Brisbane is a global centre for research and innovation[18][19] and is a transportation hub, being served by largerail,bus andferry networks, as well asBrisbane Airport and thePort of Brisbane, Australia's third-busiest airport and seaport.
Part of the Brisbane conurbation is located ontraditional indigenous land known also asMeanjin,Meaanjin, Maganjin orMagandjin amongst other spellings.[32] There is a difference of opinion between local traditional owners over the spelling, provenance and pronunciation of indigenous names for Brisbane.[33]Tom Petrie in 1901 stated that the nameMeeannjin referred to the area that Brisbane CBD now straddles. Some sources state that the name means'place shaped as a spike' or 'the spearhead' referencing the shape of theBrisbane River along the area of the Brisbane CBD.[34][35][36][37] A contemporary Turrbal organisation has also suggested it means'the place of the blue water lilies'.[38] Local Elder Gaja Kerry Charlton posits thatMeanjin is based on a European understanding of'spike', and that the phonetically similarYagara nameMagandjin — after the nativetulipwood trees (magan) atGardens Point — is a more accurate and appropriate Aboriginal name for Brisbane.[39]
Aboriginal Australians have lived in coastal South East Queensland for at least 22,000 years, with an estimated population between 6,000 and 10,000 individuals beforeEuropean settlement in the 1820s.[46][47] Aboriginal groups claiming traditional ownership of the area include theYagara,Turrbal andQuandamooka peoples.[48][49][50] A website representing a Turrbal culture organisation claims that historical documents suggest that the Turrbal peoples were the only traditional owners of Brisbane when British settlers first arrived.[51]
Archaeological evidence suggests frequent habitation around the Brisbane River, and notably at the site now known asMusgrave Park.[52] The rivers were integral to life and supplied an abundance of food included fish, shellfish, crab, andprawns. Good fishing places became campsites and the focus of group activities. The district was defined by open woodlands with rainforest in some pockets or bends of the Brisbane River.[53]
Being a resource-rich area and a natural avenue for seasonal movement,Meanjin and the surrounding areas acted as a way station for groups travelling to ceremonies and spectacles. The region had several large (200–600 person) seasonal camps, the biggest and most important located along waterways north and south of the current city heart:Barambin or York's Hollow camp (today'sVictoria Park) andWoolloon-cappem (Woolloongabba/South Brisbane), also known asKurilpa. These camping grounds continued to function well into colonial times, and were the basis of European settlement in parts of Brisbane.[54]
In 1770, British navigatorJames Cook sailed through South Passage between the main offshore islands leading to the bay, which he named afterJames Douglas, 14th Earl of Morton, misspelled as "Moreton".[55]
Matthew Flinders initially explored the Moreton Bay area on behalf of the British authorities. On 17 July 1799, Flinders landed at present-dayWoody Point, which he namedRed Cliff Point after the red-coloured cliffs visible from the bay.[56]
In 1823 the Governor of New South Wales, Sir Thomas Brisbane, gave instructions for the development of a new northernpenal settlement, and an exploration party commanded byJohn Oxley further explored Moreton Bay in November 1823.[57]
The Old Windmill built in 1828, a site of convict punishments and executions, is the oldest surviving building inQueensland
Oxley explored the Brisbane River as far asGoodna, 20 km (12 mi) upstream from the present-day central business district of Brisbane.[57] He also named the river after the governor of the time.[57] Oxley also recommended Red Cliff Point for the new colony, reporting that ships could land at any tide and easily get close to the shore.[58] Theconvict settlement party landed in Redcliffe on 13 September 1824 formally establishing theMoreton Bay Penal Settlement that would become Brisbane. The party was under the command of LieutenantHenry Miller and consisted of 14 soldiers (some with wives and children) and 29 convicts. However, the settlers abandoned this site after a year and moved to an area on the Brisbane River now known as North Quay, 28 km (17 mi) south, which offered a more reliable water-supply. The newly selected Brisbane region was plagued by mosquitoes at the time.[59]
After visiting the Redcliffe settlement,Sir Thomas Brisbane then travelled 45 km (28 mi) up the Brisbane River in December 1824. Governor Brisbane stayed overnight in a tent and often landed ashore, thus bestowing upon the future Brisbane City the distinction of being the only Australian capital city visited by its namesake.[60]Chief JusticeForbes gave the new settlement the name ofEdenglassie before it was namedBrisbane.[61][need quotation to verify]
The penal settlement under the control of CaptainPatrick Logan (Commandant from 1826 to 1830) flourished, with the numbers of convicts increasing dramatically from around 200 to over 1,000 men.[62] He developed a substantial settlement of brick and stone buildings, complete with school and hospital. He formed additional outstations and made several important journeys of exploration. Logan became infamous for his extreme use of thecat o' nine tails on convicts. The maximum allowed limit of lashes was 50; however, Logan regularly applied sentences of 150 lashes.[62]
During this period raids on maize fields were conducted by local Aboriginal groups in theCorn Field Raids of 1827-1828. These groups destroyed and plundered the maize fields inSouth Bank andKangaroo Point, with the possible motive of extracting compensation from the settlers or warning them not to expand beyond their current area.[63][64]
