97-648: West Australian refers to people or things from the Australian state of Western Australia . West Australian may also refer to: Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia . It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Australia
194-405: A humpy , gunyah, or wurley. Clothing included the possum-skin cloak in the southeast, buka cloak in the southwest and riji (pearl shells) in the northeast. There is evidence that some Aboriginal populations in northern Australia regularly traded with Makassan fishermen from Indonesia before the arrival of Europeans. At the time of first European contact, it is generally estimated that
291-683: A capacity of 23,200 cubic metres per day (146,000 barrels per day) until its closure in 2021, producing most of the state's petrol and diesel. Kwinana also hosts alumina and nickel processing plants, port facilities for grain and other bulk exports, and support industries for mining and petroleum such as heavy and light engineering, and metal fabrication. Shipbuilding (e.g. Austal ) and associated support industries are found at nearby Henderson , just north of Kwinana. Significant secondary industries include cement and building product manufacturing, flour milling, food processing, animal feed production, automotive body building and printing. Western Australia has
388-527: A comparative advantage in resource extraction and processing. As a consequence: In 2019 Western Australia's overseas exports accounted for 46% of the nation's total. The state's major export commodities included iron-ore, petroleum, gold, alumina , nickel, wheat, copper, lithium, chemicals and mineral sands. Western Australia is the world's largest iron-ore producer (34% of the world's total), and extracts 66% (6.9% of world production) of Australia's 306 tonnes (9.8 million troy ounces) of gold in 2022. It
485-537: A diverse range of climates, including tropical conditions in the Kimberley , deserts in the interior (including the Great Sandy Desert , Little Sandy Desert , Gibson Desert , and Great Victoria Desert ) and a Mediterranean climate on the south-west and southern coastal areas. As of 2021, the state has 2.91 million inhabitants—11 percent of the national total. Over 90 percent of the state's population live in
582-454: A further 1,196 species currently recognised but unpublished. They occur within 1,543 genera from 211 families ; there are also 1,276 naturalised alien or invasive plant species, more commonly known as weeds. In the southwest region are some of the largest numbers of plant species for its area in the world. Western Australia's ecoregions include the sandstone gorges of the Kimberley on
679-403: A lack of storage and refrigeration facilities favour live animals over imports of processed meat. About half of Australia's live cattle exports come from Western Australia. Resource sector growth in recent years has resulted in significant labour and skills shortages, leading to recent efforts by the state government to encourage interstate and overseas immigration. According to the 2006 census,
776-553: A land bridge between the island and the rest of mainland Australia during the last glacial period . Estimates of the population of the Aboriginal people of Tasmania, before European arrival, are in the range of 3,000 to 15,000 people. However, genetic studies have suggested significantly higher figures, which are supported by Indigenous oral traditions that indicate a decline in population from diseases introduced by British and American sealers before settlement. The original population
873-712: A major centre for associated services. Outside of mining, primary industry is the other significant contributor to the state's economy, including agriculture in the Wheatbelt and temperate southern coastal regions, pastoralism in marginal grassland areas, forestry in the south-west and fishing (including pearling and, historically, whaling ). Western Australia has a geological history dating back to 4.4 billion years ago when Hadean zircons were formed. The earliest direct known life on land, known as stromatolites , started to be created by microbes at around 3.48 billion years ago. The first human inhabitants of Australia arrived from
970-511: A result, the South West region of the state has a higher concentration of rare, threatened or endangered flora and fauna than many areas of Australia, making it one of the world's biodiversity "hot spots". Large areas of the state's wheatbelt region have problems with dryland salinity and the loss of fresh water. The southwest coastal area has a Mediterranean climate . It was originally heavily forested, including large stands of karri , one of
1067-545: A scientific paper, General view of the botany of the vicinity of Swan River . It discusses the vegetation of the Swan River Colony . Europeans began to settle permanently in 1826 when Albany was claimed by Britain to forestall French claims to the western third of the continent. Perth was founded as the Swan River Colony in 1829 by British and Irish settlers, though the outpost languished. Its officials eventually requested convict labour to augment its population. By
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#17328444880411164-572: A significant fishing industry. Products for local consumption and export include western rock lobsters , prawns, crabs, shark and tuna, as well as pearl fishing in the Kimberley region of the state. Processing is conducted along the west coast. Whaling was a key marine industry but ceased at Albany in 1978. Western Australia has the world's biggest plantations of both Indian sandalwood (northern WA) and Australian sandalwood (semi-arid regions), which are used to produce sandalwood oil and incense . The WA sandalwood industry provides about 40% of
