[2][4][failed verification] In 1817 Governor Macquarie, referring to region, wrote: 'part of the coast known generally by the name of the Five Islands, but called by the natives "Illawarra".

[2] Archaeological evidence indicates that Aboriginal people inhabited the Illawarra region for at least 20,000 years before the arrival of European settlers.

The region remained largely uncharted until 1815, when a drought in Sydney prompted settlers to seek new grazing lands.

The region consists of a grassy coastal plain, narrow in the north and wider in the south, bounded by the Tasman Sea on the east and the mountainous, almost impassable Illawarra escarpment (forming the eastern edge of the Southern Highlands plateau) to the west.

For the purposes of Australian federal elections for the House of Representatives, the Illawarra region is contained within the electoral Divisions of Cunningham, Whitlam and the northern tip of Gilmore.

[8][9][10] For the purposes of New South Wales elections for the NSW Legislative Assembly, the Illawarra region is contained within the electoral districts of Wollongong, Keira, Shellharbour, Heathcote, and Kiama.

For the purposes of local government administration, the Illawarra region is contained within the cities of Wollongong, Shellharbour and the Municipality of Kiama.

[12] The southern part of the region has been a source of crushed-stone construction aggregate and railway track ballast material for over 140 years.

[14] The Illawarra Steelers Rugby league Football Club played in the NSWRL rugby league competition, then the NRL, from 1982 to 1998, and currently forms one half of the St George Illawarra Dragons joint venture, who play six of their twelve home games at WIN Stadium in Wollongong.

Many famous footballers, such as Bob Fulton, Graeme Langlands, Mick Cronin, Rod Wishart, Paul McGregor, Craig Fitzgibbon, Luke Bailey, Steve Roach, Garry Jack, Warren Ryan, and the Stewart brothers Brett and Glenn, have come from the Illawarra region.

The team caught global attention when American teen sensation LaMelo Ball announced on ESPN's show The Jump that he will be joining the Hawks through the NBL's Next Star program.

The Wolves were not selected for the NSL's replacement, the A-League, and instead chose to compete in the New South Wales Premier League under the name Wollongong FC.