Australian Culture Research Paper

Australia, the 6th largest country in the world, has a square mileage of 2,967,892 and a population exceeding 23,895,200, making it the 52nd most populous in the world. More than 1/5 of Australians, about 4.293 million, live in Sydney making it the largest city in Australia. The life expectancy rates for males and females, similar to those of the US, are approximately 79 and 83, and the infant mortality rate being low at only 5 out of every 1,000 births. The most prominent spoken language is English although about 50 out of the 250 Aboriginal languages are still being used and preserved by Australian officials. Religion throughout Australia is not a huge asset to daily life though 76% of Australians consider themselves a denomination of Christianity; the other 24% are mostly unreligious or unaccounted for.

A cultural trait is an individual tool, act or belief that is related to a particular situation or need.

A distinguished cultural trait to Australia is often when female friends or friends of the opposite sex get together or meet, they will often hug each other followed by a kiss on the right cheek. Another thing unique to Australia is a subculture, group within its own unique values, norms and behaviors that exist within a larger culture, of the Australians who live in the Outback. Only a very small 10 percent of Aussies live in the Outback, mostly miners, sheep farmers or cattle herders, giving them a different way of life compared to those who live near the coast. Very similar to a subculture is a counterculture, a group that rejects the values, norms and practices of a larger society and replaces them with a new set of cultural patterns. An example of a counterculture in Australia is the Sharpies; the Sharpies are members of suburban youth gangs that were most prominent in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth during the 1960’s and 1970’s. The Sharpies were most well known for their violence and for dressing sharp, hence the name of the

group.
Australia was first inhabited by the Aborigines, the indigenous people to Australia, and was later colonized by the Europeans when Dutch navigator, Willem Janzoon, landed there in 1606. Later on, navigator Lieutenant James Cook claimed the East coast, including Sydney, for Britain in 1770 beginning the mass population in Sydney and other cities around the coast. Being colonized by the Europeans, many of the cultural universals are similar to those of Europe like the cultural universal of the traditional marriage between a man and a woman. Though similar to Europe, Australia has things unique to it like Vegemite, a dark brown paste made from yeast extract used for spread on sandwiches or fillings for pastries.
A very basic folkway for the Australians is when “barbies” (barbeques) are held, the guests would bring something to accompany like bringing the meat or a bottle of wine. A more for the Australians is roaming the streets in black clothing, felt shoes and black shoe polish worn on the face is illegal because it is associated with burglars and criminals which can be seen as threatening. Lastly, a taboo in Australia is spoken racism against the Aborigines because it is disrespectful and the government has pushed for harmony between the Aborigines and the other Australians.