1261-668: A single founding Sahul group with subsequent isolation between regional populations which were relatively unaffected by later migrations from the Asian mainland, which may have introduced the dingo 4–5,000 years ago. The research also suggests a divergence from the Papuan people of New Guinea and the Mamanwa people of the Philippines about 32,000 years ago, with a rapid population expansion about 5,000 years ago. A 2011 genetic study found evidence that
1358-564: A time when changes in tool technology and food processing appear in the Australian archaeological record, suggesting that these may be related. Mallick et al. 2016 and Mark Lipson et al. 2017 study found that the bifurcation of Eastern Eurasian and Western Eurasian dates back to least 45,000 years ago, with Australasians nested inside the Eastern Eurasian clade. Aboriginal Australian men have Haplogroup C-M347 in high frequencies with peak estimates ranging from 60.2% to 68.7%. In addition,
1455-483: Is 1,862 km (1,157 mi). There are 20,781 km (12,913 mi) of coastline, including 7,892 km (4,904 mi) of island coastline. The total land area occupied by the state is 2.5 million km (970 thousand sq mi). The bulk of Western Australia consists of the extremely old Yilgarn craton and Pilbara craton which merged with the Deccan Plateau of India, Madagascar and
1552-553: Is Australia’s largest state, with a land area of 2,527,013 square kilometres (975,685 sq mi), and is also the second-largest subdivision of any country on Earth, surpassed only by the Sakha Republic in eastern Russia, and formerly Northwest Territories in Canada, before the creation of Nunavut. It is also the largest proper subnational entity, being a state rather than a territory or an autonomous region. Western Australia has
1649-447: Is a major world producer of bauxite, which is processed into alumina at four refineries providing 11% of total world production. Until 2020 diamonds were extracted from the world's largest diamond mine in the far north Kimberley region. Coal mined at Collie is the main fuel for baseload electricity generation in the state's south-west. Agricultural production in WA is a major contributor to
1746-461: Is attributed by historians as an important factor driving the state's population and economic growth. Following a campaign led by Forrest, electors of the colony of Western Australia voted in favour of federation with the five other Australian colonies, resulting in Western Australia officially becoming a state on 1 January 1901. Western Australia is bounded to the east by longitude 129°E,
1843-649: Is complex and multi-layered, but a few examples are Anangu in northern South Australia , and neighbouring parts of Western Australia and Northern Territory ; Arrernte in central Australia; Koori (or Koorie) in New South Wales and Victoria ( Aboriginal Victorians ); Goorie (variant pronunciation and spelling of Koori) in South East Queensland and some parts of northern New South Wales; Murri , used in parts of Queensland and northern New South Wales where specific collective names are not used; Tiwi people of
1940-567: Is currently tilted 10 degrees away from the South Pole towards Western Australia, allowing for aurora australis displays as far north as Geraldton . Western Australia is home to around 630 species of birds (depending on the taxonomy used). Of these around 15 are endemic to the state. The best areas for birds are the southwestern corner of the state and the area around Broome and the Kimberley. The Flora of Western Australia comprises 10,162 published native vascular plant species, along with
2037-533: Is estimated that people migrated from the Indonesian archipelago and New Guinea to mainland Australia about 70,000 years ago, as of 2020 evidence of human settlement in the Torres Strait has only been uncovered by archaeologists dating back to about 2500 years ago. Aboriginal people in some regions lived as foragers and hunter-gatherers , hunting and foraging for food from the land. Although Aboriginal society
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#17328444880412134-464: Is now estimated that all but 13 remaining Indigenous languages are considered endangered. Aboriginal people today mostly speak English, with Aboriginal phrases and words being added to create Australian Aboriginal English (which also has a tangible influence of Indigenous languages in the phonology and grammatical structure). Around three quarters of Australian place names are of Aboriginal origin. The Indigenous population prior to European settlement
2231-497: Is now known as Cape Inscription, Dirk Hartog Island . For the rest of the 17th century, other Dutch and British navigators encountered the coast of what Abel Tasman named New Holland in 1644, usually unintentionally as demonstrated by the many shipwrecks along the coast of ships that deviated from the Brouwer Route (because of poor navigation and storms). By the late 18th century, British and French sailors had begun to explore
2328-470: Is required. Genetic studies have revealed that Aboriginal Australians largely descended from an Eastern Eurasian population wave during the Initial Upper Paleolithic , and are most closely related to other Oceanians , such as Melanesians . The Aboriginal Australians also show affinity to other Australasian populations, such as Negritos or Ancient Ancestral South Indians groups, such as
