Tasmania

Tasmania (TAS) is Australia’s only island state and is comparatively small, covering an area of around 68,330 km². If it were a country on its own, it would be the 121st largest country in the world, just behind Ireland and Georgia. So it is about a quarter of the size of the UK, but a little bit larger than the American state of West Virginia.

It has a population of just over half a million people. It is known as “The Apple Isle” and the people who live there are referred to as “Two Headers”, which is, I’m afraid, a reference to what might happen in a situation where, how can I put this, erm, I suppose I should get straight to the point really, it’s… A consequence of inbreeding.

Let’s move on. But before we do, you’ll be pleased to know that most mainland Australians refer to Tasmania as “Tassie”, which is cuter than Two Headers.

In recent years, Tasmania’s most visited attraction has been Port Arthur Historic Site, and Tasmania has more history than most of Australia, having been discovered a fair while before the mainland. But the real attraction of Tasmania is the countryside and to wonder at the wilderness.

I’ve even managed to unearth a famous Tasmanian. Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn, Hollywood movie star, was born in Hobart in 1909.

Places in Tasmania

Other than Hobart, there aren’t too many towns or locations with a population of more than 10,000 people. In fact, there are just four.

Populations of places change on a daily basis. When I compiled this list in 2011, I got my population figures from various sources and some of them are from the census of 2006. I have decided not to try to constantly update these population numbers, so if you are interested in a certain city or town, then you may want to search online for updated information about the population.

That way you can see if the population is growing, unchanged or shrinking.

Launceston – has around 71,000

Devonport – just over 22,000

Burnie – nearly 20,000

Kingston-Blackmans Bay – around 17,000

There may be a few more towns with less than 10,000 people and when we find them, we’ll add them here. If you live anywhere in Tasmania, why not tell us about it in the comments below…