A Random A-Z of Australia Trivia Quiz

Answer: ANZAC Day

Anzac Day was originally to honour and remember the servicemen that fought for the first time under the banner ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corp) against the Ottoman Empire at Gallipoli (Turkey) in WWI. It was the first time the two nations had fought in a conflict after both had recently gained independence from the United Kingdom. It is now a national day of remembrance in both Australia and New Zealand to commemorate those of both countries that have given their lives in all wars and conflicts.

Armistice Day occurs on November 11 annually to commemorate the signing of the treaty that ended WWI in 1918.

Australia Day is celebrated on January 26 each year which marks the arrival in 1788 of the First Fleet of British ships at Port Jackson (NSW).

The NAIDOC (National Aboriginal and Islander Observance Committee) celebrate a week long celebration to observe Aboriginal and Islander history, culture and achievements, beginning the first Sunday in July.

Answer: Don Bradman

Don Bradman (1908-2001), affectionately known as "The Don", is widely recognised as the greatest batsman of all time. His incredible achievements put smiles on the people of a nation that was going through the troubled times of the Depression in the 1930s. He made a total of 117 First Class centuries in a career that lasted 20 years. Statistically, it meant that every third time he went into bat, he made a century. He was the Babe Ruth of cricket.

Arthur "Artie" Beetson (1945-2011) is remembered as one of Australian Rugby League's best post-war forwards and was the first Indigenous Australian to captain his country at any sport. Ron Barassi is a well known former champion player and successful coach in Aussie Rules (VFL/AFL) football.

Alan Border is a former successful Australian cricketer, who captained the national team and was the first Australian to score 10,000 runs in Test cricket.

Answer: Cuscus

Cuscus is the common name given to the species of Australian possums that live in the Cape York area of Australia and also in New Guinea.

The Australian saltwater crocodile is one of the most dangerous animals in Australia. They are huge and very aggressive and their territory is in the northern outback. They kill an average of one to two people each year.

The cassowary is a flightless bird and are just slightly smaller than an ostrich and emu. They can be very aggressive if provoked and have been known to inflict fatal injuries on dogs and humans. They are found in north-eastern Australia.

The giant Australian cuttlefish is the world's largest cuttlefish. It is excellent at camouflaging itself to stalk fish and crabs.

Answer: drongo

Drongo means that a person is a "no-hoper", "dim-witted", "inept", "stupid" or a "fool". There is a bird species named drongo, however, the Australian expression comes from the name of a racehorse in the 1920s that ran in 37 races in premier turf clubs, including the Melbourne Cup, but was never a winner.

A didgeridoo is an Aboriginal wind instrument. It was developed over 1,500 years ago and is sometimes referred to as a wooden trumpet.

Dummy and dope can also have similar meanings as drongo; however, the slang term drongo is more commonly used in Australia.

Answer: Eucalyptus

The eucalyptus tree has over 700 species of which the majority are native to Australia. Only 15 of the species occur outside of Australia in the Americas, Europe, Africa, Middle East, China and the Indian sub-continent. The eucalyptus tree is commonly known in Australia as a "gum tree", due to the gum that extrudes from a break in the bark of the tree. Of all the species available in Australia, the koala has preference for only about 30.

The elm, elder and enebro are all species of trees and are found throughout the world, however, the eucalyptus dominates the tree flora of Australia.

Answer: Flying

Established in 1928, by Revered John Flynn it has become possibly the largest aeromedical service in the world (Royal Flying Doctor Service). Now with bases throughout Australia, this non-profit organisation provides emergency and health care facilities for those living in remote areas in the outback of Australia. Prior to the advent of this service, operations were usually performed by unqualified individuals.

Some operations were performed via Morse code with a doctor who could be 1,000 kms away. If interested, one should read the fateful story of Jimmy Darcy in 1917 in order to get a better understanding of the medical facilities available at that time.

The organisation originally started out as the AIM Aerial Medical Service, then in 1942 became the Flying Doctor Service with the Royal, being added in 1955.

Answer: Gundagai

Gundagai is a small town nearly 400 kms south-west of Sydney in NSW and sits on the Murrumbidgee River. The Dog on the Tuckerbox is an historical monument paying tribute to the bush pioneers. The statue was inspired by a bullock drovers poem called "Bullocky Bill".

A tuckerbox is the term used for a lunch box. The statue was unveiled by the then Prime Minister, Joseph Lyons in 1932. The statue, which is also a major tourist attraction, has also resulted in a number of vernacular poems "On the road to Gundagai" and "Flash Jack from Gundagai" and a sentimental song "Along the road to Gundagai". Gooloogong, Gulargambone and Gerringong are all towns in the state of New South Wales.

Answer: Barry Humphries

Barry Humphries is an Australian comedian, author, actor and artist. He is best known locally and internationally as playing on stage and television his alter egos Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson.

Paul Hogan is an Australian comedian and actor who is best known for writing and acting in the "Crocodile Dundee" series of movies.

Chris Hemsworth starred in the TV series "Home and Away" as Kim Hyde. He has also appeared in US movies including "Thor", "The Avengers" and " Star Trek".

