have been inhabited for at least 2,500 years. The present-day inhabitants are primarily of Melanesian origin, with some mixture of Polynesians and Southeast Asians.
^"Torres, Luis Vaez de (?–?)". Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. 1967. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
^ abReynolds 2022, pp. 103–104, 134, 138–141, 182–192, 241–242
^Rogers, Thomas James; Bain, Stephen (2016). "Genocide and frontier violence in Australia". Journal of Genocide Research. 18: 83–100. doi:10.1080/14623528.2016.1120466. Since Curthoys' assertion in 2008 of a general reluctance to engage directly with the question of genocide in the Australian context, there is now a substantial body of Australian scholarship prepared to utilize genocide frameworks in analysing violence on the Australian frontiers, and to conclude that genocide did indeed occur
^"Lockyer, Edmund (1784–1860)". Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. 1967. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
^"Australia Act 1986 (Cth)". Documenting a Democracy. Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House. Archived from the original on 22 April 2019. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
^"National Reserve System". Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. Archived from the original on 3 March 2025. Retrieved 3 March 2025.
^Evans, Tim (2006). "Compulsory Voting in Australia"(PDF). Australian Electoral Commission. p. 4. Archived(PDF) from the original on 11 June 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2009.
^Brett, Judith (2019). From Secret Ballot to Democracy Sausage: How Australia Got Compulsory Voting. Text Publishing Co. ISBN978-1-9256-0384-2.
^"Governor-General's Role". Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia. Archived from the original on 14 October 2012. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
^Fenna, Alan; Robbins, Jane; Summers, John (2013). Government Politics in Australia. London: Pearson Higher Education AU. p. 139. ISBN978-1-4860-0138-5.
^Pyke, John (2020). Government powers under a Federal Constitution: constitutional law in Australia (2nd ed.). Pyrmont, NSW: Lawbook Co. pp. 405–6. ISBN978-0-455-24415-0.
^Pyke, John (2020). Government powers under a Federal Constitution: constitutional law in Australia (2nd ed.). Pyrmont, NSW: Lawbook Co. pp. 528–30, 577–80. ISBN978-0-455-24415-0.
^Australian Constitution (Cth) s 109. "When a law of a State is inconsistent with a law of the Commonwealth, the latter shall prevail, and the former shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be invalid."
^Pyke, John (2020). Government powers under a Federal Constitution: constitutional law in Australia (2nd ed.). Pyrmont, NSW: Lawbook Co. pp. 607–9. ISBN978-0-455-24415-0.
^Beck, Luke (2020). Australian constitutional law: concepts and cases. Port Melbourne, VIC: Cambridge university press. pp. 521–8. ISBN978-1-108-70103-7.
^Norfolk Island previously was self-governed, however this was revoked in 2015.[209][210]
^This Antarctic claim is recognised by only by New Zealand, the United Kingdom, France, and Norway.
^"Australian Territories". Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts. Archived from the original on 8 March 2024. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
^ ab2017 Foreign Policy White Paper(PDF) (Report). Australian Government. 2017. pp. 1–8. Archived(PDF) from the original on 19 January 2024. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
^Firth, Stewart (2011). Australia in international politics: an introduction to Australian foreign policy (3rd ed.). Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin. pp. 332–8. ISBN978-1-74237-263-1.
^Capling, Ann (2013). Australia and the Global Trade System: From Havana to Seattle. Cambridge University Press. p. 116. ISBN978-0-5217-8525-9.
^Gallagher, P. W. (1988). "Setting the agenda for trade negotiations: Australia and the Cairns group". Australian Journal of International Affairs. 42 (1 April 1988): 3–8. doi:10.1080/10357718808444955.
^Firth, Stewart (2011). Australia in international politics: an introduction to Australian foreign policy (3rd ed.). Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin. pp. 78–84. ISBN978-1-74237-263-1.
^"The Beach". Australian Government: Culture Portal. Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Commonwealth of Australia. 17 March 2008. Archived from the original on 26 February 2010.
^Ward, Rowena (2019). "'National' and 'Official' Languages Across the Independent Asia-Pacific". Journal of Multidisciplinary International Studies. 16 (1/2): 83–4. doi:10.5130/pjmis.v16i1-2.6510. The use of English in Australia is one example of both a de facto national and official language: it is widely used and is the language of government and the courts, but has never been legally designated as the country's official language.
^ abBiggs, Amanda (29 October 2004). "Medicare – Background Brief". Parliament of Australia: Parliamentary Library. Canberra, ACT: Commonwealth of Australia. Archived from the original on 14 April 2010. Retrieved 16 April 2010.
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^"Our system of education". Australian Government: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 13 January 2012.
^Fund, Leith van OnselenLeith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB; Treasury, MB Super Leith has previously worked at the Australian; Treasury, Victorian; Sachs, Goldman (31 October 2019). "Australian universities double down on international students". MacroBusiness.
^White, Richard (1 January 1983). "A Backwater Awash: The Australian Experience of Americanisation". Theory, Culture and Society. 1 (3): 108–122. doi:10.1177/026327648300100309. S2CID144339300.
^"Sidney Nolan's Rainbow Serpent is larger than life" (16 June 2012), The Australasian.
^Tacon, Paul S. C.; Ouzman, Sven (2004). "Worlds within stone: the inner and outer rock-art landscapes of northern Australia and southern Africa". In Nash, George; Chippindale, Christopher (ed.). The Figured Landscapes of Rock-Art: Looking at Pictures in Place. Cambridge University Press. pp. 39–68. 9780521524247.
^Smith, Terry (1996). "Kngwarreye Woman, Abstract Painter", p. 24 in Emily Kngwarreye – Paintings, North Ryde NSW: Craftsman House / G + B Arts International. ISBN978-90-5703-681-1.
^Sarwal, Amit; Sarwal, Reema (2009). Reading Down Under: Australian Literary Studies Reader. SSS Publications. p. xii. ISBN978-8-1902-2821-3.
^Mulligan, Martin; Hill, Stuart (2001). Ecological Pioneers: A Social History of Australian Ecological Thought and Action. Cambridge University Press. ISBN978-0-5210-0956-0, p. 72.
^O'Keeffe, Dennis (2012). Waltzing Matilda: The Secret History of Australia's Favourite Song. Allen & Unwin. p. back cover. ISBN978-1-7423-7706-3.
^"Culture.gov.au – "Film in Australia"". Australian Government: Culture Portal. Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Commonwealth of Australia. 22 November 2007. Archived from the original on 27 March 2011.
^Jonsen, Helen (1999). Kangaroo's Comments and Wallaby's Words: The Aussie Word Book. Hippocrene Books. p. 23. ISBN978-0-7818-0737-1.
^Newton, John (2018). The Getting of Garlic: Australian Food from Bland to Brilliant, with Recipes Old and New. NewSouth Publishing. ISBN 9781742244365, pp. 32, 230–231.
^Harte, Chris; Whimpress, Bernard (2008). The Penguin History of Australian Cricket (3rd ed.). Camberwell, Vic: Viking. pp. 92–94, 528, 722. ISBN9780670072880.
^Skinner, James; Zakus H., Dwight; Edwards, Allan (2013). "Coming in from the Margins: Ethnicity, Community Support and the Rebranding of Australian Soccer". In Adam, Brown (ed.). Football and Community in the Global Context: Studies in Theory and Practice. Routledge. pp. 92–93. ISBN978-1-317-96905-1.
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