[Travel] Is Australia a continent?

[Juan Albion]

another subject altogether....that is more to do with human migration.

That was my point. People move, therefore they can't be used to define what is and what is not a continent.

 

[sydney]

That was my point. People move, therefore they can't be used to define what is and what is not a continent.

the Australian Indigenous tribes didn't travel much , there is no way you could compare them to white European or Arabs , they are reasonably primitive and never reached huge numbers , were perfectly happy living of the land and never really had the urge/need to travel..........they did have contact with Indonesian tribes but were extremely superstitious and not many travelled north. They are similar to the Kalahari / Cape bushman in culture .........2 tragic tales of humanity.

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

But Africa is one continent even though the Arabs in the north are very different to many other African nations' peoples. So I'm not sure that works.

Which you could argue makes Australia the one true stand alone continent because all other continents are joined to another continent.

Africa is joined to the same land mass as Asia and Europe making movement of people far easier.

You could walk from South Africa to China

 

[Juan Albion]

the Australian Indigenous tribes didn't travel much , there is no way you could compare them to white European or Arabs , they are reasonably primitive and never reached huge numbers , were perfectly happy living of the land and never really had the urge/need to travel..........they did have contact with Indonesian tribes but were extremely superstitious and not many travelled north. They are similar to the Kalahari / Cape bushman in culture .........2 tragic tales of humanity.

Yes, but again, that's my point. You cannot decide on what makes a continent with a factor that only applies to one continent. If it's a determining factor, it should apply to most, if not all, continents.

 

[Juan Albion]

Which you could argue makes Australia the one true stand alone continent because all other continents are joined to another continent.

Africa is joined to the same land mass as Asia and Europe making movement of people far easier.

You could walk from South Africa to China

It certainly makes Australia unique, but that's a different topic. See above.

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

the Australian Indigenous tribes didn't travel much , there is no way you could compare them to white European or Arabs , they are reasonably primitive and never reached huge numbers , were perfectly happy living of the land and never really had the urge/need to travel..........they did have contact with Indonesian tribes but were extremely superstitious and not many travelled north. They are similar to the Kalahari / Cape bushman in culture .........2 tragic tales of humanity.

Not having the Afro textured hair would suggest something interesting was involved in the indigenous Australians genetic past.

While dark skinned they don't look African.

 

[sydney]

yes i agree "a continent" is a physical /geographical feature which has nothing to do with it's human population....Australia is widely thought of as a continent although i believe Australasia is the correct term.......oceania is a more recent entity created by fifa to squeeze the likes of the Solomon Islands and Fiji into the world cup qualifying rounds.

 

[sydney]

Not having the Afro textured hair would suggest something interesting was involved in the indigenous Australians genetic past.

While dark skinned they don't look African.

They have a more Indo look i think .

 

[pastafarian]

Who knows........who cares.
Whatever it is.It’s a long way for kangaroos to hop and swim to Noah`s Ark, then hop and swim all the way back again.
Must have been exhausting.

 

[sydney]

Who knows........who cares.
Whatever it is.It’s a long way for kangaroos to hop and swim to Noah`s Ark, then hop and swim all the way back again.
Must have been exhausting.

another subject again old boy...!!

 

[FatSuperman]

another subject again old boy...!!

Is Noah’s Ark how the Duckbilled Platypus came about? You know, lots of sexy animals, confined space, only one of your own species to play about with. Come on, you know. A duck here, a beaver there, bit of rat or something. BANG. You’ve got a multi-di.cked, venomous-spurred freak. Love it.

 

[John Byrnes Mullet]

Enjoyed skiing at Falls Creek, Victoria and then spent the next week basking on the beaches in Queensland. Must be a continent with such diverse climate.

 

[bristo]

Who knows........who cares.
Whatever it is.It’s a long way for kangaroos to hop and swim to Noah`s Ark, then hop and swim all the way back again.
Must have been exhausting.

Kangaroos don't hop. Even after a while on a cruise to Turkey.

 

[dingodan]

Australia:

-This article is about the continent. For the country, see Australia. For other uses, see Australia (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with Australasia.-

The continent of Australia, sometimes known in technical contexts by the names Sahul /səˈhuːl/, Australinea or Meganesia to distinguish it from the country of Australia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia_(continent)

Australasia:

Australasia comprises Australia, New Zealand, and some neighbouring islands (see the section Derivations). It is used in a number of different contexts including geopolitically, physiogeographically, and ecologically where the term covers several slightly different but related regions.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australasia

 

[Bodian]

Probably a more authoritative source than wikipedia https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/continent/

 

[rippleman]

Probably a more authoritative source than wikipedia https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/continent/

Certainly more reliable and authoritative than wiki! That will do for me. I am persuaded (having believed for decades that Australia was a country on the continent of Australasia)

Oceania it is.

 

[Kuipers Supporters Club]

Australia play football in Asia. Therefore they are Asian.

 

[Bodian]

Australia play football in Asia. Therefore they are Asian.

But they're also in Eurovision!

 

[Sussex Nomad]

I was always taught there were five continents, as with the 5 Olympic rings, of America, Australasia, Asia, Africa and Europe when I was at school. Seems to have changed since, so they have split the American continent and added the two poles. What do I know?

 

[DavidinSouthampton]

If Australia is a continent, what continent is New Zealand in?

It's moved to Europe, as it sees the enormous advantages of being able to join the European Union!


And before anybody complains that this should be on the BREXIT thread(s), it is intended as no more than a JOKE.