Bill Hunter (1940-2011) was an Australian stage, film and television actor. He appeared in over 60 films locally and some internationally. Interestingly, in the 1950s he briefly held the world record for the 100 yards freestyle and qualified for the Australian Olympic swimming team for the 1956 Olympic Games. Sadly, he had to pull out of the swimming squad due to a bout of meningitis.

Answer: Indian Pacific

The Indian Pacific train service first ran in 1970 after the conversion of the different rail gauges in Western and South Australia. On a one-way ticket leaving one ocean and arriving at the other the trip takes 65 hours. Over the Nullarbor Plain there is the world's longest straight stretch of railway track being 478 kms (297 mi) in length.

The train is limited to 144 passengers as the dining car can only take 48 people at three sittings. Currently there are three classes in which to travel, Platinum, Gold Kangaroo and Red Kangaroo.

Answer: John McEwen

John McEwen (1900-1980) was Australia's 18th prime minister but only held office for less than one month from December 19, 1967 to January 10, 1968. McEwen was sworn in as PM upon the death of Harold Holt (then PM) but only on the condition that he hold the position until the Liberal Party (Holt's party) could appoint a new successor.

John Gorton (1911-2002) became the new Liberal Party leader and thus replaced John McEwen on January 10, 1968 and held the position until March 10, 1971. John Curtin (1885-1945) was Australia's 14th prime minister from October 1941 to his death on July 5, 1945. John Howard (b. 1939) was Australia's 25th prime minister from March 1996 to December 2007.

Answer: Kangaroo

The kangaroo and emu are the two indigenous Australian animals that hold the shield on the coat of arms. It is speculated that these two animals represent "progress" as neither of them can walk backwards.

The koala is sometimes referred to as a koala bear, however, it is not a bear. It lives in gum trees (Eucalyptus trees) and sleeps around 18 hours per day. The kookaburra belongs to the kingfisher species but is not associated with water. Their loud call sounds like a human laughing. The kowari is a marsupial and is a small bushy-tailed rat that is found in the grasslands and desert of central Australia.

Answer: William Lawson

William Lawson (1774-1850) migrated to Australia from England in 1800. In May 1813, he accompanied Gregory Blaxland and William Wentworth in successfully crossing the Blue Mountains in 20 days. The Blue Mountains are situation west of Sydney.

Henry Lawson (1867-1922) was an Australian author and poet. He is often referred to as Australia's "greatest short story writer".

Ludwig Leichhardt (1813-1848) was a Prussian explorer and is known for his exploration of northern and central Australia. In 1848, leading a party of 6 men with seven horses, 70 mules and bullocks (in southern Queensland) they disappeared. To this day there has been no trace or explanation as to what happened to the party.

William Landsborough (1825-1886) was an Australian explorer who became the first man to complete a north-south crossing of the continent. In 1861, as an excellent bushman he lead a party to discover what happened to the fateful Burke and Wills expedition. In doing so, he became the first man to successfully complete the north-south journey.

Answer: Dorothea Mackellar

Dorothea Mackellar (1885-1968) was an Australian poet and novelist. He poem "My Country" is widely known and taught at schools. The beginning of the second verse is well remembered with "I love a sunburned country / A land of sweeping plains / Of rugged mountain ranges / Of droughts and flooding rains".

William McMahon (1908-1988) was Australia's 20th prime minister from March 1971 to December 1972.

Douglas Mawson (1882-1958) was an Australian academic, geologist and Antarctic explorer. He has appeared on Australian currency notes and coins plus many locations have been named after him including, peaks, mounts, stations and suburbs.

Colleen McCullough (1937-2015) wrote many novels and is best known for "The Thorn Birds" (1971) and "An Indecent Obsession" (1981).

Answer: Douglas Nicholls

Douglas Nicholls (1906-1988) was a prominent Australian Aboriginal who firstly became known as a professional footballer and athlete. He later became a pastor and a pioneering campaigner for aboriginal rights and reconciliation. In 1972, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in London.

Albert Namatjira (1902-1959) came from central Australia and pioneered indigenous Australian art.

David Ngoombujarra (1967-2011) was an indigenous Australian actor who starred in three "Crocodile Dundee" movies and played opposite Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman in Baz Luhrmann's epic "Australia".

Oodgeroo Noonuccal (1920-1993) was the first Aboriginal Australian to publish a book of verse. She was a poet, artist and a political activist who campaigned for Aboriginal rights.

Answer: No official language

Australia has no official language. The country is mainly monolingual meaning that people in general, are only able to speak one language. Therefore English has become the de facto national language. Obviously, many first and second generation migrants are bilingual.

In a 2011 census, it was found that 76.8% of people spoke only English at home. There were at one time in the 17th century over 400 Australian Aboriginal languages, yet nowadays only about 30 have survived. Ausian is a sign language which is used by people that are deaf.

Answer: Andrew Paterson

Andrew Paterson (1864-1941) was better known as "Banjo" Paterson and he wrote "Waltzing Matilda" as a poem in 1895. The first sheet music of the poem was published in 1903. Paterson was a bush poet, author and journalist and also wrote the Australian classics "The Man from Snowy River" and "Clancy of the Overflow".

