Parramatta, city in southeastern Australia, in the state of New South Wales, on the Parramatta River. Parramatta is a western suburb of Sydney, Australia's largest city. The noted merino-sheep industry of Australia started in Parramatta, and the city was an early grain port; it is now a rail junction. Local manufactures include bicycles, leather and metal products, and woolen textiles.
Called the Cradle of Australia, Parramatta contains many relics of colonial history and is the second oldest settlement in the country, after Sydney. Points of interest are Elizabeth Farm House (1793), Saint John's Church, the first Government House, the observatory remains in Parramatta Park, King School (1832), and Rosehill Race Course. Settled in 1788 as Rose Hill, the community was laid out in 1791 and the city chartered in 1938. The name was formerly spelled Parramata. Population (1991) 142,706.