2425-621: Is sometimes used as part of a wider social movement (seen in terms such as " Blaktivism " and "Blak History Month" ). The term was coined in 1991 by photographer and multimedia artist Destiny Deacon , in an exhibition entitled Blak lik mi . For Deacon's 2004 exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art , blak was defined in a museum guide as: "a term used by some Aboriginal people to reclaim historical, representational, symbolical, stereotypical and romanticised notions of Black or Blackness. Often used as ammunition or inspiration." Deacon said that removing
2522-400: Is the northern tropical regions. The Kimberley has an extremely hot monsoonal climate with average annual rainfall ranging from 500 to 1,500 millimetres (20–60 in), but there is a very long almost rainless season from April to November. Eighty-five percent of the state's runoff occurs in the Kimberley, but because it occurs in violent floods and because of the insurmountable poverty of
2619-510: Is unlikely as the Indigenous custodians are not expected to allow further invasive investigations. It is generally believed that Aboriginal people are the descendants of a single migration into the continent, a people that split from the ancestors of East Asians. Recent work with mitochondrial DNA suggests a founder population of between 1,000 and 3,000 women to produce the genetic diversity observed, which suggests that "initial colonisation of
2716-693: The Andamanese people , as well as to East Asian peoples . Phylogenetic data suggests that an early initial eastern non-African (ENA) or East-Eurasian meta-population trifurcated, and gave rise to Australasians (Oceanians), the Ancient Ancestral South Indians, Andamanese and the East/Southeast Asian lineage including the ancestors of Native Americans , although Papuans may have also received some geneflow from an earlier group (xOOA) as well, around 2%, next to additional archaic admixture in
2813-708: The Australian Aboriginal flag and the Torres Strait Islander flag have been official flags of Australia . The time of arrival of the first human beings in Australia is a matter of debate and ongoing investigation. The earliest conclusively human remains found in Australia are those of Mungo Man LM3 and Mungo Lady , which have been dated to around 40,000 years ago, although Indigenous Australians have most likely been living in Australia for upwards of 65,000 years. Isolated for millennia by rising sea water after
2910-624: The Group Settlement Scheme of the 1920s, which encouraged farmers to settle the southwest—increased awareness of Australia's western third as a destination for colonists. Led by immigrants from the British Isles, Western Australia's population developed at a faster rate during the twentieth century than it had previously. After World War II , both the eastern states and Western Australia received large numbers of Italians , Croatians and Macedonians . Despite this, Britain has contributed
3007-572: The Kaapvaal and Zimbabwe cratons of Southern Africa, in the Archean Eon to form Ur , one of the oldest supercontinents on Earth (3 – 3.2 billion years ago). In May 2017, evidence of the earliest known life on land may have been found in 3.48-billion-year-old geyserite and other related mineral deposits (often found around hot springs and geysers ) uncovered in the Pilbara craton. Because
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3104-496: The Latin ab (from) and origo (origin, beginning). The term was used in Australia as early as 1789 to describe its Aboriginal peoples . It became capitalised and was used as the common term to refer to both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. Today the latter peoples are not included in this term. The term "Aborigine" (as opposed to "Aboriginal") is often disfavoured, as it is regarded as having colonialist connotations. While
3201-610: The Pila Nguru of Western Australia ). Several settlements of humans in Australia have been dated around 49,000 years ago. Luminescence dating of sediments surrounding stone artefacts at Madjedbebe , a rock shelter in northern Australia, indicates human activity at 65,000 years BP. Genetic studies appear to support an arrival date of 50–70,000 years ago. The earliest anatomically modern human remains found in Australia (and outside of Africa) are those of Mungo Man ; they have been dated at 42,000 years old. The initial comparison of
3298-535: The Sahul region. Rasmussen et al. 2011 shows that Aboriginal Australian have a lower proportion of European alleles compared to Asians, which they believe is indicative of a multiple dispersal model. Genetically, while Aboriginal Australians are most closely related to Melanesian and Papuan people, McEvoy et al. 2010 believed there is also another component that could indicate Ancient Ancestral South Indian admixture or more recent European influence. Research indicates
3395-469: The Tasmanian catastrophe genocide". A woman named Trugernanner (often rendered as Truganini ), who died in 1876, was, and still is, widely believed to be the last of the "full-blooded" Tasmanian Aboriginal people. However, in 1889 Parliament recognised Fanny Cochrane Smith (d. 1905) as the last surviving "full-blooded" Tasmanian Aboriginal person. The 2016 census reported 23,572 Indigenous Australians in
3492-891: The Tiwi Islands off Northern Territory; and Palawah in Tasmania . The largest Aboriginal communities – the Pitjantjatjara , the Arrernte, the Luritja , and the Warlpiri – are all from Central Australia . Throughout the history of the continent, there have been many different Aboriginal groups, each with its own individual language , culture, and belief structure. At the time of British settlement, there were over 200 distinct languages. The Tasmanian Aboriginal population are thought to have first crossed into Tasmania approximately 40,000 years ago via