An early sketch of the town of Brisbane including the Convict Hospital, 1835
Between 1824 and 1842, almost 2,400 men and 145 women were detained at the Moreton Bay convict settlement under the control of military commandants.[65] However, non-convict European settlement of the Brisbane region commenced in 1838 and the population grew strongly thereafter, with free settlers soon far outstripping the convict population.[66] Germanmissionaries settled at Zions Hill,Nundah as early as 1837, five years before Brisbane was officially declared a free settlement. The band consisted of ministersChristopher Eipper (1813–1894),Carl Wilhelm Schmidt, andlay missionaries Haussmann, Johann Gottried Wagner, Niquet, Hartenstein, Zillman, Franz, Rode, Doege and Schneider.[67] They were allocated 260 hectares and set about establishing the mission, which became known as the German Station.[68] Later in the 1860s many German immigrants from theUckermark region inPrussia as well as from other German regions settled in the areas ofBethania,Beenleigh and theDarling Downs. These immigrants were selected and assisted through immigration programs established by Rev DrJohn Dunmore Lang andJohann Christian Heussler and were offered free passage, good wages, and selections of land.[69][70]
Scottish immigrants from the shipFortitude arrived in Brisbane in 1849, enticed by Lang on the promise of free land grants. Denied land, the immigrants set up camp inYork's Hollow waterholes in the vicinity of today'sVictoria Park,Herston, Queensland. A number of the immigrants moved in and settled the suburb, naming itFortitude Valley after the ship on which they arrived.[71]
During theWar of Southern Queensland, Indigenous attacks occurred across the city, committing robberies and terrorising unarmed residents.[76][77] Reprisal raids took place against the Duke of York's clan inVictoria Park in 1846 and 1849 by British soldiers of the11th Regiment, however the clan had been wrongfully targeted as the attacks on Brisbane had not been committed by theTurrbal themselves but other tribes farther north.[78][79] In 1855,Dundalli, a prominent leader during the conflict, was captured and executed by hanging at the present site of theGPO.
In 1862, the first sugarcane plantation in Queensland was established near Brisbane by Captain Louis Hope andJohn Buhôt.[citation needed]
In 1864, theGreat Fire of Brisbane burned through the central parts of the city, destroying much ofQueen Street.[80] The 1860s were a period of economic and political turmoil leading to high unemployment, in 1866 hundreds of impoverished workers convened a meeting at theTreasury Hotel, with a cry for "bread or blood", rioted and attempted to ransack theGovernment store.[81]
TheCity Botanic Gardens were originally established in 1825 as a farm for theMoreton Bay penal settlement, and were planted by convicts in 1825 with food crops to feed the prison colony.[82] In 1855, several acres was declared a Botanic Reserve under the SuperintendentWalter Hill, a position he held until 1881.[83][84] Some trees planted in the Gardens were among the first of their species to be planted in Australia, including thejacaranda andpoinciana.[85]
Fort Lytton was constructed in 1882 at the mouth of the Brisbane river, to protect the city against foreign colonial powers such asRussia andFrance, and was the onlymoated fort ever built in Australia.
The city's slum district ofFrog's Hollow, named so for its location being low-lying and swampy, was both thered light district of colonial Brisbane and itsChinatown, and was the site ofprostitution,sly grog, andopium dens. In 1888, Frog's Hollow was the site ofanti-Chinese riots, where more than 2000 people attacked Chinese homes and businesses.[87]
In 1893 Brisbane was affected by theBlack February flood, when the Brisbane River burst its banks on three occasions in February and again in June in the same year, with the city receiving more than a year's rainfall during February 1893, leaving much of the city's population homeless. In 1896, the Brisbane river saw its worst maritime disaster with thecapsize of the ferry Pearl, between the 80–100 people on board there were only 40 survivors.[88]
Russian immigration took place in the years 1911–1914. Many were radicals and revolutionaries seeking asylum from tsarist political repression in the final chaotic years of theRussian Empire; considerable numbers were Jews escaping state-inspired pogroms. They had fled Russia viaSiberia and Northern China, most making their way toHarbin, inManchuria, then taking passage from the port ofDalian toTownsville or Brisbane, the first Australian ports of call.[89]
Following theFirst World War, conflict arose between returned servicemen of theFirst Australian Imperial Force andsocialists along with other elements of society that the ex-servicemen considered to be disloyal toward Australia.[90] Over the course of 1918–1919, a series of violent demonstrations and attacks known as theRed Flag riots, were waged throughout Brisbane. The most notable incident occurred on 24 March 1919, when a crowd of about 8,000 ex-servicemen clashed violently with police who were preventing them from attacking the Russian Hall in Merivale Street,South Brisbane, which was known as the Battle of Merivale Street. Over 20 small municipalities and shires were amalgamated in 1925 to form the City of Brisbane, governed by theBrisbane City Council.[91] A significant year for Brisbane was 1930, with the completion ofBrisbane City Hall, then the city's tallest building and theShrine of Remembrance, inANZAC Square, which has become Brisbane's main war memorial.[92]
