They started as the British Empire Games in Ontario, Canada in 1930 and was renamed the Commonwealth Games in 1978.
Australia is one of only six teams to have competed in all Commonwealth Games. The others are England, New Zealand, Canada, Scotland and Wales.
Unlike the Olympic Games, where Great Britain competes as one team, the four Home Nations of the United Kingdom – England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – compete separately in the Commonwealth Games.
Likewise, British, Australian and New Zealand overseas territories and dependencies all compete as individual identities.
Seventy-two nations and territories will be competing in the 2010 Delhi Games, including the NZ territory of Tokelua, which will make its Commonwealth Games debut.
Rwanda is the most recent addition to the Commonwealth, having been admitted this year, and may send athletes to the Delhi Games.
In the beginning, women were only allowed to compete in swimming events. Now, female synchronised swimming is the only single-gender sport.
There are a total of 31 core sports that must be included on the agenda of each Games, and the host country then has optional extras they can add if they wish. This year India has decided to include tennis, synchronised swimming and archery as their optional sports.
Australia has hosted the Commonwealth Games four times: Sydney in 1938, Perth in 1962, Brisbane in 1982 and Melbourne in 2006. The Gold Coast has bid to host the Games in 2018.
Glasgow in Scotland will host the Games in 2014.
