Sydney
- This is about Sydney in Australia. See also Sydney, Nova Scotia. There are also several places spelled Sidney, including Sidney, British Columbia.
Sydney Opera House
Sydney ['sidni:] is the capital city of the state of New South Wales in Australia, and Australia's largest and oldest city. With a population exceeding 4 million, it is slightly the larger of the two main financial and trade centres of Australia. It is also a significant tourist destination and is regularly declared to be one of the most beautiful and livable cities in the world. Sydney hosted the 2000 Summer Olympics.
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2 History 3 Politics 4 Landmarks 5 Culture 6 Regions and suburbs 7 See also |
Sails of the Opera House with Harbour Bridge in background
Sydney is located between the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Blue Mountains to the west. Sydney features the largest natural harbour in the world, and also enjoys over 70 beaches, including the famous Bondi Beach. Greater Sydney has the world's largest suburban area. It is almost twice the size of Beijing, and six times the size of Rome or Greater London. A number of national parks are contained within the city's boundaries.
Although Sydney does not suffer from cyclones, and the earthquake risk is considered very low, some areas of Sydney have experienced bushfires (forest fires), including ones in 1994 and 2002. The city is also subject to infrequent severe hail storms and wind storms (maybe every 5 to 10 years). The city has also faced occasional water shortages due to drought conditions in the general region.
Main article: History of Sydney
The area surrounding Sydney Harbour was home to Aboriginal tribes since 40,000 years ago or more. Although urbanisation has destroyed most evidence of these settlements, there are still rock carvings in several locations. European interest arose with the sighting of Botany Bay (now a southern suburb of Sydney) in 1770 by Captain James Cook. Under instruction from the British government, a convict settlement was founded by Arthur Phillip in 1788. (See First Fleet). Phillip originally landed at Botany Bay, but found it unsatisfactory. After a brief sail north, Phillip landed at Sydney Cove on Port Jackson (the proper name for Sydney Harbour).
Phillip originally named the colony "New Albion", but for some uncertain reason the colony acquired the name "Sydney", after the (then) British Home Secretary, Thomas Townshend, Lord Sydney (Viscount Sydney from 1789). This is possibly due to the fact that Lord Sydney issued the charter authorising Phillip to establish a colony. Prisoners were quickly set to work to build the settlement and by 1822 the town had banks, markets, well-established thoroughfares and an organised constabulary; by 1847 convicts accounted for only 3.2 per cent of the population.
Government House near the Botanic gardens
Each week, ships would arrive from Europe with Irish, English, and European immigrants looking to start a new life in a new country. The first of several gold rushes was in 1851, since which time the port of Sydney has seen many waves of people from around the world. With industrialisation Sydney expanded rapidly, and by the early 20th century it had a population well in excess of one million. Throughout the 20th century Sydney continued to expand with various new waves of European and (later) Asian immigration, resulting in its highly cosmopolitan atmosphere of the present day.
Sydney has always been a hotspot for the politics of both State and Federal Parliaments. In 2004, the State Government dismissed the local councils of the cities of Sydney and South Sydney. Critics claimed that this was performed with the intention of creating a "super-council" which would be under the control of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), which also controlled the State Government. Subsequent to this merger, an election took place on 27 March 2004 which resulted in the independent candidate Clover Moore taking the position of Lord Mayor from the ALP incumbent. Critics of the merger claimed that this was a result of a voter backlash against the party for attempting to create the "super-council".
The city's most famous landmarks are the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and the Sydney Opera House, both of which are located on Sydney Harbour. Sydney's principal river is the Parramatta River, which enters Sydney Harbour from the west. While the Harbour is famous for its racing yachts, the Boxing Day start of the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race and 18ft skiffs, the river is used for dinghy sailing and rowing as well as recreational boating, racing small yachts, recreational fishing, and occasional Dragon Boat racing. Another famous landmark is the Sydney Tower (also known as Centrepoint Tower or the AMP Tower) which is the second tallest free standing tower in the Southern Hemisphere. Darling Harbour is also a popular tourist attraction. Sydney also has an interesting subway system (see also CityRail), one of only two in the country (Melbourne has the other). The Sydney Cricket Ground, which retains several beautiful 1920s-era grandstands, hosts several international cricket matches and the Sydney Swans football team. Sydney is also known for the annual Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.
Bondi beach
Sydney is the home of the Australian Stock Exchange. It also has 6 universities: the University of Sydney, the University of New South Wales, Macquarie University, the University of Technology, Sydney, the University of Western Sydney, and one of the campuses of the Australian Catholic University.
The suburb of Mascot is home to Kingsford Smith International Airport.
Main article: Culture of Sydney
As Australia's oldest and largest city, Sydney (like Melbourne) boasts a full roster of musical, theatrical and artistic activity throughout the year. From the formal including the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, the Sydney Theatre Company, the Sydney Dance Company, and the Archibald Prize; to the many festivals including the Sydney Festival, a celebration of free performances throughout January. Many internationally known Australian rock bands have had their genesis in Sydney, from Midnight Oil to INXS.
Sydney also has been home to many visual artists, from the lush pastoralism of Lloyd Rees's depictions of Sydney Harbour to Jeffrey Smart's portraits of bleak urban alienation. Sydney is also home to several large ethnic communities throughout the greater metropolitan area, and a significant gay community who host the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras along Oxford Street.
This is a partial list of Sydney suburbs and satellite cities. For a complete suburbs listing see List of Sydney suburbs.
Geography
History
Historical population
1800: 2,540 inhabitants
1820: 12,000
1851: 39,000
1871: 206,800
1901: 487,900
1925: 1,039,000
2003: 4 Million
2050: 6 Million (projected)Timeline of events
Politics
Landmarks
A view of Sydney Harbour, with the Sydney Opera House on the left, the central business district in the image centre and Sydney Harbour Bridge on the right.
Tourist attractions
Sydney is noted for its tourist attractions, including:
Culture
Regions and suburbs
Regions of Sydney
Sydney suburbs and satellite cities
Metropolitan Sydney cover about 2000 square kilometers, has 4 million inhabitants and about 300 suburbs. There are about 38 local government areas in the Sydney region, each containing several suburbs. See Local Government Areas of New South Wales. The City of Sydney covers a fairly small area comprising downtown Sydney and neighbouring inner-city neighbourhoods.Sydney localities
See also