Melbourne: Capital city of Victoria, Australia

It is the capital of Victoria, a state in the south-east of Australia. The population of Melbourne was just over five million in 2020.

Melbourne Narrm Victoria
(From top left to bottom right) Melbourne City Centre, Flinders Street Station, Shrine of Remembrance, Federation Square, Melbourne Cricket Ground, Royal Exhibition Building.
Map of Melbourne, Australia, printable and editable
Melbourne
Coordinates	37°48′49″S 144°57′47″E / 37.81361°S 144.96306°E / -37.81361; 144.96306
Population	3,720,300 (2006) (2nd)
• Density	372.309/km2 (964.28/sq mi)
Established	30 August 1835
Elevation	31 m (102 ft)
Area	9,992.5 km2 (3,858.1 sq mi)(GCCSA)
Time zone	AEST (UTC+10)
Location	465 km (289 mi) from Canberra 654 km (406 mi) from Adelaide 713 km (443 mi) from Sydney 1,374 km (854 mi) from Brisbane 2,721 km (1,691 mi) from Perth
LGA(s)	31 Municipalities across Greater Melbourne
County	Grant, Bourke, Mornington
State electorate(s)	54 electoral districts and regions
Federal division(s)	23 Divisions
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall 19.9 °C 68 °F 10.2 °C 50 °F 648.3 mm 25.5 in

"Melbourne" is an ambiguous name. The local City of Melbourne is quite small, as the City of London is. But the metropolitan area of Melbourne is nearly 9,993 km² square kilometers (3,858 sq mi).

Melbourne is a multicultural city (it welcomes people and cultures from all over the world). It is famous for its trams. In the centre of Melbourne is a river called the Yarra River. Melbourne also has many big parks and gardens and some beaches.

There are many things to do in Melbourne. Visitors in Melbourne can go to museums, look at art, eat food at restaurants, go to shops and visitors can enjoy of international events like Australian Open and Formula One both in the early year.

Melbourne has been the winner of the Economist's 'World's most liveable city' award seven times in a row (winner 2010–2017).

Melbourne was founded in 1835 by John Batman and John Pascoe Fawkner. In 1851, some people found gold near Melbourne. Melbourne grew very quickly because people came from all over the world to look for gold. At the end of the 19th century, Melbourne was called "Marvellous Melbourne". Melbourne was the biggest and most important city in Australia for many years, but now Sydney is larger (but perhaps not more important). The first Australian government was in Melbourne from 1901 to 1927, when it moved to Canberra.

There is a lot of industry (factories) and commerce (buying and selling) in Melbourne. Many of Australia's largest companies and many large companies from other countries work there. It is home to Australia's largest seaport.

There are a number of universities (the University of Melbourne, Monash University, Deakin University, Victoria University, La Trobe University, RMIT University, Swinburne University and the Australian Catholic University).

Much of Australia's automotive (car) industry is there, for example the engine maker "Holden", and "Ford" and "Toyota" car builders, Although all three of these companies have announced plans to move their manufacturing plants overseas with Ford already shutting down its manufacturing plant in Broadmeadows.

Many people from different countries live in Melbourne. In fact 43% of the people living in Melbourne were born outside Australia or have parents from another country. All together people from 233 countries live in Melbourne and people with 116 different religions. The population (1991) is 3,156,700, and has grown in 2006 to 3,720,300.

• 1901 - Opening of the first Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia
• 1956 - The Olympic Games were in Melbourne.
• 2006 - The Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games

Melbourne has six sister cities. They are:

• Osaka, Japan (1978)
• Tianjin, China (PRC) (1980)
• Thessaloniki, Greece (1984)
• Boston, United States (1985)
• Saint Petersburg, Russia (1989)
• Milan, Italy (2004)

Melbourne has a moderate oceanic climate (Cfb) with warm summers and cool, damp and often cloudy winters. The weather is changeable, especially in summer, giving Melbourne a name for having "four seasons in one day". This is because it is located between the hot inland areas in the north and the cool Southern Ocean.

Cold fronts in the area can bring gales, thunderstorms and hail in spring and summer. Even though it gets severe weather, the city is actually not very rainy with an annual rainfall total of 648.3 mm (25.52 in). Extreme heat can occur in Melbourne, with the highest temperature recorded being 46.4 °C (115.5 °F), on 7 February 2009. Last time Melbourne saw snow was in 1986.

• Federation Square
• Queen Victoria Market
• National Gallery of Melbourne
• Melbourne Zoo
• Flinder Street Station
• Luna Park
• Melbourne Museum
• Eureka Tower
• Crown Casino
• St Kilda Beach, Victoria
• MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground)

• List of tallest buildings in Melbourne