Australia

Australia

Australia


Australia is the only country in the world that is also a continent. It is the sixth large country and the smallest continent. Australia lies between the South Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean. It is situated about 11 000 km southwest of North America and about 8 200 km southeast of mainland Asia. The name of the country comes from Latin word «australis» which mean southern. The country’s official name is Commonwealth of Australia.
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federation of states. Australia has six states — New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. Each state has its government. Australia has two territories — the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory. The capital of the country is Canberra.
Australia is a constitutional monarchy like Great Britain. The nation is administered under written constitution.

The British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, is also queen of Australia and country’s head of state. But the queen has little power in the Australian government. She serves mainly as a symbol of long historical tie between Great Britain and Australia. Australia is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations which is an association formed by Britain and some of its former colonies.
It is one of the world’s developed countries. The country has modem factories, highly productive mines and farms, and busy cities. It is the world’s leading producer of wool and bauxite (the ore from which aluminium is made). It also produces and exports large amounts of other minerals and farm goods. Income from the export enables Australians to have high standard of living. The most important trading partners of Australia are Japan and the United States.

Questions:
1. Where does the Australia lie?
2. What is the official name of the country?
3. What is the capital of the country?
4. Who is the country’s head of state?
5. Is there a written constitution in Australia?
6. What are the main products of Australia?
7. What are the most important trade partners of the country?

Австралия
Австралия — это единственная страна в мире, являющаяся также континентом. Она является шестой по размерам страной в мире и самым маленьким континентом. Австралия находится между Тихим океаном и Индийским океаном. Она расположена почти в 11000 км к юго-западу от Северной Америки и в 3200 км к юго-востоку от материковой Азии. Название страны происходит от латинского слова «australis», которое означает «южный». Официальное название страны — Австралийский союз.
Австралийский союз — это федерация штатов. Австралия состоит из шести штатов: Нового Южного Уэльса, Квинсленда, Южной Австралии, Тасмании, Виктории и Западной Австралии. В состав Австралии входят две территории: территория Федеральной столицы и Северная территория. Столица Австралии — город Канберра.
Австралия — конституционная монархия, как и Великобритания. Государство управляется согласно записанной конституции. Британский монарх, королева Елизавета II, является также королевой Австралии и главой государства. Однако королева не обладает большой властью в австралийском правительстве. Она, в основном, служит символом давних исторических связей между Великобританией и Австралией. Австралия является членом Британского Содружества наций, которое является ассоциацией, состоящей из Британии и некоторых ее бывших колоний.
Австралия является одной из наиболее развитых стран мира. В Австралии есть современные фабрики, высокопроизводительные шахты и фермы, города с высокой степенью деловой активности. Она является ведущим производителем шерсти и бокситов (руд, из которых производят алюминий). Она также производит и экспортирует в больших количествах другие полезные ископаемые и сельскохозяйственную продукцию. Доход от экспорта позволяет Австралии поддерживать высокий уровень жизни. Важнейшими торговыми партнерами Австралии являются Япония и Соединенные Штаты.

Источник: 100 тем английского языка. Авторы Каверина В. Бойко В. Жидких Н.

The Commonwealth of Australia.

The Commonwealth of the country is a self-government federal state. It has six states: new south Wales, Victoria, Queens land, south Australia, western Australia and two internal territories. It is situated in the southwestern of the Pacific Ocean. The area of this country has 7000000 square kilometers. Australia is the largest island in the world and the smallest continent. The Dutch were the first Europeans to visit it. In the 1770 the English captain James Cook discovered the East Coast of Australia. Nearly 20 millions people live in Australia. The capital of the country is Canberra, this city become a capital in 1927. Federal government works in Canberra in the government buildings. There are no industrial plants in the town. The population of Canberra is about 300 000 people. There are many sits in the city. They are the buildings of Australian academy of sings, the Australian national university and others. There are two big industrial cities in Australia: Sydney and Melbourne. Australian climate is dry and warm. Australia is situated in the Southern Hemisphere and that is why it has summer when we have winter. January is the hottest month in Australia.
It is separated from many countries. The animals in the country have developed differently. They are interesting. You can see the dingo, wild dog which killed others animals in night, the kangaroo and many parrots there. There are many and lakes in the country. Australia is an industrial country. It has coil, nickel, zinc and gold. Australia is one of the most important produces of metals and minerals. It exports wool production, meat, fruit and sugar. The Australia is situated near the ocean. Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane are the ports of the country. There are many universities, theaters and museums in Australia. There are some political parties in Australia: the liberal party, the labor party and two socialist parties of the country.