These historic buildings, along with theStory Bridge which opened in 1940, are key landmarks that help define the architectural character of the city. Following the death ofKing George V in 1936, Albert square was widened to include the area which had been Albert Street, and renamedKing George Square in honour of the King. Anequestrian statue of the king and twoBronzeLionsculptures were unveiled in 1938.[citation needed]
Parade ofRAAF servicemen through Queen street,c. 1940
During World War II, Brisbane became central to the Allied campaign, since it was the northernmost city with adequate communications facilities. From July 1942 to September 1944, AMP Building (now calledMacArthur Central) was used as the headquarters forSouth West Pacific Area under General MacArthur. MacArthur had previously rejected use of the University of Queensland complex as his headquarters, as the distinctive bends in the river at St Lucia could have aided enemy bombers. Also used as a headquarters by the American troops during World War II was theT & G Building.[94] About one million US troops passed through Australia during the war, as the primary co-ordination point for the South West Pacific.[95] Wartime Brisbane was defined by theracial segregation ofAfrican American servicemen,prohibition andsly grog, crime, andjazzballrooms.[96][97]
In 1942, Brisbane was the site of a violent clash between visiting US military personnel and Australian servicemen and civilians, which resulted in one death and hundreds of injuries. This incident became known colloquially as theBattle of Brisbane.[98]
Post-war Brisbane had developed a big country town stigma, an image the city's politicians and marketers were very keen to remove.[99] In the late 1950s, an anonymous poet known as The Brisbane Bard generated much attention to the city which helped shake this stigma.[100][101] In 1955,Wickham Terrace was the site of a terrorist incident involving shootings and bombs, by the German immigrantKarl Kast. Despite steady growth, Brisbane's development was punctuated by infrastructure problems. The state government underJoh Bjelke-Petersen began a major program of change and urban renewal, beginning with the central business district and inner suburbs.Trams in Brisbane were a popular mode of public transport until the network was closed in 1969, in part the result of thePaddington tram depot fire.
In 1971, the touringSpringboks were to play against the Australian Rugby team. This was met with plans for protests due to the growing international and local opposition toapartheid in South Africa. However, before their arrival Bjelke-Petersen declared a state of emergency for a month, citing the importance of the tour.[103] This did not stop the protest however with violent clashes between protestors and police erupting when several hundred demonstrators assembled outside a Brisbane motel on Thursday, 22 July 1971, where the Springbok team was staying. A second protest saw a large number of demonstrators assembled once more outside the Tower Mill Motel and after 15 minutes of peaceful protest, a brick was thrown into the motel room and police took action to clear the road and consequently disproportionate violence was used against demonstrators.[104]
In the lead up to the 1980s Queensland fell subject to many forms of censorship. In 1977 things had escalated from prosecutions and book burnings, under the introduction of the Literature Board of Review, to a statewide ban on protests and street marches. In September 1977 theQueensland Government introduced a ban on all street protests, resulting in a statewide civil liberties campaign of defiance.[105] This saw two thousand people arrested and fined, with another hundred being imprisoned, at a cost of almost five million dollars to the State Government.[106] Bjelke-Petersen publicly announced on 4 September 1977 that "the day of the political street march is over ... Don't bother to apply for a permit. You won't get one. That's government policy now."[107] In response to this, protesters came up with the idea of Phantom Civil Liberties Marches where protesters would gather and march until the police and media arrived. They would then disperse, and gather together again until the media and police returned, repeating the process over and over again.[108]
Brisbane hosted the1982 Commonwealth Games andWorld Expo 88. These events were accompanied by a scale of public expenditure, construction, and development not previously seen in the state of Queensland.[110][111] Brisbane's population growth far exceeded the national average in the last two decades of the 20th century, with a high level of interstate migration fromVictoria and New South Wales. In the late 1980s Brisbane's inner-city areas were struggling with economic stagnation,urban decay and crime which resulted in an exodus of residents and business to the suburban fringe, in the early 1990s the city undertook an extensive and successfulurban renewal of the Woolstore precinct as well as the development ofSouth Bank Parklands.[112]
Brisbane was impacted by major floods inJanuary 2011 andFebruary 2022. The Brisbane River did not reach the same height as the previous 1974 flood on either occasion, but caused extensive disruption and damage to infrastructure.[113][114]
Brisbane is in the southeast corner of Queensland. The city is centred along the Brisbane River, and its eastern suburbs line the shores of Moreton Bay, a bay of the Coral Sea. The greater Brisbane region is on the coastal plain east of theGreat Dividing Range, with theTaylor andD'Aguilar ranges extending into the metropolitan area. Brisbane's metropolitan area sprawls along the Moreton Bay floodplain between theGold andSunshine coasts, approximately fromCaboolture in the north toBeenleigh in the south, and across toIpswich in the south west.
The Brisbane River is a widetidalestuary and its waters throughout most of the metropolitan area arebrackish andnavigable. The river takes a winding course through the metropolitan area with many steep curves from the southwest to its mouth at Moreton Bay in the east. The metropolitan area is also traversed by several other rivers and creeks including theNorth Pine andSouth Pine rivers in the northern suburbs, which converge to form thePine River estuary atBramble Bay, theCaboolture River further north, theLogan andAlbert rivers in the south-eastern suburbs, andtributaries of the Brisbane River including theBremer River in the south-western suburbs,Breakfast Creek in the inner-north,Norman Creek in the inner-south,Oxley Creek in the south,Bulimba Creek in the inner south-east andMoggill Creek in the west. The city is on a low-lyingfloodplain,[118] with the risk of flooding addressed by various state and local government regulations and plans.[119]
Lightning over the Brisbane city centre, February 2020
Brisbane has ahumid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification:Cfa)[126] with hot, wet summers and moderately drier, mild winters.[127][128] Brisbane experiences an annual mean minimum of 16.6 °C (62 °F) and mean maximum of 26.6 °C (80 °F), making it Australia's second-hottest capital city afterDarwin.[129] Seasonality is not pronounced, and average maximum temperatures of above 26 °C (79 °F) persist from October through to April.
Due to its proximity to the Coral Sea and a warm ocean current, Brisbane's overall temperature variability is somewhat less than most Australian capitals. Summers are long, hot, and wet, but temperatures only occasionally reach 35 °C (95 °F) or more. Eighty percent of summer days record a maximum temperature of 27 to 33 °C (81 to 91 °F). Winters are short and warm, with average maximums of about 22 °C (72 °F); maximum temperatures below 20 °C (68 °F) are rare.
The city's highest recorded temperature was 43.2 °C (109.8 °F) onAustralia Day 1940 at the Brisbane Regional Office,[130] with the highest temperature at the current station being 41.7 °C (107.1 °F) on 22 February 2004;[131] but temperatures above 38 °C (100 °F) are uncommon. On 19 July 2007, Brisbane's temperature fell below the freezing point for the first time since records began, registering −0.1 °C (31.8 °F) at the airport station.[132] The city station has never dropped below 2 °C (36 °F),[133] with the average coldest night during winter being around 6 °C (43 °F), however locations in the west of the metropolitan area such asIpswich have dropped as low as −5 °C (23 °F) with heavy ground frost.[134]
In 2009, Brisbane recorded its hottest winter day (from June to August) at 35.4 °C (95.7 °F) on 24 August;[135] The average July day however is around 22 °C (72 °F) with sunny skies and low humidity, occasionally as high as 27 °C (81 °F), whilst maximum temperatures below 18 °C (64 °F) are uncommon and usually associated with brief periods of cloud and winter rain.[133] The highest minimum temperature ever recorded in Brisbane was 28.0 °C (82.4 °F) on 29 January 1940 and again on 21 January 2017, whilst the lowest maximum temperature was 10.2 °C (50.4 °F) on 12 August 1954.[130]
Annual precipitation is ample. From November to March, thunderstorms are common over Brisbane, with the more severe events accompanied by large damaging hail stones, torrential rain and destructive winds. On an annual basis, Brisbane averages 124 clear days, with overcast skies more common in the warmer months.[136] Dewpoints in the summer average at around 20 °C (68 °F); theapparent temperature exceeds 30 °C (86 °F) on almost all summer days.[133] Brisbane's wettest day occurred on 21 January 1887, when 465 millimetres (18.3 in) of rain fell on the city, the highest maximum daily rainfall of Australia's capital cities. The wettest month on record was February 1893, when 1,025.9 millimetres (40.39 in) of rain fell, although in the last 30 years the record monthly rainfall has been a much lower 479.8 millimetres (18.89 in) from December 2010. Very occasionally a whole month will pass with no recorded rainfall, the last time this happened was August 1991.[130] The city has suffered four major floods since its founding, inFebruary 1893,January 1974 (partially a result ofCyclone Wanda),January 2011 (partially a result ofCyclone Tasha) andFebruary 2022.
Brisbane is within the southern reaches of thetropical cyclone risk zone. Full-strength tropical cyclones rarely affect Brisbane, but occasionally do so. The biggest risk is from ex-tropical cyclones, which can cause destructive winds and flooding rains.[137]
The average annual temperature of the sea ranges from 21.0 °C (69.8 °F) in July to 27.0 °C (80.6 °F) in February.[138]
At the broadest level, Brisbane's metropolitan area is informally divided into the northside and the southside, with the dividing line being theBrisbane River,[140] as crossing one of the 15bridges across the river is required to travel to the opposite side by land transport. Due to the river's winding trajectory, this results in many areas which are south of the CBD being classified as located in the northside, and vice versa. At a more specific level, the metropolitan area contains informal regions including the northern, southern, eastern and western suburbs, the bayside suburbs along the Moreton Bay coastline, and the Moreton Bay, Redland, Logan and Ipswich regions in the outer north, east, south and west respectively.
Greater Brisbane had a density of 159 inhabitants per square kilometre (410/sq mi) in 2021.[2] Like most Australian cities, Brisbane has a sprawling metropolitan area which takes in excess of one hour to traverse either north to south or east to west by car without traffic.
