A short while later, Aborigines landed in canoes and rafts on the north coast of Australia and then moved southward across the rest of the continent. Aborigines were nomads living in family clans, each with its own territory where it could camp, hunt, and fish. The Aborigines brought two useful items from their original homeland: the dingo and the boomerang. .
As for Australia today, the population is around 19,169,083. The majority of these people are of Caucasian descent, although there are many other ethnic groups. There is no dominant religion in Australia. As of July 2002, 26.1% are Anglican, 26% are Roman Catholic, 24.3% are another Christian religion, and 11% are non-Christian. The most used language of Australia is English, however, there are a variety of other native languages that are still used today.
*Government*.
Australia's form of government has been described as a constitutional monarchy, in which the queen of England is the nominal head of state. In the federal government, power rests with the elected political party that holds the majority in the House of Representatives. The leader is the prime minister. The Senate consists of 76 members who are elected every six years. The House of Representatives has 147 members and they face elections every three years. Any laws that involve changes to the Constitution must be decided by a referendum in which the country's citizens are called to vote on whether or not they want such changes to take place. .
In the regional government, each of Australia's states is administered by a parliament, which consists of a legislative council, and a legislative assembly. The premier is the leader of the political party dominating the legislative assembly. Each state runs its own schools and hospitals, administers its own laws, and has its own police force. Cities and shires are governed by local councils headed by a mayor. Their responsibilities include town planning, waste management, and road construction.