3589-569: The c from black to "de-weaponise the term 'black cunt ' " was "taking on the 'colonisers' language and flipping it on its head". Contemporary Aboriginal arts in the 21st century are sometimes referred to as a "Blak" arts movement, expressed in names such as BlakDance, BlakLash Collective, and the title of Thelma Plum 's song and album, Better in Blak . Melbourne has an annual Blak & Bright literary festival, Blak Dot Gallery, Blak Markets, and Blak Cabaret. Aboriginal peoples of Australia are
3686-435: The didgeridoo . Although there are a number of cultural commonalities among Indigenous Australians, there is also a great diversity among different communities. The 2022 Australian census recorded 167 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages used at home by some 76,978 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. At the time of European colonisation, it is estimated that there were over 250 Aboriginal languages . It
3783-519: The language group (such as Arrernte ), or demonym relating to geographic area (such as Nunga ), is considered best practice and most respectful. European colonials from their early settlement used the term "Black" to refer to Aboriginal Australians. While the term originally related to skin colour and was often used pejoratively, today the term is used to indicate Aboriginal heritage or culture in general. It refers to any people of such heritage regardless of their level of skin pigmentation. In
3880-409: The message stick . Weapons included boomerangs , spears (sometimes thrown with a woomera ) with stone or fishbone tips, clubs, and (less commonly) axes. The Stone Age tools available included knives with ground edges, grinding devices, and eating containers. Fibrecraft was well-developed, and fibre nets, baskets, and bags were used for fishing, hunting, and carrying liquids. Trade networks spanned
3977-403: The mitochondrial DNA from the skeleton known as Lake Mungo 3 (LM3) with that of ancient and modern Aboriginal peoples indicated that Mungo Man is not related to Australian Aboriginal peoples. However, these findings have been met with a general lack of acceptance in scientific communities. The sequence has been criticised as there has been no independent testing, and it has been suggested that
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4074-612: The south-west corner and around 80 percent live in the state capital Perth , leaving the remainder of the state sparsely populated. The Trans-Australian Railway and the Eyre Highway traverse the Nullarbor Plain in the state's south-east, providing the principal connection between Western Australia and the population centres in the eastern states . Western Australia's Indigenous peoples have been present for tens of thousands of years. Dutch explorers visited Western Australia from
4171-484: The tallest trees in the world. This agricultural region is one of the nine most bio-diverse terrestrial habitats, with a higher proportion of endemic species than most other equivalent regions. Thanks to the offshore Leeuwin Current , the area is one of the top six regions for marine biodiversity and contains the most southerly coral reefs in the world. Average annual rainfall varies from 300 millimetres (12 in) at
4268-439: The "final 2021 Census-based estimated resident population". Of these, 91.7% identified as Aboriginal; 4.0% identified as Torres Strait Islander; 4.3% identified with both groups. The term Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples or the person's specific cultural group, is often preferred, though the terms First Nations of Australia, First Peoples of Australia and First Australians are also increasingly common. Since 1995,
4365-460: The 17th century, with Dirk Hartog 's 1616 expedition the first Europeans to make landfall. The British claimed Western Australia in 1827 and established the Swan River Colony with Perth as its capital in 1829. The Western Australian gold rushes of the late 19th century resulted in a significant population influx. The colony was granted responsible government in 1890, the last of the Australian colonies to become self-governing, and federated with
4462-556: The 1890s around Kalgoorlie . In 1887, a new constitution was drafted, providing for the right of self-governance of European Australians, and in 1890, the act granting self-government to the colony was passed by the British Parliament . John Forrest became the first Premier of Western Australia . In 1896, after discoveries of gold at Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie , the Western Australian Parliament authorised
4559-625: The 1970s, with a rise in Aboriginal activism, leaders such as Gary Foley proudly embraced the term "Black". For example, writer Kevin Gilbert 's book of that time was entitled Living Black . The book included interviews with several members of the Aboriginal community, including Robert Jabanungga , who reflected on contemporary Aboriginal culture. Use of this term varies depending on context, and its use needs care as it may be deemed inappropriate. The term "Black" has sometimes caused confusion as being applied to contemporary African immigrants rather than
4656-433: The 2016 census, 75.2% of inhabitants spoke only English at home, with the next most common languages being Mandarin (1.9%), Italian (1.2%), Vietnamese (0.8%), Cantonese (0.8%) and Tagalog (0.6%). According to the 2021 census, Christianity is the major religious affiliation in WA, followed by 41.1% of its population. In 1971, Christianity was followed by 85.5% of the population and it has been declining since, while