One of the oldest synagogues in the Queensland area is the Brisbane Synagogue located on Margaret Street in Brisbane city. This historic synagogue can be attributed as the "centerpiece of the Jewish community's presence in the state" It was established in 1866 and designed by architect Arthur Morry. Another architect by the name of Andrea Stombuco has also been credited as a designer of the synagogue by previous members of the community. The architectural design of this historic synagogue is in the style of Neo-Moorish also known as Byzantine style.[146]
Queenslander-style housing is common in Brisbane.[147] Queenslander homes typically feature timber construction with largeverandahs,gabled corrugated iron roofs, and high ceilings. Most of these houses are elevated on stumps (also called stilts), traditionally built of timber, which allow for a void under the houses which aids in cooling. The relatively low cost of timber in south-east Queensland meant that until recently, most residences were constructed of timber, rather than brick or stone.[citation needed] Early legislation decreed a minimum size for residential blocks leading to fewterrace houses being constructed in Brisbane.[citation needed] The high-density housing that historically existed came in the form of miniatureQueenslander-style houses which resemble the much larger traditional styles, but are sometimes only one-quarter the size.[citation needed] These houses are most common in the inner-city suburbs.
Brisbane is home to several ofAustralia's tallest buildings. All of Brisbane's skyscrapers (buildings with a height greater than 150 m (490 ft)) are located within the CBD, but the inner suburbs are also home to a number of high-density buildings,Torbreck being the first high-rise and mix-use residential development inQueensland. Brisbane's 91-metre City Hall was the city's tallest building for decades after its completion in 1930 and was finally surpassed in 1970, which marked the beginning of the widespread construction of high-rise buildings.[citation needed]
The 2021 census showed that 20.7% of Brisbane's inhabitants wereborn overseas and 25.2% of inhabitants had at least one parent born overseas.[150] Brisbane has the26th largest immigrant population among world metropolitan areas. Of inhabitants born outside of Australia, the five most prevalent countries of birth were New Zealand, England, India, mainland China and the Philippines.
At the 2021 census, 77.3% of inhabitants spoke only English at home,[150] with the next most common languages beingMandarin (2.5%),Vietnamese (1.1%),Punjabi (0.9%),Cantonese (0.9%), andSpanish (0.8%).[150]
At the 2021 census, the most commonly cited religious affiliation was "No religion" (41.4%).Brisbane's most popular religion at the 2021 census wasChristianity at 44.3%, the most popular denominations of which wereCatholicism (18.6%) andAnglicanism (9.7%).Brisbane's CBD is home to two cathedrals –St John's (Anglican) andSt Stephen's (Catholic).
The most popular non-Christian religions at the 2021 census wereHindu (2%),Buddhist (1.9%), andMuslim (1.8%).[167]
Brisbane throughout its history has been one of Australia's most importantseaport cities. ThePort of Brisbane is located at the Brisbane River's mouth onMoreton Bay and on the adjacent Fisherman's Island, created by means ofland reclamation. It is the 3rd busiest port in Australia for value of goods.[170]Container freight, sugar, grain, coal and bulk liquids are the major exports. Most of the port facilities are less than three decades old and some are built on reclaimedmangroves andwetlands. The Port is a part of theAustralia TradeCoast, which includes theBrisbane Airport along with large industrial estates located along both banks at the mouth of the Brisbane River.[171]
Blue-collar industries, including petroleum refining,stevedoring, paper milling,metalworking andQR railway workshops, tend to be located on the lower reaches of the Brisbane River proximal to thePort of Brisbane and in new industrial zones on the urban fringe.
Tourism is an important part of the Brisbane economy, both in its own right and as a gateway to other areas of Queensland,[172] as isinternational education, with over 95,000 international students enrolled in universities and other tertiary education institutions in the centralCity of Brisbanelocal government area alone in 2018.[173]
Brisbane is home to several art galleries, the largest of which are theQueensland Art Gallery and theQueensland Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA), which is the largest modern art gallery in Australia. GOMA holds the Asia Pacific Triennial (APT) which focuses on contemporary art from the Asia and Pacific in a variety of media from painting to video work. In addition, its size enables the gallery to exhibit particularly large shows.
GOMA houses theAustralian Cinémathèque, a dedicated film facility offering a diverse program of screenings, including international cinema, influential filmmakers, rare prints, restorations and silent films with a live musical accompaniment. Screenings take place Wednesday and Friday nights, as well as matinees on weekends. Most screenings are free admission.[174]
Since the late 20th century, numerousfilms have been shot in Brisbane, and the popular children's animated television seriesBluey is produced and set in Brisbane.
The Royal Queensland Exhibition (known locally as theEkka), an agricultural exhibition held each August at theBrisbane Showgrounds inBowen Hills, is the longest-running major annual event held in Brisbane. A public holiday is held for eachlocal government area across Brisbane to enable widespread public attendance.
TheBrisbane Festival is held each September atSouth Bank Parklands, theCBD and surrounding areas. It includesRiverfire, one of the nation's largest annual fireworks displays, which is attended by hundreds of thousands of residents.
TheBrisbane International Film Festival (BIFF) is held in July/August each year in a variety of venues around Brisbane. BIFF features new films and retrospectives by domestic and international filmmakers along with seminars and awards.
TheBuddha Birth Day festival at South Bank parklands attracts over 200,000 visitors each year,[187][188] and is the largest event of its type in Australia.
