Sister cities of Melbourne

Melbourne /ˈmɛlbən/ is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia.

Melbourne is the common name for the urban agglomeration area and Census statistical division of the greater metropolis. The city developed around the large natural bay of Port Phillip with its metropolitan hub, the Melbourne City Centre, located at the northernmost point of the bay - near the estuary of the Yarra River. The metropolitan area extends south from the City Centre, along the eastern and western shorelines of Port Phillip, and expands into the hinterland. The City Centre is situated in the municipality known as the City of Melbourne, and the metropolitan area consists of a further 30 municipalities. The metropolis has a population of 4.25 million, growing the fastest in numerical terms and fifth fastest in percentage terms since the previous year. Inhabitants of Melbourne are called Melburnians.

Melbourne was founded in 1835 (47 years after the European settlement of Australia), in what was then the Colony of New South Wales, by settlers from Launceston in Van Diemen's Land. It was named by Governor of New South Wales Sir Richard Bourke in 1837, in honour of the British Prime Minister of the day, William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne. Melbourne was officially declared a city by Queen Victoria in 1847. In 1851, it became the capital city of the newly created Colony of Victoria. During the Victorian gold rush of the 1850s, it was transformed into one of the world's largest and wealthiest cities. After the federation of Australia in 1901, Melbourne served as the interim seat of government of the newly created nation of Australia until 1927.

Melbourne has been ranked as the world's most liveable city in ratings published by the Economist Intelligence Unit (in 2011, 2012 and 2013, and top three since 2009). Melbourne is also the fifth most expensive city in the world to live in according to the Economist Intelligence Unit worldwide cost of living index in 2013. It has also been ranked in the top ten Global University Cities by RMIT's Global University Cities Index (since 2006) and the top 20 Global Innovation Cities by the 2thinknow Global Innovation Agency (since 2007). Often referred to as the "cultural capital of Australia", Melbourne is the birthplace of cultural institutions such as Australian film (as well as the world's first feature film), Australian television, Australian rules football, the Australian impressionist art movement (known as the Heidelberg School) and Australian dance styles such as New Vogue and the Melbourne Shuffle. It is also a major centre for contemporary and traditional Australian music.

The main passenger airport serving the metropolis is Melbourne Airport, which is the second busiest in Australia. The Port of Melbourne is Australia's busiest seaport for containerised and general cargo. Melbourne is also home to the world's largest tram network.