4753-468: The 2021 Australian Census, representing 3.2% of the total population of Australia. Of these Indigenous Australians, 91.4% identified as Aboriginal; 4.2% identified as Torres Strait Islander; while 4.4% identified with both groups. However, the Government has stated that as of 30 June 2021, there are 983,700 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, representing 3.8% of the total population of Australia, as
4850-455: The 21st century there is consensus that it is important to respect the "preferences of individuals, families, or communities, and allow them to define what they are most comfortable with" when referring to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The word ' aboriginal ' has been in the English language since at least the 16th century to mean "first or earliest known, indigenous". It comes from
4947-507: The Aboriginal population. Nevertheless, a population collapse, principally from new infectious diseases, followed European colonisation. A smallpox epidemic spread for three years after the arrival of Europeans. Massacres , frontier armed conflicts and competition over resources with European settlers also contributed to the decline of the Aboriginal peoples. From the 19th to the mid-20th century, government policy removed many mixed heritage children from Aboriginal communities, with
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#17328444880415044-597: The Aboriginal, Papuan and Mamanwa peoples carry some of the alleles associated with the Denisovan peoples of Asia, (not found amongst populations in mainland Asia) suggesting that modern and archaic humans interbred in Asia approximately 44,000 years ago, before Australia separated from New Guinea and the migration to Australia. A 2012 paper reports that there is also evidence of a substantial genetic flow from India to northern Australia estimated at slightly over four thousand years ago,
5141-575: The Murray. There is some evidence that, before outside contact, some groups of Aboriginal Australians had a complex subsistence system with elements of agriculture, that was only recorded by the first European explorers. One early settler took notes on the life styles of the Wathaurung people whom he lived near in Victoria. He saw women harvesting Murnong tubers, a native yam that is now almost extinct. However,
5238-572: The Western Australian coast. The Baudin expedition of 1800–03 included the coast of Western Australia and resulted in the Freycinet Map of 1811 , the first published map featuring the full outline of Australia. The name New Holland remained in popular and semi-official use until at least the mid-1850s; that is, it was in use for about 206 years in comparison to the name Australia which to date has been in use for about 195 years. The origins of
5335-438: The area that they were harvesting from was already cleared of other plants, making it easier to harvest Murnong (also known as yam daisy) exclusively. Along the northern coast of Australia, parsnip yams were harvested by leaving the bottom part of the yam still stuck in the ground so that it would grow again in the same spot. Similar to many other farmers in the world, Aboriginal peoples used slash and burn techniques to enrich
5432-653: The basal form K2* (K-M526) of the extremely ancient Haplogroup K2 – whose subclades Haplogroup R , haplogroup Q , haplogroup M and haplogroup S can be found in the majority of Europeans, Northern South Asians, Native Americans and the Indigenous peoples of Oceania – has only been found in living humans today amongst Aboriginal Australians. 27% of them may carry K2* and approximately 29% of Aboriginal Australian males belong to subclades of K2b1 , a.k.a. M and S . Aboriginal Australians possess deep rooted clades of both mtDNA Haplogroup M and Haplogroup N . Although it
5529-763: The coast around the Margaret River wine-growing area. Going east along the Southern Ocean coast is the Goldfields-Esperance region, including the Esperance mallee and the Coolgardie woodlands inland around town of Coolgardie . Deserts occupy the interior, including the Great Sandy-Tanami desert , Gibson Desert , Great Victoria Desert , and Nullarbor Plain . In 1831 Scottish botanist Robert Brown produced
5626-659: The coast of Western Australia. On 7 March 1831 it was transferred to the control of the Swan River Colony, and named Albany in 1832. In 1829 the Swan River Colony was established on the Swan River by Captain James Stirling . By 1832, the British settler population of the colony had reached around 1,500, and the official name of the colony was changed to Western Australia on 6 February that year. The two separate townsites of
5723-718: The coastal plains, in some cases forming a sharp escarpment (as with the Darling Range/ Darling Scarp near Perth). The extreme age of the landscape has meant that the soils are remarkably infertile and frequently laterised . Even soils derived from granitic bedrock contain an order of magnitude less available phosphorus and only half as much nitrogen as soils in comparable climates in other continents. Soils derived from extensive sandplains or ironstone are even less fertile, nearly devoid of soluble phosphate and deficient in zinc , copper, molybdenum and sometimes potassium and calcium . The infertility of most of
5820-425: The colony developed slowly into the port city of Fremantle and the state's capital, Perth . York was the first inland settlement in Western Australia, situated 97 kilometres (60 mi) east of Perth and settled on 16 September 1831. York was the staging point for early explorers who discovered the rich gold reserves of Kalgoorlie. Population growth was very slow until significant discoveries of gold were made in
