Why is Australia officially named "The Commonwealth of Australia" if it's an independent country?

Question

For example, look at Puerto Rico, an island in the Caribbean. Puerto Rico is considered a "commonwealth" but not an independent country.

Answer 1

Australia is part of the commonwealth but runs its own government

the queen is just a figurehead

Answer 2

it is because australia is a constitutional monarchy, and falls under the british empire, but we are also independant and federated country. It does have everything to do with the British Commonwealth.

Answer 3

Commonwealth (n.)

1) A politically organized body of people under a single government.

2) A political system in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who can elect people to represent them.

Both of those definitions apply to Australia. The name "The Commonwealth of Australia" has absolutely nothing to do with the British Commonwealth.

EDIT:

Jay - The question was about the name. The name has nothing to do with the British Commonwealth.

Answer 4

Actually we are not sure what we are.We are members of the Commonwealth but operate independant of Britian, but the Queen remains our Head of State.We use a Lower and Upper house of Paliament and our Prime Minister is our Leader.I think most Australians wish to keep the status quo as we seem to have a system that works for the most part.Good Question.

Answer 5

Because we are a federation of states: the Commonwealth of Australia.

commonwealth - noun

an association of states who have joined together for their common good

Example: the Commonwealth of Australia

Answer 6

The "Commonwealth" in Commonwealth of Australia is a reference to the federation of states and territories that make up our country.  You could easily read it to say  Federation of Australia instead.  Since we are also a constitutional monarchy (that's a democracy with a monarch as head of state), that could also be why Commonwealth is used instead of Federation.

Even though Australia is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations (formerly the British Commonwealth), this has no bearing on how the word is using in its official name.

Answer 7

Why is PA the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania when it's part of the United States of America?

Australia is part of the British Commonwealth; together with Canada, New Zealand, and other "independent" countries that were once part of the British Empire.

Australia only refers to herself as The Commonwealth of Australia on formal occasions (such as Acts of Parliament).