What does Terra Australis Incognita means?

the great unknown land
Although Indigenous Australians had lived here for thousands of years, for the Europeans it was ‘Terra Australis Incognita’, the great unknown land. Early maps of the world showed a single land mass at the bottom of the world to balance, as one would with a set of scales, the land masses of the northern hemisphere.

Why was it called Terra Australis?

For centuries the landmass thought to exist in the southern hemisphere was named ‘terra australis incognita’, the ‘unknown southern land. ‘ ‘Australis’ is the Latin term for ‘southern. ‘ In 1627 the Dutch ship Gulden Zeepaard had sailed along the southern coast reaching present day Fowler’s Bay.

Where does Terra Australis come from?

The name Australia derives from Latin australis meaning southern, and dates back to 2nd century legends of an “unknown southern land” (that is terra australis incognita). The explorer Matthew Flinders named the land Terra Australis, which was later abbreviated to the current form.

Where is Terra Australis Incognita?

Quick Reference. The name given to the great and unknown southern continent required by the classical Greek geographers, who knew that the earth was spherical, to balance the land mass which was known to exist north of the equator.

What was Australia called before Terra Australis?

New Holland
After British colonisation, the name New Holland was retained for several decades and the south polar continent continued to be called Terra Australis, sometimes shortened to Australia.

Who owns Terra Australis?

JOHNNY DEBNAM
JOHNNY DEBNAM. Johnny is the founder and one of the major creative driving forces behind Terra Australis productions.

What did James Cook call Australia?

New South Wales
Lieutenant James Cook, captain of HMB Endeavour, claimed the eastern portion of the Australian continent for the British Crown in 1770, naming it New South Wales.

Is Antarctica Terra Australis?

Antarctica. Antarctica was finally sighted in the hypothetical area of Terra Australis in 1820. The extent of Terra Australis was finally determined, also proving the Southern Hemisphere has much less land than the Northern.

What did the Dutch call Australia?

The first recorded use of the word Australia was by the Portuguese explorer Pedro Fernandes de Queirós in 1606. The Dutch seafarer Abel Tasman charted the coast in 1644 and called the place New Holland.

What is Terra Australis Incognita?

The land ( terra in Latin) in this zone was the Terra Australis. Legends of Terra Australis Incognita—an “unknown land of the South”—date back to Roman times and before, and were commonplace in medieval geography, although not based on any documented knowledge of the continent.

What is the origin of the term Terra Australis?

Although the term Terra Australis is derived from Latin, the idea of an unknown land to the south was first proposed by the Ancient Greeks.

What does cingulus australis mean?

Marcus Tullius Cicero used the term cingulus australis (“southern zone”) in referring to the Antipodes in Somnium Scipionis (“Dream of Scipio”). The land ( terra in Latin) in this zone was the Terra Australis.

How did the idea of Australis come about?

Its existence was not based on any survey or direct observation, but rather on the idea that continental land in the Northern Hemisphere should be balanced by land in the Southern Hemisphere. This theory of balancing land has been documented as early as the 5th century on maps by Macrobius, who uses the term Australis on his maps.