Australia and Oceania

Warm-up 5/20

Warm-up 5/20

1. What landmark is this?1. Sydney Opera house

2. Where is it located?1. Sydney, Australia

3. Which culture created it?1. Australians- The Government authorized work to begin in

1958.

4. Why/when was this landmark created?1. It is a multi-venue performing arts center. It opened in 1973.

5. What defining characteristics standout to you?

Geography Facts:Australia

Canberra is the National Capital. Australia is 3 million square miles Ranks as the 6th largest country Australia is the smallest continent The shoreline of Australia is 22,800 miles long. Australia is the driest and flattest continent.

Landforms• Great Dividing

Range – They begin in the

NE and stretch to the SE.

– To the west the mountains create a rain shadow.

– This rain shadow region is made of semiarid plateaus and deserts.

• Fertile Plains– Located in the

east and SE.– Most of

Australia’s population lives in this region.

– This area is excellent for farming.

Landforms• The Outback– A huge central

plain region in the middle of the continent.

– Desert and dry grassland

– Home to the Great Victorian and great Sandy Desert.

• Ayers Rock– It is a huge

reddish-brown rock.

– It rises over 1000 feet and is over 1 mile long.

– It is located in Australia's interior.

Landforms• Great Barrier Reef

– Near the northeastern coast of Australia in the Coral Sea.

– World’s largest coral reef.

– Stretches 1500 miles.

– Natural barrier from the ocean and sea.

• Major Rivers– Murray and

Darling Rivers– Most of Australia’s

population and cities are found along the two rivers.

– Both located in the SE portion of Australia.

Geography Facts: New Zealand• Consists of three islands– North Island, South Island,

Stewart Island Wide expanses of beaches Very green and lush Mountainous

Geography Facts: Oceania Many volcanic islands spread

throughout the Pacific Ocean Part of the Ring of Fire

Some mountainous, some flat Rainforests filled with dense plant

life Some dry areas

Landforms• Mariana Trench– Deepest part of

any ocean– Pacific plate

subducted beneath the Mariana Plate

Climate Temperate—Australia/New ZealandHigh levels of

precipitationCold wintersWarm to hot summers

Tropical- IslandsHot and wet year

roundTrade windsTropical Cyclones

Oceania History

Oceania History• Indigenous peoples settled into three major regions– Micronesia (tiny

islands)• Mix of people

from Papua and New Guinea

– Melanesia (black islands)• Asian,

Indonesian, Filipino, and Papuan

• Dark complexion• Short statured

– Polynesia (many islands)

Colonization• 1500s- Europeans

explored the Pacific• 1800s- Western nations

gained interest in the region– Missionaries hoping to

convert to Christianity– Traders for resources

like coconuts, coffee, sugar

– Sailors to hunt whales

Australia and New Zealand History

• Aborigines – natives of Australia• Maori- natives of New Zealand– The two are completely unrelated

Colonization• Europeans explored Southern Pacific

during the 1600 and 1700s• Australia was colonized by Great Britain– Originally used as a place to send

convicts and clear populations in prisons – Eventually became an area to raise

sheep• New Zealand was also settled by England• Both have rich deposits of gold

Colonization• Diffusion of many aspects of life– Religion- Christianity– Language- English– Diseases- chicken pox, smallpox, typhoid– Animals- rabbits• In 1859 a Brit released 24 rabbits into the

outback so he could hunt them• Rabbits multiply at a quick rate, by 1900

there were over 1 billion rabbits in Australia• Many measures taken to control population

Australia and Oceania

Politics, Economy, Culture

Australia• Divided into 6 states and 2 territories• Parliamentary system of government with a

Prime Minister• Part of the British Commonwealth– Recognize Queen of England as monarch

• MDC with a high GDP • Mostly Christian

New Zealand• 80% of the population is of

European descent• Official language is both English

and Maori• Parliamentary government that

is part of British Commonwealth• Economy based on industries– Services, banking, tourism

Melanesia

• Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanatu, New Caledonia, Fiji

• Wide variety of political systems– Some democratic states– Fiji has lots of political strife– New Caledonia is a territory of

France• Focus on minerals and natural

resources

Micronesia• Palau, Federated States of

Micronesia, Nauru, Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Marshall Islands, Kiribati

• Many government types– All are linked to the United States

in a Compact of Free Trade or are territories of the US, except Nauru and Kiribati

• Economies vary– Natural resources– Manufacturing

• Many of these island were used as nuclear testing sites

Polynesia

• Tuvalu, Tonga, New Zealand Territories, French Territories, Samoa, American Samoa, technically Hawaii

• Governing systems vary– Independent states, constitutional monarchies,

associated nations, democracies• Economies based heavily on tourism and aid from

outside nations

Other Islands• Midway Islands- site of

major battle of WWII• Galapagos Islands-

home of the gigantic tortoises

• Easter Island- known for the mysterious statues with big heads and long ears/noses