Canberra's Suburbs Trivia Quiz

Answer: Giralang

Giralang comes from the language of the Wiradjuri tribe and means "star". All of the street names in Giralang are aboriginal words for stars, constellations and other things celestial. Kaleen means "water" in the Wiradjuri language. Aranda is the name of one of the aboriginal tribes of Central Australia (Arrernte). Waramanga is also the name of an Aboriginal tribe.

Answer: Weetangera

Lake Burley Griffin divides the city into north and south areas. Weetangera is a Northside suburb. The other three are all south of the lake.

Answer: Kingston

The street themes often, but not always, link in with the reason for the suburb's name, e.g. Kaleen is an aboriginal word for "water" and its streets are all named for Australian rivers and waterways.

Answer: Theodore

The street is named after Cyril Callister, who was the Chief Chemist of Kraft Walker Cheese Company, which was established in 1926. Vegemite was launched the following year. Kraft still produces Vegemite, arguably Australia's favourite spread.

Answer: Melba

Dame Nellie Melba (Mrs Helen Porter Armstrong, nee Mitchell) was one of Australia's best known singers. Bronhill was the stage name of singer June Gough, and derived its name from her home town of Broken Hill.

Answer: Kambah

Jerrabomberra is much larger, but it is across the N.S.W. border and is a settlement near Queanbeyan. Belconnen is a town, not a suburb. Canberra is a planned city and no further expansion of suburbs (as generally applies in other cities) will be taking place. Kambah will always retain this title.

Answer: They are all named after writers

Three of them were named for women - Richardson takes its name from novelist Henry Handel Richardson (whose real name was Ethel. Gilmore was named after Dame Mary Gilmore, a poet. The suburb of Franklin (due to be settled at the start of 2006) commemorates novelist (Stella) Miles Franklin.

The remaining suburb owes its name to Henry Lawson, one of Australia's best known writers of stories and poetry.

Answer: Duntroon

Campbell Park is the name given to the offices of the Department of Defence situated at Campbell. Fairbairn is the location of the RAAF (airforce) base and Lanyon is a homestead much further south. It is preserved as an historic homestead and is still a working sheep property.

Answer: Banks

All of these suburbs lie deep in the south of the Tuggeranong Valley, but Banks is the most southerly. Banks was named after Sir Joseph Banks, the botanist who accompanied Captain James Cook on his trip on the "Endeavour". He is well remembered, as there are many plants which also bear a form of his name.

Answer: Fraser

Most people would immediatley think that Fraser was named for Prime Minister (John) Malcolm Fraser, but it was actually named after James Reay Fraser, who was a Member of the ACT Advisory Council from 1949-1951. Besides which, death seems to be a prerequisite for having a suburb named after you!

Answer: Weetangera

These suburbs are very close to each other and form part of the area known as South Belconnen.

Answer: Deakin

Alfred Deakin (1856 - 1919) filled the office of Prime Minister three times. He was the second, fifth and seventh PM.

Answer: Curtin

John Curtin, Australia's wartime Prime Minister, suffered a fatal heart attack in June 1945, at the age of 60, and was the only PM to die at The Lodge (the official residence of the Prime Minister). He had held office since October 1941 and died just 6 weeks before the end of the war in the Pacific.

Answer: 9

Chisholm was named after Caroline Chisholm, who helped young convict women. Isabella Plains takes its name from the infant daughter of Sir Thomas Brisbane. Melba bears the name of opera singer, Dame Nellie Melba. Gilmore is named for Dame Mary Gilmore,a poet. Richardson honours Ethel Richardson, who wrote under the name of Henry Handel Richardson.

New suburbs (gazetted but not yet established)are Kenny, named for Sister Elizabeth Kenny who worked with polio victims, Taylor which aptly commemorates Florence Taylor, town planner and Australia's first qualified woman architect, Franklin which commemorates novelist (Stella) Miles Franklin and Moncrieff, which takes its name from Gladys Moncrieff, a wartime singer.

Answer: Duffy

In a somewhat ironic twist, it was Duffy with its streets named for water which bore the brunt of the devasting firestorm of January 2003, in which 500 homes were lost.