Uluru is often described as one of the most impressive natural wonders in Australia [2] and also tourism industry's pinup icon, [5] due to its unprecedented popularity among tourists from the whole world. Because of this description, which appears often in many books, the question arises: If, and if yes, then why is Uluru so important to Australians and even to people from other countries? It seems to be just another huge rock. In this work I would like to prove that Uluru is actually a landmark of great importance considering its general features and significance for the local tribe which together with the Australian government manage the place. I would also like to put particular emphasis on Uluru as an incessant tourist attraction.
1. Uluru .
1.1 General information.
Uluru/Ayers Rock is a red monolith, the weathered peak of a buried mountain range, situated in the southwestern part of the Northern Territory. [picture 1] As a matter of fact, it can be said that its location is in the middle of nowhere, because Alice Springs, the nearest city, is about 460 km away. .
Uluru belongs to one of the largest monoliths in the world. [9] It rises 348 metres above the desert floor and has a perimeter of about 9 kilometres. [8] It is thought that two-thirds of it is underground. The rock is a part of the larger Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park.
1.2 The name.
The landmark is called Uluru by the local Pitjantjatjara people. It is used as a local family name by the senior Traditional Owners of Uluru, although it has no further particular meaning in the Pitjantjatjara language. [16] For many years, however, it has been known to most people as Ayers Rock. William Christy, the first European to climb the top, named Uluru this way in honor of Sir Henry Ayers, who was the chief secretary of South Australia at the time. [2] Since then both names have been used. However, in 1993 the rock's name was officially reversed ˜Uluru/Ayers Rock', where both names can be used together or individually, because they are equally important.
