ORIGIN
OF NAME:
Known as Van Diemen’s Land until 1855, the island was renamed
for Abel Janszoon Tasman, the Dutch navigator who discovered it in
1642.
CAPITAL:
Hobart
FLORAL
EMBLEM:
Blue
Gum
FAUNAL
EMBLEM:
Platypus and Kookaburra.
STATE
FLAG:
The badge of a golden lion on a red St. George's cross within a
white circle and a star at each extremity of the cross.
STATE MOTTO:
LOCATION:
Tasmania, Australia’s island state lying approximately 240 km
south of Victoria in the South Pacific Ocean.
AREA:
With a total area of only 67,800 sq. km., it represents only 1% of
Australia's.
LANDFORM:
Mountainous, with peaks in the west exceeding 1,500 m (5,000 ft),
Tasmania is an extension of the continent’s Eastern Highlands.
POPULATION:
472,100 (1993 est.) - In contrast to other Australian states where
a majority of the people live in the capital, only about 40% of
Tasmania’s citizens reside in Hobart. Launceston (1991 pop.
66,747), closer to the mainland, is the second-largest city. About
a fourth of the population are rural. Tasmania’s
English-speaking populace, mostly of British ancestry, has grown
at a slower rate during the 20th century than that of other states,
and Tasmania has received few of Australia’s recent immigrants.
CLIMATE:
Annual
rainfall ranges from 2,388 mm (94 in) in the west to less than 559
mm (22 in) elsewhere. January temperatures are about 16 degrees C
(60 degrees F), and July temperatures average about 7 degrees C
(45 degrees F).
HOBART:
Straddling the Derwent River, Hobart is a beautiful
harbour city, which combines a quiet colonial character with the
modern image of a bustling casino metropolis. Founded by Colonel
David Collins in 1804, sixteen years after the settlement of
Sydney, Hobart is Australia's second oldest city. The city grew
out of the first settlement on the island at Risdon Cove, 8 km
upriver, which was founded in 1803, after five months. Today, the
Risdon Cove site remains preserved much as it was in 1803 and is a
unique tourist attraction.
LAUNCESTON:
Launceston, the second largest city in Tasmania, is the centre of
Tasmania's north, situated where the South and North Esk Rivers
meet to become the Tamar River, flowing northwards to Bass Strait.
The city nestles in the wide valleys formed by the river system
and is surrounded by mountains. It is an ideal base from which to
experience the "essential Tasmania" - historic villages,
National Trust properties, wilderness, arts and crafts, markets,
national parks, breathtaking scenery and internationally-acclaimed
food and wine, grown in a clean, unspoiled environment.
SHOPPING:
The major cities offer an attractive range of stores with usual
trading times. Several country towns have historic stores as well
as craft and fold festivals and regular country markets. Hobart's
famed Salamanca Market is not to be missed each Saturday from 9am
to 2pm.
For more travel information on Tasmania, go to: