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Queensland was a name suggested by Queen Victoria.
Queensland is a state of Australia and has for many years been commonly known as the "Sunshine State". The Labor government in 2003 encouraged the adoption of a new catch phrase: "The Smart State".
The capital city is Brisbane.
Queensland is culturally diverse and while including a majority of English speakers there are also Chinese, Vietnamese, Greek, Italian, German to name but a few. While not regarded as the centre of multiculturalism in Australia there are significant cultural variations in some suburbs, districts and towns.
Queensland is rich in mineral and primary industry resources but has a large tourism industry based around its beaches, tropical rainforests and the Great Barrier Reef. In more recent times there has been an increase in high technology activities in aviation, information technology and entertainment.
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Queensland has the koala as its animal emblem and the brolga as its bird emblem.
The Cooktown orchid is its floral emblem.
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The Queensland Government participates in bilateral Sister State arrangements with the following governments:
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In August 1985, the sapphire gemstone became the State Gem.
Sapphire is a variety of the mineral corundum and is noted as having been discovered in central Queensland in the early 1870's.
As found in nature, typical corundum is very dark coloured. With tinges of blue, green or brown, it is very nearly opaque. However,the transparent gem varieties show a wide range of colours.
The name sapphire was traditionally used for clear, blue corundum stones. Nowadays, except for the pink varieties which are called ruby, it is common to refer to stones of all colours as sapphires.
The pink to red colour of ruby stems from its chromium content, whereas the sapphire's blue results from its titanium content. Yellow and green sapphires contain variable amounts of ferrous and ferric iron.
The hardness of the sapphire is second only to that of the diamond.
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Surface: 1,727,200 sq km
Population: 3,796,775
Located in: North Eastern Australia
Area Code: 4000-4999
Premier: Hon Peter Beattie
Governor: Ms Quentin Bryce, AC
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