Brisbane is notable for itsBrisbane Riverwalk network, which runs along much of theBrisbane River foreshore throughout the inner-city area, with the longest span running betweenNewstead andToowong. Another popular stretch runs beneath theKangaroo Point Cliffs betweenSouth Brisbane andKangaroo Point. Several spans of the Riverwalk are built out over the Brisbane River. Brisbane also has over 27 km (17 mi) of bicycle pathways, mostly surrounding theBrisbane River and city centre. Other popular recreation activities include theStory Bridge adventure climb and rock climbing at theKangaroo Point Cliffs.
Immediately to the south and north of Brisbane are theGold Coast andSunshine Coast respectively, which are home to several of Australia's most popular swimming and surfing beaches, and are popular day and weekend destinations for Brisbanites.
In 2015, a competition by travel guidebookRough Guides saw Brisbane elected as one of the top ten most beautiful cities in the world, citing reasons such as "its winning combination of high-rise modern architecture, lush green spaces and the enormous Brisbane River that snakes its way through the centre before emptying itself into the azure Moreton Bay".[191]
Unlike other Australian capital cities, a large portion of the greater metropolitan area, or Greater Capital City Statistical Area (GCCSA) of Brisbane is controlled by a singlelocal government area, theCity of Brisbane, which is the largest local government area (in terms of population and budget) in Australia, serving more than 40% of the GCCSA's population. It was formed by the merger of twenty smaller LGAs in 1925, and covers an area of 1,367 km2 (528 sq mi). The remainder of the metropolitan area falls into the LGAs ofLogan City to the south,City of Moreton Bay in the northern suburbs, theCity of Ipswich to the south west,Redland City to the south east, and into theSomerset,Scenic Rim andLockyer Valley regions on the urban periphery. Several of these are also among the nation's most populous LGAs.
Each LGA is governed under a similar structure, including a directly elected mayor (including theLord Mayor of Brisbane), as well as a council composed of councillors representing geographical wards.Brisbane City Hall is the seat of theBrisbane City Council, the governing corporation of the City of Brisbane LGA, and the bulk of its executive offices are located at theBrisbane Square skyscraper.
Brisbane has a diverse political climate. On the federal level, thecentre-rightLiberal National Party (LNP) holds six Brisbane-based seats, thecentre-leftLabor Party holds four and theleft-wingGreens hold three. On the state level, Labor holds the vast majority of Brisbane-based seats, while the LNP holds just five and the Greens hold two. On the local level, LNP hold the Lord Mayoralty of Brisbane (withAdrian Schrinner as Lord Mayor) and 20 of the 26 wards of the City of Brisbane, while Labor holds five and the Greens and an independent hold one each.
Brisbane is a major destination forinternational students, who constitute a large proportion of enrolments in Brisbane's universities and are important to the city's economy and real estate market. In 2018, there were over 95,000 international students enrolled in universities and other tertiary education institutions in the central City of Brisbanelocal government area alone.[173] The majority of Brisbane's international students originate from China, India and other countries in theAsia-Pacific region.[195]
Brisbane has an extensive transport network within the city, as well as connections to regional centres, interstate and to overseas destinations. Like all Australian cities, the most popular mode of transport is private car.[199] Public transport is provided by rail, bus and ferry services and is coordinated byTranslink, which provides a unified ticketing and electronic payment system (known asgo card) forSouth East Queensland. The region is divided into sevenfare zones radiating outwards from theBrisbane central business district (CBD), with Brisbane's built-up area falling within zones 1–3. Bus services are operated by public and private operators whereas trains and ferries are operated by public agencies. The CBD is the central hub for all public transport services with services focusing onRoma Street,Central andFortitude Valley railway stations;King George Square,Queen Street andRoma Street busway stations; andNorth Quay,Riverside andQUT Gardens Point ferry wharves.
Brisbane also has a large network of major road tunnels under the metropolitan area, known as theTransApex network, which include theClem Jones Tunnel between the inner-north and inner-south, theAirport Link tunnel in the north-east and theLegacy Way tunnel in the south-west. They are the three longest road tunnels in Australia.
55 million passenger trips were taken across the network in 2018–19.[201]
Construction of the network began in 1865[202] and has been progressively expanded in the subsequent centuries.Electrification of the network was completed between 1979 and 1988.
TheCross River Rail project includes a twin rail tunnel (5.9 km (3.7 mi) long) which will pass under the Brisbane River to link two new railway stations atAlbert Street in the CBD andWooloongabba; it is under construction and scheduled to be completed in early 2025.[203]
There are also numerous suburban bus routes operating throughout the metropolitan area, including the high-frequency blue and maroonCityGlider routes which run betweenNewstead andWest End (blue), andAshgrove andCoorparoo (maroon) respectively.
There are tourist passenger ferries that depart the Brisbane River atPinkenba toTangalooma on Moreton Island four times daily, and Micat 4WD car ferries that depart from thePort of Brisbane daily.[205]
An extensive network of pedestrian and cyclist pathways span the banks of theBrisbane River in the inner suburbs to form theRiverwalk network.[206] In some segments, the Riverwalk is built over the river. The longest span of the Riverwalk connectsNewstead in the east withToowong in the west.