Hal Porter (1911-1984) was a novelist, playwright and poet. In 1963, he wrote a novel which is recognised as an Australian masterpiece called "The Watcher on the Cast-Iron Balcony".

Peter Porter (1929-2010) was a British-based Australian poet. In 2001, he was named poet in residence at the Royal Albert Hall and in 2007 he was made a Royal Society Literature Companion of Literature. He was joining the likes of past members such as Yeats, Kipling, Tolkien, Hardy and Shaw.

Malcolm Page is an Australian Olympic dual gold medalist in 2008 and 2012 in sailing in the Men's 470 class.

Answer: Queenscliff

Queenscliff is on the Bellarine Peninsula which is located to the south-west of Melbourne. The peninsula is surrounded by Port Phillip Bay, Corio Bay and Bass Strait. Queenscliff sits on the end of the peninsula at the entrance to Port Phillip Bay and is a seaside resort area.

Queenstown is located on the West Coast region of Tasmania. Quilipe is a small town in south western Queensland, and Quorn is a township and railhead 39 kms from Port Augusta in South Australia.

Answer: ridgy-didge

If somebody tells you something then you could say "is that ridgy-didge?", meaning "Is it true?" or "Do you really mean that?"

"Ripper" means great or good, "rack-off" means get lost or get out of here, and "rooted" means broken, ruined or could even mean very tired.

Answer: stingray

Steve Irwin (1962-2006) was nicknamed "The Crocodile Hunter" originating from his TV series of the same name. The series was well-known internationally as a wildlife documentary and it was co-hosted by his wife, Teri. While filming an underwater documentary called "Ocean's Deadliest", he was speared in the chest by a stingray barb. His family founded and operated Australia Zoo which is 80 kms north of Brisbane.

Australia has some of the most venomous spiders and snakes in the world, not to mention the sharks when you go swimming.

Answer: Two-up

"Two-up" is a gambling game that consists of a "kip" (a small piece of flat wood) on which two coins are placed before being thrown. The idea is to get two heads or two tails. The "spinner" is the person who throws the coins in the air. The "boxer" is the person who manages the game and the "ringy (or ring-keeper) is the person who looks after the coins once hey have landed and also acts as the referee in case of any disputes. Two-up is often played on Anzac Day in pubs and clubs which it is then classified as legal.

"Tic-tac-toe" is also known as Noughts and Crosses with two players marking an X or O on a 3 x 3 grid. A "Tinny" is Australian slang for a small can of beer and "Ta" is short for thanks or thank you.

Answer: Northern Territory

Uluru (originally known as Ayer's Rock) is a large sandstone rock formation in southern Northern Territory. By road it lies 450 kms south west of Alice Springs. It is one of Australia's best known natural landmarks and is noted for changing colour during different times of the day, notably sunrise and sunset.

Answer: Melbourne Cup

The Melbourne Cup is a horse race for three year olds and over and run over 3,200 metres. The race was first staged in 1861 and is a week long carnival; however, the race itself is referred to as "the race that stops a Nation". In 2015, for the first time in the history of the race a female jockey rode the winner.

Moomba is an annual carnival held in Melbourne over four days in March. It is Australia's largest free community festival.

The Australia Football League (AFL) stages their annual Grand Final (similar to the FA Cup or Super Bowl) at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on the last Saturday in September or the first Saturday in October.
The first Grand Slam event of tennis is held annually in Melbourne at the Rod Laver Arena in January.

Answer: wag

To "wag" school is a pupil who stays away from school without permission or explanation. A "wowser" is a prudish teetotaller. A "wuss" is a spoilsport or someone afraid to have a go, You are in "woop woop", if you are stuck out in the middle of nowhere and have no idea as to where you are.

Answer: Zanthus

Zanthus is an aboriginal word meaning "kangaroo paw". Zanthus is a remote outpost about 210 kms east of Kalgoorlie (Western Australia). Over the years there have been a few accidents at the junction due to flooding (1948), derailment (1953) and a collision (1999).

Xantippe is in Western Australia and is the only place name in Australia beginning with X. The name is derived from Greek mythology and the Postal Code is 6609.

Xanthippe is not a place name, but the name of the wife of Socrates and the mother of his 3 sons.

Zilzie is a coastal town nearly 700 kms north of Brisbane and 46 kms from Rockhampton. The area is known as the Capricorn Coastal region.

Answer: Yarra

The source of the Yarra River is in the Yarra Ranges and travels 242 kms passing through suburbs of Melbourne and the city of Melbourne before it empties into Hobsons Bay. Locals refer to it as the" upside down river", as it always seems to be a brown colour, so they say the mud is at the surface and the water underneath.

Yalumbra is a winery located in South Australia in the Barossa Valley. The winery was founded in 1849 by a British brewer, Samuel Smith.

Yobbo is a slang word for a person who is loud, stupid or uncultured.

Yakka is a slang word meaning hard or heavy work and it is also the brand name for a duty duty clothing manufacturer.