What Is Australia Day Celebrated For? Australia Day, 26 January, is the day to reflect on what it means to be Australian, to celebrate contemporary Australia and to acknowledge our history.. On Australia Day we celebrate all the things we love about Australia: land, sense of fair go, lifestyle, democracy, the freedoms we enjoy but particularly our people.
What is the true meaning of Australia Day? Australia Day, holiday (January 26) honouring the establishment of the first permanent European settlement on the continent of Australia. On January 26, 1788, Arthur Phillip, who had sailed into what is now Sydney Cove with a shipload of convicts, hoisted the British flag at the site.
Why we should keep Australia Day? In most other nations, the national day marks independence (often from the British) or foundation. But, as it stands, Australia Day marks the anniversary of invasion and the beginning of an era of mourning, survival and resilience for Australia’s First Nations peoples.
What happened on the 26th January 1788? On January 26, 1788, Captain Arthur Phillip guides a fleet of 11 British ships carrying convicts to the colony of New South Wales, effectively founding Australia.
Why is Australia Day offensive to indigenous people?
Australia Day is also referred to as ‘Invasion Day’ or ‘Survival Day’ particularly by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. This is because it ‘celebrates’ a painful part of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander history.
Why was 26th of January chosen as Australia Day?
1788. Captain Arthur Phillip, commander of the First Fleet of eleven convict ships from Great Britain, and the first Governor of New South Wales, arrived at Sydney Cove on 26 January and raised the Union Jack to signal the beginning of the colony.
What is an interesting fact about Australia Day?
The first recorded Australia Day celebrations were held on January 26, 1808 to mark twenty years since Captain Arthur Phillip raised the flag at Sydney Cove. Lachlan Macquarie was the first Australian Governor to hold the first “official” Australia Day celebrations in 1818, to mark thirty years of European settlement.
What is wrong Australia Day?
Since 1938 some in Australia’s Aboriginal community have been formally protesting against the celebration of January 26, which marks the day Captain Arthur Phillip rowed ashore at Sydney Cove and proclaimed British sovereignty in 1788.
What did the British do to the Aboriginal?
The English settlers and their descendants expropriated native land and removed the indigenous people by cutting them from their food resources, and engaged in genocidal massacres.
What happened 26th January?
26 January was chosen as the date for Republic day because it was on this day in 1930 when the Declaration of Indian Independence (Purna Swaraj) was proclaimed by the Indian National Congress in lieu of the Realm status as a Dominion later instated by the departing British Regime.
What happened on the 26th of January 1949?
Events. 26 January – The Nationality and Citizenship Act is passed. Rather than being identified as subjects of Britain, the Act established Australian citizenship for people who met eligibility requirements.
When was Australia Day created?
Australia did not become a nation until 1901 when the six British colonies united to form the Commonwealth of Australia. In 1931 the Victorian Government signed off on a proposal to make the Monday nearest to 26 January a public holiday called Australia Day, forming a long weekend.
How long have we been celebrating Australia Day?
Did you know, it wasn’t until 1935 that all Australian states and territories used the name ‘Australia Day’ to mark 26 January. And it wasn’t until 1994 that 26 January became a public holiday across the nation.
What are 3 interesting facts about Australia?
Australia is the only continent in the world without an active volcano. Australia has three times more sheep than people. The largest Greek population in the world beside Athens in Greece can be found in Melbourne Victoria. An Australian man once tried to sell New Zealand on eBay.
Is it offensive to say Happy Australia Day?
Some people instead use the parlance of grief to describe such a day, referring to it as the “Aboriginal Day of Mourning”. Kado Muir, a leading advocate for Aboriginal culture, heritage and awareness, describes the phrase “Happy Australia Day” as “an ignorant gesture that belittles each of us”.
What happened to the First Fleet?
After January 1788 The ships of the First Fleet mostly did not remain in the colony. Some returned to England, while others left for other ports. Some remained at the service of the Governor of the colony for some months: some of these were sent to Norfolk Island where a second penal colony was established.
What food is eaten on Australia Day?
Celebrate Australia Day with these iconic Australian party food ideas! These classic Australian recipes include a number of traditional ideas including the lamingtons, BBQ lamb, cheese and onion sticks, sausage rolls and more.
When did Captain Cook claim Australia?
Cook reached the southern coast of New South Wales in 1770 and sailed north, charting Australia’s eastern coastline and claiming the land for Great Britain on 22nd August 1770.
What did the aboriginals call Australia?
The Aboriginal English words ‘blackfella’ and ‘whitefella’ are used by Indigenous Australian people all over the country — some communities also use ‘yellafella’ and ‘coloured’.
What type of people came to Australia first?
The first people who arrived in Australia were the Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islander people’s. They lived in all parts of Australia. They lived by hunting, fishing and gathering.
Why did Britain take over Australia?
The reasons that led the British to invade Australia were simple. The prisons in Britain had become unbearably overcrowded, a situation worsened by the refusal of America to take any more convicts after the American War of Independence in 1783.
What happened in Australia on January 26th?
Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove and raising of the Union Flag by Arthur Phillip following days of exploration of Port Jackson in New South Wales.