Brisbane Airport (IATA:BNE,ICAO:YBBN) is the city's main airport, thethird busiest in Australia afterSydney Airport andMelbourne Airport. It is located north-east of the city centre on Moreton Bay and provides domestic and international passenger services. In 2017, Brisbane Airport handled over 23 million passengers.[207] The airport is the mainhub forVirgin Australia as well as a number of minor and freight airlines, and a focus city forQantas andJetstar. The airport is served by the Airtrain service which runs on theAirport line, providing a direct service to theCBD.
ThePort of Brisbane is located on the south side of the mouth of the Brisbane River onMoreton Bay and on the adjacent Fisherman's Island, anartificial island created byland reclamation. It is the third busiest port in Australia for value of goods.[170] The port is the endpoint of the main shipping channel across Moreton Bay which extends 90 kilometres north nearMooloolaba. The port has 29 operating berths including nine deep-water containerberths and three deep-water bulk berths as well as 17 bulk and general cargo berths.
There are twocruise ship terminals in Brisbane.Portside Wharf on the north side of the river atHamilton is an international standard facility for cruise liners. Due to the height of theGateway Bridge which must be passed to reach the terminal, the wharf services small and medium-sized cruise ships. TheBrisbane International Cruise Terminal at Luggage Point inPinkenba on the north side of the river opposite the Port of Brisbane is able to accommodate the largest cruise vessels in the world.[208]
Brisbane is also home to the headquarters of theQueensland Ambulance Service central executive, located at the Emergency Services Complex Kedron Park, along with the headquarters of theQueensland Fire and Emergency Services and the Queensland Emergency Operations Centre.
Water in Brisbane is managed by twostatutory authorities:Seqwater andUrban Utilities. Bulk water storage, treatment and transportation for South East Queensland is managed bySeqwater, withUrban Utilities (previously Brisbane Water) responsible for distribution to the greater Brisbane area. Water for the area is stored in three major dams to the north-west of the metropolitan area:Wivenhoe,Somerset andNorth Pine.
The provision of electricity in Brisbane is managed by government and private bodies. Generators (some private and some owned by the Queensland government) sell energy into the wholesale market for eastern Australia known as theNational Electricity Market. Transmission and distribution of electricity is managed by the Queensland government owned corporationsEnergex andPowerlink Queensland respectively.Private retailers then purchase electricity from the wholesalemarket and sell it to consumers, which have the ability to choose between different retailers in a partially de-regulated market.[211]
The supply ofgas to users is more heavily privatised, with the privateAPA Group distributing gas in Brisbane, which is then bought and sold by retailers (mainlyOrigin Energy andAGL Energy) in a partially de-regulated market.[212]
Metropolitan Brisbane is serviced by all major and most minor telecommunications companies and their networks, includingTelstra,Optus, andVodafone Australia.
TheBrisbane Times is Brisbane's second major local news source, owned byNine, and is online only. Its sibling papers,The Sydney Morning Herald and Melbourne'sThe Age are sometimes sold in print in Brisbane in small numbers. The national broadsheetAustralian Financial Review, also owned by Nine, is sold in print in Brisbane.
There are community and suburban newspapers throughout the metropolitan area, includingBrisbane News andCity News, many of which are produced byQuest Community Newspapers.
Brisbane is serviced by five major public radio stations including major commercial radio stations, includingABC Radio Brisbane (local news, current affairs and talk);ABC Radio National (national news and current affairs);ABC NewsRadio (national news);ABC Classic FM (classical music);Triple J (alternative music); andSBS Radio (multicultural broadcasting).
Brisbane is serviced by numerous major commercial and community radio stations including 4BC (local and national talk, news and current affairs);SENQ (sport);4BH (classic hits);KIIS 97.3 (pop);B105 (pop);Nova 106.9 (top 40);Triple M (rock);96five Family FM (Christian/pop);Radio TAB (betting); and4MBS (classical).
^In accordance with the Australian Bureau of Statistics source,England,Scotland,Mainland China and the Special Administrative Regions ofHong Kong andMacau are listed separately.
^The Australian Bureau of Statistics has stated that most who nominate "Australian" as their ancestry are part of theAnglo-Celtic group.[149]
^Those who nominated their ancestry as "Australian Aboriginal". Does not includeTorres Strait Islanders. This relates to nomination of ancestry and is distinct from persons who identify as Indigenous (Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander) which is a separate question.
^Indigenous identification is separate to the ancestry question on the Australian Census and persons identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander may identify any ancestry.
^Brisbane Australia.com."Brisbane River History".Brisbane Australia.com.Archived from the original on 3 January 2023. Retrieved3 January 2023.It was then that he named the river after Sir Brisbane, the Governor of NSW.
^"Go back in time when Brisbane was named after a river".Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art. Retrieved9 March 2025.200 years ago when the explorer John Oxley visited Moreton Bay in 1823, he named the river Brisbane in honour of the then Governor of New South Wales, Sir Thomas Makdougall Brisbane (1773-1860). Later, in 1825, a settlement on its banks to house Sydney's most unruly convicts was called Brisbane.
