Torres Strait

(tŏr`ĭz, –rĭs), channel, c.95 mi (153 km) wide, between New Guinea and Cape York Peninsula of Australia. It connects the Arafura and Coral seas. The strait is shallow, with many reefs and islands, and is hazardous for navigation. It is named for Spanish explorer Luis Torres. In 2010 the Australian federal courts recognized the traditional rights and interests of the Torres Strait islanders over some 17,000 sq mi (44,000 sq km) of sea in the Torres Strait.

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Torres Strait

a strait between New Guinea and Australia linking the Indian and Pacific oceans. The Torres Strait is 170 km wide and 14 m deep in the navigable channel. It is dotted with many islands, rocks, and reefs, which make navigation difficult. The strait has strong tidal currents, which flow eastward during the Australian winter and westward during the summer, with velocities up to 1 km/hr. The strait is named after L. Torres.

Torres Strait

a strait between NE Australia and S New Guinea, linking the Arafura Sea with the Coral Sea. Width: about 145 km (90 miles)

Collins Discovery Encyclopedia, 1st edition © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

References in periodicals archive ?

"We're proud to promote initiatives and programs that support future Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders within the health sector.

HESTA supports Indigenous nurses

The journal offers Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people a voice in important discussions that move beyond pleas such as the Uluru statement to get to the important in-depth discussions that impact lives.

EDITORIAL

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people make up only 2 percent of the adult Australian population, but make up around 27 percent of the adult prison population.

Report: Indigenous Women in Australia Imprisoned at Alarming Rate

Achieving equity in education outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students continues to be a key focus for educators across the country.

A process-driven approach for identifying aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander learners of English as an additional language or dialect (EAL/D)

The congress's intention is to share information and work toward an integrated approach to improving health care and health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

The kaiwhakahaere comments

After many years working with Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander young people in youth support services, Nola decided to go it alone and start her own business.

Nola Turner-Jensen

In 1929, the Protector's office bought out PIL and the following year began to administer the company boats itself through the Aboriginal Industries Board (AIB), which in Torres Strait became the Islands Industries Board (IIB) in 1939.

Company boats, sailing dinghies and passenger fish: fathoming Torres Strait islander participation in the maritime economy

This disadvantages the training of music educators and makes the teaching of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander musics difficult for some.

Editorial

Results from a new mid Holocene site in the central-western Torres Strait, north-eastern Australia are presented.

Mid Holocene maritime economy in the western Torres Strait

The poor health status of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is well known and well documented, with higher hospitalisation rates for most diseases (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare [AIHW] 2006) and a life expectancy that is approximately 20 years less than that of non-Aboriginal people (Australian Bureau of Statistics [ABS] 2006).

Emergency department presentations of Victorian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

The Torres Strait is often in the research literature--unsurprisingly since it is not only a key area for early settlement but one where ancient and modern practice resonate.

Symbolic language in Torres Strait, NE Australia: images from rock art, portable objects and human scars