Australia Day: Poll examines attitudes to controversial date Published duration 18 January 2018

media caption Australia Day: Why a celebration has become controversial

Less than half of Australians know the historical origin of the country's national day, according to a poll.

Australia Day, on 26 January, has been the subject of debate in recent times over concerns it is offensive to indigenous Australians.

The day commemorates the arrival of British settlers in 1788, an event some indigenous people call "invasion day".

A survey conducted by the Australia Institute, a think tank, has shed light on national attitudes to the day.

Only 38% of respondents could identify the day's historical origin from a list of 11 options;

Just over half said they did not care when the celebration was held;

37% said they agreed the date was offensive to indigenous Australians, compared with 46% who disagreed, and a remainder who were unsure.

"This polling shows that while Australia Day is important to most Australians, most people are laid back about the date we celebrate on," said Ebony Bennett, the institute's deputy director.

The government has repeatedly said the date should not be changed, and that a majority of Australians support it.

"An attack on Australia Day is a repudiation of the values the day celebrates: freedom, a fair go, mateship and diversity," Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said last year.

The left-wing Greens party reignited discussion this week by launching a campaign to change the date.