^Heydon, J. D. (1966)."Sir Thomas Makdougall Brisbane (1773–1860)".Australian Dictionary of Biography.1.Archived from the original on 15 July 2024. Retrieved23 July 2024.The city of Brisbane, Queensland's capital since 1859, was founded as a convict settlement in 1824, and it and its river were named for the governor at the suggestion of the explorer Oxley, the first European to survey the area.
^Turrbal Dippil."Our Story".Turrbal.Archived from the original on 7 December 2020. Retrieved25 October 2023.
^Charlton, Gaja Kerry (15 June 2023)."Makunschan, Meeanjan, Miganchan, Meanjan, Magandjin".Meanjin.Archived from the original on 6 February 2024. Retrieved6 February 2024.In 1843, [Ludwig Leichhardt ] was given two names:Makandschin from an original Brisbane man andMegandsin from an original speaker from a different country...Meston listedMagoo-jin thenMagandjin, based onMagan, the name of the Tulipwood tree, from elderlyGoori [Aboriginal] speakers who asserted they were 'Brisbane natives'... From a Goori knowledge base the names based on the Tulipwood tree fits best for the original Goori name. The suffix -djin indicates plural, e.g. people, district, river. TheMigan-dar-gu-n (Mi'andjan) version describes the use of a sharp tool, possibly ground being dug up, likely the first convict garden, which thePetrie map shows multiplied across the whole of the promontory. Another explanation of this name is 'land shaped like a spike'. Both these are based onDugai [European] activity andDugai lens...Magandjin fits as the original word for an area of what is now called Brisbane.Migandjan refers to digging the ground—either gardens or buildings. However, the termMigandjan spread. As demonstrated, language repatriation is a work in progress.
^National Native Title Tribunal."Yagara/YUgarapul People (QC2011/008)".National Native Title Tribunal. Australian Government.Archived from the original on 11 March 2023. Retrieved21 February 2023.
^National Native Title Tribunal."Quandamooka People #4 (QC2014/006)".National Native Title Tribunal. Australian Government.Archived from the original on 17 March 2020. Retrieved21 February 2023.
^"E23: Yuggera".Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Collection. n.d.Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved6 January 2023.
^"E86: Turrbal".Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies Collection. n.d.Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved6 January 2023.
^Ridley, WM (1866).Kamilaroi, Dippil, and Turrubul: Languages Spoken by Australian Aborigines. Sydney: New South Wales Government Printing Office. p. 61.
^Lybaek, Lena; Konrad Raiser; Stefanie Schardien (2004).Gemeinschaft der Kirchen und gesellschaftliche Verantwortung. Münster: LIT. p. 114.ISBN978-3-8258-7061-4.
^"Local Intelligence".The Moreton Bay Courier. Vol. I, no. 35. Queensland, Australia. 13 February 1847. p. 2.Archived from the original on 31 May 2022. Retrieved22 April 2019 – via National Library of Australia.
^Fagg, Murray (26 May 2009)."City Botanic Gardens (Brisbane)".Australian National Botanic Gardens. Council of Heads of Australian Botanic Gardens. Archived fromthe original on 18 February 2011. Retrieved2 September 2010.
^"William Alfred Jolly (1881–1955)".Jolly, William Alfred (1881–1955). National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.Archived from the original on 26 May 2008. Retrieved20 December 2007.
^"Brisbane". ANZAC Day Commemoration Committee (Qld) Incorporated. 1998. Archived fromthe original on 12 October 2007. Retrieved28 December 2007.
^"Raid on Parliament".Trove. 23 August 1939.Archived from the original on 31 October 2021. Retrieved31 October 2021.
^Peter Dunn (2 March 2005)."Hirings Section". Australia @ War.Archived from the original on 12 October 2007. Retrieved7 January 2008.
^Plunkett, Geoff (5 May 2018).The Whiskey Au Go Go massacre: murder, arson and the crime of the century. Newport, NSW: Blue Sky Publishing.ISBN9781925675443.OCLC1041112112.
^Tapper, Andrew; Tapper, Nigel (2006). "Sub-Synoptic-Scale Processes and Phenomena". In Gray, Kathleen (ed.).The weather and climate of Australia and New Zealand (Second ed.). Melbourne, Australia: Oxford University Press. p. 346.ISBN978-0-19-558466-0.
^Linacre, Edward; Geerts, Bart (1997)."Southern Climates".Climates and Weather Explained. London: Routledge. p. 379.ISBN0-415-12519-7.Archived from the original on 17 January 2023. Retrieved25 November 2020.
^"Brisbane Portrait Prize".Finalists Exhibition. A new home at State Library of Queensland.Archived from the original on 3 December 2023. Retrieved4 December 2023.
^Studies (CWTS), Centre for Science and Technology."CWTS Leiden Ranking".CWTS Leiden Ranking.Archived from the original on 2 February 2011. Retrieved3 March 2021.
^"AEI Pivot".International Education. 2019.Archived from the original on 19 September 2020. Retrieved3 November 2019.
^Queensland Government (10 September 2020)."Electricity in Queensland".Business Queensland. Queensland Government.Archived from the original on 27 June 2023. Retrieved27 June 2023.
^Queensland Government (9 May 2018)."Gas retail and competition".Business Queensland. Queensland Government.Archived from the original on 27 June 2023. Retrieved27 June 2023.
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