Brisbane () is the state capital of Queensland. Brisbane is the third most populous city in Australia and the most populous city of Queensland. It is situated on the Brisbane River on a low-lying floodplain between Moreton Bay and the Great Dividing Range in south-eastern Queensland. The local indigenous people knew the area as Mian-jin, meaning 'place shaped as a spike'. The city is named after Sir Thomas Brisbane, the Governor of New South Wales from 1821 to 1825. Brisbane's demonym is a Brisbanite. The settlement at Brisbane developed after an abandoned initial penal colony settlement at Redcliffe, north. The colony moved to the current location of the Brisbane central business district in 1825, and free settlers were permitted from 1842. It was chosen as the capital when Queensland was proclaimed a separate colony in 1859. Brisbane is controlled by the Brisbane City Council. In 1925, the City of Brisbane Act was passed by the Queensland Government, abolishing 20 local government authorities in the city and forming the largest local authority in Australia, with a population of over a million. The city played a central role in the Allied campaign during World War II as the South West Pacific headquarters for General Douglas MacArthur. More recently, Brisbane hosted the 1982 Commonwealth Games, World Expo '88 and the 2001 Goodwill Games. The city was unsuccessful in its bid to host the 1992 Olympic Games. (via Wikipedia)