There is an interesting story behind the naming of Australia. Dutch navigators bestowed a name on the newly discovered land, which was the first reference to be used on charts. They named it, not surprisingly, Hollandia Nova, which translates as New Holland. The name did not cover the entire continent, only the western half.

The name New South Wales, for the eastern part of the continent, was the idea of James Cook. At a later point in time, the name Terra Australis began to appear when reference was being made to the continent as a whole. The English derivation of the words Terra Australis, which mean southern land, was Australia.

It was in fact one of Australia's most well known historical figures, Matthew Flinders, who first encouraged the use of this name. Indeed, he used the name on many of his charts before it had been officially accepted.

Finally, Governor Macquarie actually made use of the name in an official capacity in 1817. After this time it acquired a respectability and was increasingly used.

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