Victoria Square, Adelaide

Victoria Square, also known as Tarndanyangga, is a public square in the South Australian capital of Adelaide. The square is in the centre of the city's grid of one square mile.

The area was named "Victoria Square" by the Street Naming Committee on 23 May 1837, after Princess Victoria, then heir presumptive of the British throne. Less than a month later the King died and Victoria became Queen. The Kaurna people know the area as Tarndanyangga, "The Dreaming Place of the Red Kangaroo". In line with the Adelaide City Council's recognition of Kaurna country, the area is officially referred to as Victoria Square/Tarndanyangga.

A statue of Queen Victoria, from a model by C. B. Birch, stands near the centre of the square. A gift to the people of Adelaide from Sir Edwin Smith, it was cast by Moore & Co. of Thames Ditton using bronze specifically made from Wallaroo and Moonta copper, and unveiled by Lady Smith on 11 August 1894.

During the Christmas period, it is traditional for a 24.5 m high Christmas tree to be erected in the northern part of the square.

Victoria Square is bordered by numerous public institutions at its north and south ends, including the Supreme Court of South Australia, the Adelaide Magistrates' Court, the Federal Court of Australia, the historic old Treasury building (now a hotel run by the Adina hotel chain) and the Adelaide General Post Office. On the eastern side is the Roman Catholic Cathedral Church of St Francis Xavier, the SA Water headquarters, State Government offices, including the office of the Premier, and the Torrens Building. The Torrens Building currently houses campuses of several international universities including the UCL School of Energy and Resources (a specialised graduate school of University College London), Heinz College Australia, Carnegie Mellon University, Torrens University Australia and other institutions. The west side of the square contains more commercially oriented buildings, including the Adelaide Central Market, the Hilton hotel, and the offices of various consultants, law firms and insurance companies.

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