5917-669: The continent would have required deliberate organised sea travel, involving hundreds of people". Aboriginal people seem to have lived a long time in the same environment as the now extinct Australian megafauna . Some evidence from the analysis of charcoal and artefacts revealing human use suggests a date as early as 65,000 BP. Luminescence dating has suggested habitation in Arnhem Land as far back as 60,000 years BP. Evidence of fires in South-West Victoria suggest "human presence in Australia 120,000 years ago", although more research
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#17328444880416014-521: The continent, and transportation included canoes . Shelters varied regionally, and included wiltjas in the Atherton Tablelands , paperbark and stringybark sheets and raised platforms in Arnhem Land , whalebone huts in what is now South Australia, stone shelters in what is now western Victoria, and a multi-room pole and bark structure found in Corranderrk . A bark tent or lean-to is known as
6111-620: The distinctiveness and importance of Torres Strait Islanders in Australia's Indigenous population. Eddie Mabo was from "Mer" or Murray Island in the Torres Strait. He was a party in the Mabo decision of 1992. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people also sometimes refer to themselves by descriptions that relate to their ecological environment, such as saltwater people for coast-dwellers (including Torres Strait Islander people ), freshwater people , rainforest people , desert people , or spinifex people , (the latter referring to
6208-569: The edge of the Wheatbelt region to 1,400 millimetres (55 in) in the wettest areas near Northcliffe , but from November to March, evaporation exceeds rainfall, and it is generally very dry. Plants are adapted to this as well as the extreme poverty of all soils. The central two-thirds of the state is arid and sparsely inhabited. The only significant economic activity is mining. Annual rainfall averages less than 300 millimetres (8–10 in), most of which occurs in sporadic torrential falls related to cyclone events in summer. An exception to this
6305-599: The generally shallow soils, the only development has taken place along the Ord River . Snow is rare in the state and typically occurs only in the Stirling Range near Albany , as it is the only mountain range far enough south and sufficiently elevated. More rarely, snow can fall on the nearby Porongurup Range . Snow outside these areas is a major event; it usually occurs in hilly areas of southwestern Australia. The most widespread low-level snow occurred on 26 June 1956 when snow
6402-504: The generations after colonisation. The word "community" is often used to describe groups identifying by kinship , language , or belonging to a particular place or "country". A community may draw on separate cultural values and individuals can conceivably belong to a number of communities within Australia; identification within them may be adopted or rejected. An individual community may identify itself by many names, each of which can have alternative English spellings. The naming of peoples
6499-462: The greatest number of immigrants to this day. Western Australia—particularly Perth—has the highest proportion of British-born of any state: 10.3% in 2011, compared to a national average of 5.1%. This group is heavily concentrated in certain parts, where they account for a quarter of the population. Perth's metropolitan area (including Mandurah ) had an estimated population of 2,043,138 in June 2017 (79% of
6596-425: The indigenous peoples. Living Black is an Australian TV news and current affairs program covering "issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians". It is presented and produced by Karla Grant , an Arrernte woman. A significant number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people use the term " Blackfella " and its associated forms to refer to Aboriginal Australians. The term blak
6693-508: The intent to assimilate them to what had become the majority white culture. Such policy was judged " genocidal " in the Bringing Them Home report (1997) published by the government in the late 20th century, as it reviewed human rights abuses during colonisation. There are a number of contemporary appropriate terms to use when referring to Indigenous peoples of Australia. In contrast to when settlers referred to them by various terms, in
6790-580: The international sandalwood oil market. In recent years, tourism has grown in importance, with significant numbers of visitors to the state coming from the UK and Ireland (28%), other European countries (14%) Singapore (16%), Japan (10%) and Malaysia (8%). Revenue from tourism is a strong economic driver in many of the smaller population centres outside of Perth, especially in coastal locations. Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, and/or recognised membership of,
6887-449: The last Ice Age, Australian Aboriginal peoples developed a variety of regional cultures and languages, invented distinct artistic and religious traditions, and affected the environment of the continent in a number of ways through hunting, fire-stick farming , and possibly the introduction of the dog . Technologies for warfare and hunting like the boomerang and spear were constructed of natural materials, as were musical instruments like
6984-431: The median individual income was A$ 500 per week in Western Australia (compared to A$ 466 in Australia as a whole). The median family income was A$ 1246 per week (compared to A$ 1171 for Australia). Recent growth has also contributed to significant rises in average property values in 2006, although values plateaued in 2007. Located south of Perth, the heavy industrial area of Kwinana had the nation's largest oil refinery with
