Why is Australia both a continent and a country?

Answer 1

Australia is the only continent that is also just one country. All large countries have capitals and, therefore, Australia has one.

Other continents, having more than one country, have capitals in each country.

Answer 2

Australia is considered to be one of the seven continents. It is also a country because it does not have any separate countries within itself. For example, Asia is a continent, but it is not a country because it has separate countries inside of itself such as China and Japan.

Answer 3

Australia is a country because its six colonies joined together in what is known as Federation on 1 January 1901. This was the date on which the country known as the Commonwealth of Australia was created.

It just so happens that these former colonies - now states (plus two mainland territories) - were all established on the single continent also known as Australia. Geographically, Australia is a continent because it sits on its own tectonic plate.

Answer 4

Geographically, Australia is a continent, not an island. As a landform, it could be considered an island as it is entirely surrounded by water and not joined onto any other land mass. For this reason, it is often referred to as an island continent. Australia is too big to be formally classified as an island. The world's largest island is Greenland.

Another reason why Australia is also considered a continent is because it sits on its own tectonic plate. This is different from Greenland, which uses the same land mass as North America. That is why the geological appearances are much different in Australia from anywhere else. A place like Greenland shares the same geologic attributes as North America.

Australia and Antarctica are the only two true Continental Islands. That is, they are separated from all other continents by water. All other continents are connected by a landmass to at least one other Continent. If there are any waterways, they have been artificially created.

Answer 5

Because it is what as known as an Island Continent on which only one nation/country exists.