Victoria (ProtoTimeline)
Commonwealth of Victoria | |
---|---|
Flag | |
Capital and largest city | Canterbury |
Official languages | English |
Ethnic groups |
|
Demonym(s) | Victorian |
Government | Federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy |
• Queen | Elizabeth II |
• Governor-General | Maria Tamihana |
• Prime Minster | Jacinda Ardern |
• Chief Justice | Alexander Whelan |
Legislature | Parliament |
Senate | |
House of Representatives | |
Population | |
• Estimate | 41,931,752 |
Currency | Victorian dollar |
Driving side | left |
Internet TLD | .vc |
Victoria, officially the Commonwealth of Victoria, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Victorian continent, the New Hebries Archipelago, Francis Drake Islands, and numerous smaller islands. It is the largest country in Oceania and the world's sixth-largest country. Victoria's population of nearly 45 million, in an area of 7,617,930 square kilometres (2,941,300 sq mi). Canterbury is the nation's capital, while the largest city is Sringwood, and other major metropolitan areas are Melbourne, Northampton, Springwood, and Nottingham.
Melanesians were the first inhabitants of Victoria, specifically within the island province of New Hebrdes, whereas Polynesians settled the Victorian mainland around 1450, developing a distinctive culture yet still maintaining close ties to the Maori in New Zealand, where there is a shared language and culture. The first non-Maori contact with Victoria occurred when Dutch explorer Abel Tasman sighted and landed on the island in 1642 CE,