British Commonwealth of Nations

The Commonwealth of Nations is an organisation of 53 member states that were mostly territories of
the former British Empire. It was established in 1949. The formal head of Commonwealth is a British
monarch, now Queen Elizabeth II. Its population is around 2,3 billion people, which is around 30% of
the world’s population. The Commonwealth’s main goals are to create a stable economy, propagate
democracy, world peace and human rights.

Australia
Geography
Australia is both the world’s largest island and smallest continent. It is also the only continent which
is a single country. It is located south of Asia, between the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Australia is
made up of six states and two territories (New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, Tasmania, South
Australia, Western Australia, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory.) The capital
city is Canberra, but the largest city is Sydney. The longest river is the Murray River and the largest
lake is lake Eyre. The highest mountain is Mount Kosciuszko.

Population
Australia’s population is around 24 million people. The main, and official, language of Australia is
English, but Australians often have a very strong accent and they use a lot of slang terms.

History
The first people there were the Aborigines, who arrived in Australia about 10 000 years ago. In the
17th century, it was discovered by a Dutch explorer, Abel Tasman. Today, only 1.5% of Australia’s
population are Aborigines. In the 18th century, the British explorer, James Cook, claimed Australia for
Britain and Britons would send their prisoners there. In the 1850s gold was discovered and many
people moved to Australia.

Political system
The Commonwealth of Australia (the official title) is a constitutional monarchy. Formally, the head of
state is the British monarchy, currently Queen Elizabeth II, but her representative is the Governor
General, currently Sir Peter Cosgrove. The government is led by the prime minister. Voting is
compulsory in Australia, so if a voter doesn’t vote, they can be fined.

The Australian Flag consists of the Union Jack in the upper-left-hand corner on the blue background.
Underneath is the seven-pointed Commonwealth Star and on the right-hand side is the Southern
Cross, made up of five white stars (1x small five-pointed star, 4x larger seven-pointed stars.)

The “unofficial” national anthem of Australia is Waltzing Matilda. It contains many slang words: swag
(tent, bed roll), billabong (river), jumbuck (sheep) and billy (pot).

Interesting information
Thanks to the climate and geographical isolation of the continent, there are unique animal species
like kangaroos, koala bears, Tasmanian devils and platypuses. Australia also has some of the most
dangerous animals in the world for example venomous snakes and spiders, saltwater crocodiles,
sharks and jellyfish.

The most popular sports are cricket, rugby and soccer. A lot of Aussies love diving and surfing.

Famous Australians: Kylie Minogue, Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, the Hemsworth brothers
Canada
Canada is the second largest country in the world. It is in the northern part of North America. The
country is divided into 10 provinces (British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario,
Quebec, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island) and 3
territories (Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon). The capital city is Ottawa, but the largest city
is Toronto. The longest river is the Waikato River and the largest lake is the Lake Taupo. The highest
mountain is Mount Logan.

The official languages are English and French. Popular sports include ice-hockey, American football,
basketball, lacrosse and curling.

Famous Canadians: Justin Bieber, Leonard Cohen, Celine Dion, Jim Carrey

New Zealand
New Zealand is an island located in the South Pacific. It consists of two main islands and several small
islands. The North Island has a lot of volcanic activity. The capital city is Wellington, but the largest
city is Auckland. The longest river is the Mackenzie River and the largest lake is the Great Bear Lake.
The highest mountain is Mount Cook.

The native inhabitants are Maori. The traditional Maori war dance ‘Haka’ is used today during rugby
matches by New Zealand’s players to scare opponents.

Famous Kiwis/New Zealanders: Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings was filmed there), Edmund
Hillary