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UNIT FIVE
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND
Figure 5.1 Map of Australia (
Source: An Atlas World Maps, 2001)When we talk about Australia, we always talk about New Zealand becausethese two countries are located in the same region and they are the countries whichknown as English-speaking countries. Australia is the smallest continent in theworld, but the sixth largest country. It is the island continent located southeast of Asia and forming, with the nearby island of Tasmania, the Commonwealth of Australia, a self-governing member of theCommonwealth of Nations.Australia andNew Zealand are discussed in details in the following passages.
Figure 5.2 Australia Flag (
Source: Media Encarta, 2001)
 
PASSAGE 1An Overview of Australia
Most of Australia's native mammals are marsupials, including the koala. Koalas live in the eucalyptus forestsof eastern Australia, where they feed on the leaves and flowers of certain species of eucalyptus, as well ason mistletoe and box leaves.
Figure 5.3 Koala (
Source: Atkinson, 2001)
WORDS TO KNOW
Aborigines (n)range (v)bushfires (n) remain (v)drought (v) settlement (n)federate (v)prevail (v)interior (n)prevalence (n)
ACTIVITYDirection:
 Read the passage and then answer the questions.
The Commonwealth of Australia comprises six states and two territories. Thestates and their capitals are New South Wales (Sydney), Victoria (Melbourne),Queensland (Brisbane), South Australia (Adelaide), Western Australia (Perth), andTasmania (Hobart). The territories and their chief cities are the Australian CapitalTerritory (Canberra) and the Northern Territory (Darwin).The major cities of Australia areSydney,a seaport and commercial center;Melbourne,a cultural center;Brisbane,a seaport;Perth, a seaport on the western coast; andAdelaide,an agricultural center.Canberra,the national capital, is much smaller in population.
 
Tall buildings line the far side of the Brisbane River in Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, Australia. Theriver has been dredged to accommodate ocean-going vessels, establishing Brisbane as a major seaport. Thecity originated from a British penal station started in 1824 and developed into a transportation and tradecenter for the region's rich mining and agricultural resources.
Figure 5.4 Brisbane (
Source: Media Encarta, 2001)The first people to live in Australia, calledAborigines
,
migrated there about40,000 years ago. The continent remained relatively unknown by outsiders until the17th century. The first European settlement by British convicts occurred in 1788 atBotany Bay in southeastern Australia. Australia grew as a group of British coloniesduring the 19th century, and in 1901 the colonies federated to form a unifiedindependent nation. 
Figure 5.5 Aborigines (
Source: Media Encarta, 2001)
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