It is part of the South West Land Division of Western Australia, with most of Perth's metropolitan area on the Swan Coastal Plain between the Indian Ocean and the Darling Scarp.

Substantial population growth occurred during the late 19th-century Western Australian gold rushes, and the city has continued to expand, particularly after World War II due to a high net migration rate.

The name of the city is taken from Perth, Scotland in honour of the Secretary of State for War and the Colonies, and Member for Perthshire in the British House of Commons, Sir George Murray.

[27] Noongar country encompasses the south-west corner of Western Australia, with particular significance attached to the wetlands on the Swan Coastal Plain, both spiritually (featuring in local mythology) and as a source of food.

These confrontations resulted in multiple events, including the murder of settlers (such as Thomas Peel's servant Hugh Nesbitt[42]), the execution without trial of Whadjuk elder Midgegooroo,[43] the killing of his son Yagan in 1833,[44] and the Pinjarra massacre in 1834.

Agricultural development on the land restricted the traditional hunter-gatherer practices of the native Whadjuk Noongar, compelling them to camp in designated areas, including swamps and lakes north of the European settlement.

A description from 1870 by a Melbourne journalist depicted it as:[51][52] a quiet little town of some 3000 inhabitants spread out in straggling allotments down to the water's edge, intermingled with gardens and shrubberies and half rural in its aspect ...

[53] Perth became a key hub for supplying the goldfields, and the newfound prosperity helped finance the construction of important public buildings, roads and railways.

The House of Commons established a select committee to consider the issue but after 18 months of negotiations and lobbying, finally refused to consider the matter, declaring that it could not legally grant secession.

In 1962, Perth received global media attention when city residents lit their house lights and streetlights as American astronaut John Glenn passed overhead while orbiting the Earth on Friendship 7.

[64][65] Perth's development and relative prosperity, especially since the mid-1960s,[66] has resulted from its role as the main service centre for the state's resource industries, which extract gold, iron ore, nickel, alumina, diamonds, mineral sands, coal, oil and natural gas.

[citation needed] The central business district of Perth is bounded by the Swan River to the south and east, with Kings Park on the western end and the railway reserve as the northern border.

[citation needed] A state and federally funded project named Perth City Link sank a section of the railway line to allow easy pedestrian access between Northbridge and the CBD.

[70] The CBD until 2012 was the centre of a mining-induced boom, with several commercial and residential projects being built, including Brookfield Place, a 244-metre (801 ft) office building for Anglo-Australian mining company BHP.

[91] Perth was also hit by a severe thunderstorm on 22 March 2010, which brought 40.2 mm (1.58 in) of rain, and large hail and caused significant damage in the metropolitan area.

As Fremantle was the first landfall in Australia for many migrant ships coming from Europe in the 1950s and 1960s, Perth started to experience a diverse influx of people, including Italians, Greeks, Dutch, Germans, Turks, Croats and Macedonians.

Since the end of the White Australia policy in 1973, Asia has become an increasingly significant source of migrants, with communities from Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Mainland China and India all now well established.

They come from a variety of countries, including Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Lebanon, The United Arab Emirates, Oman, Yemen and Afghanistan.

[133] By virtue of its population and role as the administrative centre for business and government, Perth dominates the Western Australian economy, despite the major mining, petroleum and agricultural export industries being located elsewhere in the state.

[134] Perth's function as the state's capital city, its economic base and population size have also created development opportunities for many other businesses oriented to local or more diversified markets.

[135] As a result of Perth's relative geographical isolation, it has never had the necessary conditions to develop significant manufacturing industries other than those serving the immediate needs of its residents, mining, agriculture and some specialised areas, such as, in recent times, niche shipbuilding and maintenance.

Many firms took advantage of relatively cheap land to build spacious, single-storey plants in suburban locations with plentiful parking, easy access and minimal traffic congestion.

Programs like StartupWA and incubators such as Spacecubed and Vocus Upstart are all focused on creating a thriving startup culture in Perth and growing the next generation of Perth-based employers.

Its lead campus is in the west end of Fremantle, using historic port buildings built in the 1890s, giving Notre Dame a distinct European university atmosphere.

Perth has its own local newsreaders on ABC (Pamela Medlen), Seven (Rick Ardon, Susannah Carr), Nine (Michael Thomson, Monika Kos) and Ten (Natalie Forrest).

John Boyle O'Reilly, a Fenian convict transported to Western Australia, published Moondyne in 1879, the most famous early novel about the Swan River Colony.

The Swan Valley, with fertile soil, uncommon in the Perth region, features numerous wineries, such as the large complex at Houghtons, the state's biggest producer, Sandalfords and many smaller operators, including microbreweries and rum distilleries.

[184] It has many landmarks and attractions, including the State War Memorial Precinct on Mount Eliza, Western Australian Botanic Garden and children's playgrounds.

The northern Perth section of the coastline is known as Sunset Coast; it includes numerous beaches and the Marmion Marine Park, a protected area inhabited by tropical fish, Australian sea lions and bottlenose dolphins, and traversed by humpback whales.

[196] The physical network is maintained by Western Power,[197] while Synergy, the state's largest energy retailer, sells electricity to residential and business customers.