Suburbs and localities (Australia)
Encyclopedia
Suburbs and localities are the names of geographic subdivisions in Australia, mainly for address
purposes. The name locality is used in rural areas, while the equivalent in urban areas are suburb
s. Sometimes locality is used to refer to both localities and suburbs, and they are also called address localities. Localities are also known as towns and rural districts in Victoria, such as on various maps. Note that they are different to the ABS
's Urban Centre Localities, a statistical division. Localities have also been used to refer to locations within cities that are not suburbs.
Localities and suburbs are determined by the local council in which they are located based on community recognition and subject to approval of the state's geographical names board, which, however, does not prevent them from overlapping several Local Government Areas since they are otherwise independent from them. Localities have existed in the past as informal units, before the 1996 decision of the Intergovernmental Committee for Surveying and Mapping and the Committee for Geographic Names in Australasia
(CGNA) to name and establish official boundaries for all localities and suburbs. Recently, there has been a process to formally define their boundaries and to gazette
them, which is almost complete. In March 2006, only South Australia
and the Northern Territory
had not completed this process. Postcodes
now relate closely with the boundaries of localities. There are over 15,000 locality and suburb boundaries in Australia.
The CGNA's Gazetteer of Australia recognises two types of locality: bounded and unbounded. Their definition of bounded localities include towns, villages, populated places, local government towns and unpopulated town sites, while unbounded localities include place names, road corners and bends, corners, meteorological stations, ocean place names and surfing spots.
Address (geography)
An address is a collection of information, presented in a mostly fixed format, used for describing the location of a building, apartment, or other structure or a plot of land, generally using political boundaries and street names as references, along with other identifiers such as house or...
purposes. The name locality is used in rural areas, while the equivalent in urban areas are suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
s. Sometimes locality is used to refer to both localities and suburbs, and they are also called address localities. Localities are also known as towns and rural districts in Victoria, such as on various maps. Note that they are different to the ABS
Australian Bureau of Statistics
The Australian Bureau of Statistics is Australia's national statistical agency. It was created as the Commonwealth Bureau of Census and Statistics on 8 December 1905, when the Census and Statistics Act 1905 was given Royal assent. It had its beginnings in section 51 of the Constitution of Australia...
's Urban Centre Localities, a statistical division. Localities have also been used to refer to locations within cities that are not suburbs.
Localities and suburbs are determined by the local council in which they are located based on community recognition and subject to approval of the state's geographical names board, which, however, does not prevent them from overlapping several Local Government Areas since they are otherwise independent from them. Localities have existed in the past as informal units, before the 1996 decision of the Intergovernmental Committee for Surveying and Mapping and the Committee for Geographic Names in Australasia
Committee for Geographical Names in Australasia (CGNA)
The Committee for Geographical Names in Australia was formed in Perth, Western Australia in 1984 following the International Cartographic Association Conference...
(CGNA) to name and establish official boundaries for all localities and suburbs. Recently, there has been a process to formally define their boundaries and to gazette
Gazette
A gazette is a public journal, a newspaper of record, or simply a newspaper.In English- and French-speaking countries, newspaper publishers have applied the name Gazette since the 17th century; today, numerous weekly and daily newspapers bear the name The Gazette.Gazette is a loanword from the...
them, which is almost complete. In March 2006, only South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
and the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
had not completed this process. Postcodes
Postcodes in Australia
Postcodes are used in Australia to sort and send mail to the correct address. All postcodes in Australia have four numbers and are placed at the end of the address...
now relate closely with the boundaries of localities. There are over 15,000 locality and suburb boundaries in Australia.
The CGNA's Gazetteer of Australia recognises two types of locality: bounded and unbounded. Their definition of bounded localities include towns, villages, populated places, local government towns and unpopulated town sites, while unbounded localities include place names, road corners and bends, corners, meteorological stations, ocean place names and surfing spots.