Talk:Australia (continent)

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Frequently asked questions

Q: Why is New Guinea/Tasmania listed as part of the Australian Continent?

A: This page uses the geological definition of a continent as an uninterrupted piece of continental plate. In this case, New Guinea and Tasmania are connected to Australia by the Australian continental shelf, as such they are geologically part of the Australian continent.

Q: Why is New Zealand not part of the Australian Continent?

A: New Zealand is not connected to Australia by a continental shelf, and as such is part of its own microcontinent, sometimes referred to as Zealandia.

Q: Isn't this the same as Oceania?

A: No. Oceania is the collective name for the island regions of the Pacific ocean, and is usually not considered a continent itself in the English-speaking world, nor are the islands of Oceania geologically part of the Australian continent. Please see Oceania for the article about this region.

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Centralized discussion on oceania as a continent

Let's use Talk:Oceania (continent), please. fgnievinski (talk) 03:28, 23 October 2020 (UTC)[reply]

I agree. Finntastico2 (talk) 16:14, 18 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

That's incorrect! Australia, is the continent, Oceania is a region! What you apply to other continents, you must apply to Australia. Based on the Oceania argument, Hawaii should be part of Continental North America and the UK part of Continental Europe - because, well you know, you know! No, I don't...know! JellyThoughts (talk) 02:47, 23 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Australia is not a continental this wiki is wrong and is confusing people

This is very bad 31.124.237.92 (talk) 16:11, 2 August 2022 (UTC)[reply]

I think this talk page needs an FAQ for this statement. Georgia guy (talk) 16:48, 2 August 2022 (UTC)[reply]

Unfortunately you are incorrect, Australia is one of the seven continents of the world, you're wrong. Aeyeu (talk) 18:33, 13 September 2022 (UTC)[reply]

Neither of you is wrong, but neither is right either. Continents are defined according to custom, which varies according to language and culture. Since this is English Wikipedia, we use the customary English language defintion, which accepts Australia as a continent (with a different definition from the nation of Australia), and Oceania as a geographical region. BilCat (talk) 19:06, 13 September 2022 (UTC)[reply]

gtehhjjuhyyhhb 64.72.78.6 (talk) 17:42, 22 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, it need some serious changes, it OCEANIA (continent) and not Australia (country). Finntastico2 (talk) 23:45, 14 November 2023 (UTC)[reply]

It's shocking, if people don't now know the difference, between a geographical continent and a geographical region, it's scary! JellyThoughts (talk) 08:47, 30 November 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Agreed. By this logic, new zealand and similar islands belong to no continent 78.18.59.87 (talk) 02:38, 8 January 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The continent has been referred to as Australia for many years, idk why you're so salty you're literally wrong DavidMalcolm1212112221 (talk) 10:37, 2 March 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Some countries consider Oceania to be the continent instead. There is no universally agreed definition for the word "continent". 203.46.37.2 (talk) 02:05, 26 July 2023 (UTC)[reply]

My geography books had listed Australasia (not Australia) as the continent's name.

Frankly, no offense to anyone, but the Australia, and Oceania definitions defy all logic. 188.30.72.246 (talk) 18:44, 19 August 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Yeah, there is - a continent is a continent - a region is a region - and what you apply for other continents, you can't suddenly change in the case of Australia! JellyThoughts (talk) 02:43, 23 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

It's been referred to as Australia because it's the main island in Oceania, it's a common misconception. Finntastico2 (talk) 16:12, 18 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

If Australia is a continent, what continent is New Zealand or Fuji in? Finntastico2 (talk) 16:15, 18 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

New Zealand is in Zealandia. Fiji is not associated with a continent. HiLo48 (talk) 23:58, 18 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]

das cap Finntastico2 (talk) 20:48, 17 March 2024 (UTC)[reply]

"Zealandia" is not [now] a continent - it's submerged - CONTINENTS are singular land masses - regions, are regions! A billion years ago [or whenever], Zealandia might have been a continent, but not 2day! JellyThoughts (talk) 02:42, 23 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Conflicting definition between summary and Geograohy/Geology section

The summary claims Australia continent includes Papua New Guinea and is based on the Sahul shelf. In the geography subsection it says it's Australia only, directly contradicting the summary. The commentary about no universally accepted definition and variations depending on which region someone is from is after this. Tinytorso (talk) 17:22, 3 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Could you cite the text you are referring to? The Geology and geography subsection explains "During the past 18,000 to 10,000 years, rising sea levels overflowed the lowlands and separated the continent into today's low-lying arid to semi-arid mainland and the two mountainous islands of New Guinea and Tasmania", which is the same as the lead summary's "The continent includes mainland Australia, Tasmania, the island of New Guinea...". CMD (talk) 02:21, 4 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Population seems wrong

The population is currently listed as 396,357,469. That doesn't seem right. Based on the regions included in the continent, this figure does not seem like it should be any higher than 40 million. 173.225.61.254 (talk) 14:59, 22 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

agreed 190.197.13.189 (talk) 22:33, 26 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, some vandal added the 6 in 396 - now removed. Per List of continents and continental subregions by population, the whole of Oceania is only 40m. Johnbod (talk) 01:01, 27 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

How many countries on this continent?

This article states that the Australian continent has two countries (Australia and Papua New Guinea) and several territories, but I can't find any sources on the Internet which confirm this statement. Most sources are treating Oceania as a continent instead. Some British and Australian sources (such as this one: https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1973063/worlds-smallest-continent-one-country/amp) are treating mainland Australia as the continent and state that there is only one country on this continent: Australia. The latter one seems to be an odd one since the mainstream definition for continent tends to include island countries as parts of a continent (e.g. Africa includes Madagascar and Mauritius, Asia includes Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka, Europe includes Iceland, Ireland, and the United Kingdom, and North America includes Barbados, Cuba, and Jamaica).

My question is: how many countries are really located on the Australian continent? 1? 2? 3? 14? 16? 2001:8003:9100:2C01:2190:1B10:EEB0:2E6 (talk) 12:45, 12 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The answer is whichever number you prefer. The definition of "continent" is not a rigid one. Have a look at Continent. HiLo48 (talk) 02:17, 13 November 2024 (UTC)[reply]