Geography - Regions and continents - Origin of Australia’s name
Why is Australia called “Australia”?
Correct!
The name “Australia” comes from the Latin word australis, meaning “southern.” Long before the continent was accurately mapped, European geographers imagined a large landmass in the Southern Hemisphere and called it Terra Australis, or “southern land.” British navigator and cartographer Matthew Flinders helped establish “Australia” as the name for the present-day continent. On his map he used “Terra Australis or Australia” and said he preferred “Australia.” After the governor of New South Wales, Lachlan Macquarie, also adopted the name, Australia became the official British name for the continent in 1824.
Source: National Library of Australia