7081-426: The meridian 129 degrees east of Greenwich, which defines the border with South Australia and the Northern Territory , and bounded by the Indian Ocean to the west and north. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) designates the body of water south of the continent as part of the Indian Ocean; in Australia it is officially gazetted as the Southern Ocean . The total length of the state's eastern border
7178-451: The more inclusive term "Indigenous Australians". Six percent of Indigenous Australians identify fully as Torres Strait Islanders. A further 4% of Indigenous Australians identify as having both Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal heritage. The Torres Strait Islands comprise over 100 islands, which were annexed by Queensland in 1879. Many Indigenous organisations incorporate the phrase "Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander" to highlight
7275-505: The north "over 50,000 years ago and possibly as much as 70,000 years ago". Over thousands of years they eventually spread across the whole landmass. These Indigenous Australians were long established throughout Western Australia by the time European explorers began to arrive in the early 17th century. The first Europeans to visit Western Australia were those of the Dutch Dirk Hartog expedition, who on 25 October 1616 landed at what
7372-521: The northern coast, and below that the drier Victoria Plains tropical savanna inland, and the semi-desert Pilbara shrublands , Carnarvon xeric shrublands , and Western Australian mulga shrublands to the southwest. Southwards along the coast are the Southwest Australia savanna and the Swan Coastal Plain around Perth, with the jarrah-karri forest and shrublands on the southwest corner of
7469-438: The nutrients of their soil. However, sheep and cattle later brought over by Europeans would ruin this soil by trampling on it. To add on the complexity of Aboriginal farming techniques, farmers deliberately exchanged seeds to begin growing plants where they did not naturally occur. In fact there were so many examples of Aboriginal Australians managing farm land in a complex manner that Australian Anthropologist, Dr. Norman Tindale
7566-570: The only mountain-building since then has been of the Stirling Range with the rifting from Antarctica , the land is extremely eroded and ancient, with no part of the state above 1,249 metres (4,098 ft) AHD (at Mount Meharry in the Hamersley Range of the Pilbara region). Most of the state is a low plateau with an average elevation of about 400 metres (1,200 ft), very low relief, and no surface runoff . This descends relatively sharply to
7663-402: The other colonies in 1901. Western Australia's mining sector is a key driver of the state economy . The late 20th century saw the development of the state's significant iron ore mining industry – the world's largest – as well as primarily offshore petroleum and natural gas resources . Gold mining retains a significant presence and many other mineral commodities are mined, with Perth being
7760-443: The percentage of people who identified as having no religious affiliation has increased from 8.7% in 1971 to 42.9% in 2021. A small minority of the population are Muslims (2.5%), Buddhists (2.2%) and Hindus (2.0%). Western Australia's economy is largely driven by extraction and processing of a diverse range of mineral and petroleum commodities. The structure of the economy is closely linked to these natural resources, providing
7857-441: The pre-1788 population was 314,000, while recent archaeological finds suggest that a population of 500,000 to 750,000 could have been sustained, with some ecologists estimating that a population of up to a million or even two million people was possible. More recent work suggests that Aboriginal populations exceeded 1.2 million 500 years ago, but may have fallen somewhat with the introduction of disease pathogens from Eurasia in
7954-468: The present state began with the establishment by Lockyer of a convict-supported settlement from New South Wales at King George III Sound . The settlement was formally annexed on 21 January 1827 by Lockyer when he commanded the Union Jack be raised and a feu de joie fired by the troops. The settlement was founded in response to British concerns about the possibility of a French colony being established on
8051-538: The raising of a loan to construct a pipeline to transport 23 megalitres (5 million imperial gallons) of water per day to the burgeoning population on the goldfields. The pipeline, known as the Goldfields Water Supply Scheme , was completed in 1903. C. Y. O'Connor , Western Australia's first engineer-in-chief, designed and oversaw the construction of the pipeline. It carries water 530 km (330 mi) from Perth to Kalgoorlie , and
8148-600: The results may be due to posthumous modification and thermal degradation of the DNA. Although the contested results seem to indicate that Mungo Man may have been an extinct subspecies that diverged before the most recent common ancestor of contemporary humans, the administrative body for the Mungo National Park believes that present-day local Aboriginal peoples are descended from the Lake Mungo remains. Independent DNA testing
8245-401: The soils has required heavy application by farmers of fertilisers. These have resulted in damage to invertebrate and bacterial populations. The grazing and use of hoofed mammals and, later, heavy machinery through the years have resulted in compaction of soils and great damage to the fragile soils. Large-scale land clearing for agriculture has damaged habitats for native flora and fauna. As
8342-555: The state and national economy. In the period 2010–2019 wheat production in WA has averaged nearly 10 million tonnes (22 billion pounds), valued at $ 2.816 billion in 2019, accounting for half the nation's total and providing $ 2–3 billion in export income. Other significant farm output includes wool, beef, lamb, barley, canola, lupins, oats and pulses. There is a high level of overseas demand for live animals from WA, driven mainly by southeast Asia's feedlots and Middle Eastern countries, where Islamic dietary laws and
8439-411: The state of Tasmania. The Torres Strait Islander people possess a heritage and cultural history distinct from Aboriginal traditions. The eastern Torres Strait Islanders in particular are related to the Papuan peoples of New Guinea , and speak a Papuan language . Accordingly, they are not generally included under the designation "Aboriginal Australians". This has been another factor in the promotion of
8536-451: The state). Other significant population centres include Bunbury (73,989), Geraldton (37,961), Kalgoorlie-Boulder (30,420), Albany (33,998), Karratha (16,446), Broome (14,501) and Port Hedland (14,285). At the 2016 census, the most commonly nominated ancestries were: 3.1% of the population, or 75,978 people, identified as Indigenous Australians ( Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders ) in 2016. At
8633-498: The term "Indigenous Australians" has grown in popularity since the 1980s, many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples dislike it. They feel that it is too generic and removes their distinct clan and people identity. However, many people think that the term is useful and convenient, and can be used where appropriate. In recent years, terms such as "First Nations", "First Peoples" and "First Australians" have become more common. Being as specific as possible, for example naming
8730-537: The time transportation ceased in 1868, convicts outnumbered free settlers 9,700 to 7,300. In the 1890s, interstate immigration, resulting from a mining boom in the Goldfields region , resulted in a sharp population increase. Western Australia did not receive significant flows of immigrants from Britain, Ireland or elsewhere in the British Empire until the early 20th century. At that time, its local projects—such as
8827-665: The various ethnic groups living within the territory of present day Australia prior to British colonisation . They consist of two distinct groups, which include many ethnic groups: the Aboriginal Australians of the mainland and many islands, including Tasmania , and the Torres Strait Islanders of the seas between Queensland and Papua New Guinea , located in Melanesia . 812,728 people self-identified as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin in
8924-488: The various peoples indigenous to mainland Australia and associated islands, excluding the Torres Strait Islands. The broad term Aboriginal Australians includes many regional groups that may be identified under names based on local language, locality, or what they are called by neighbouring groups. Some communities, cultures or groups may be inclusive of others and alter or overlap; significant changes have occurred in
9021-605: Was able to draw an Aboriginal grain belt, detailing the specific areas where crops were once produced. In terms of aquaculture, explorer Thomas Mitchell noted large stone fish traps on the Darling River at Brewarrina. Each trap covers a pool, herding fish through a small entrance that would later be shut. Traps were created at different heights to accommodate different water levels during floods and droughts. Technology used by Indigenous Australian societies before European contact included weapons, tools, shelters, watercraft, and
9118-452: Was further reduced to around 300 between 1803 and 1833 due to disease, warfare, and other actions of British settlers. Despite more than 170 years of debate over who or what was responsible for this near-extinction, no consensus exists on its origins, process, or whether or not it was genocide. However, according to Benjamin Madley, using the "UN definition, sufficient evidence exists to designate
9215-527: Was generally mobile, or semi-nomadic , moving according to the changing food availability found across different areas as seasons changed, the mode of life and material cultures varied greatly from region to region, and there were permanent settlements and agriculture in some areas. The greatest population density was to be found in the southern and eastern regions of the continent, the River Murray valley in particular. Canoes were made out of bark for use on
9312-636: Was reported in the Perth Hills , as far north as Wongan Hills and as far east as Salmon Gums . However, even in the Stirling Range, snowfalls rarely exceed 5 cm (2 in) and rarely settle for more than one day. The highest observed temperature of 50.7 °C (123.3 °F) was recorded in Onslow on 13 January 2022. The lowest temperature recorded was −7.2 °C (19.0 °F) at Eyre Bird Observatory on 17 August 2008. The south geomagnetic pole
9409-458: Was small, with estimates ranging widely from 318,000 to more than 3,000,000 in total. Given geographic and habitat conditions, they were distributed in a pattern similar to that of the current Australian population. The majority were living in the south-east, centred along the Murray River . The First Fleet of British settlers arrived with instructions to "live in amity and kindness" with
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