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The United Kingdom of Great Britain

T he official title of the UK is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland .

The UK is made up of:

• Great Britain (comprises only England, Scotland and the principality of Wales.

• Northern Ireland (also known as Ulster)

• Numerous smaller islands including the Isle of Wight, Anglesey, and the Isles of Scilly, the Orkney Islands, the Shetland islands, and Hebridean archipelagos.

Great Britain is the largest island of the British Isles. Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic form the second largest island.

The Isle of Man and the Channel Islands are not part of the United Kingdom. They are largely self-governing with their own legislative assemblies and systems of law. The British Government is, however, responsible for their defense and international relations.

Capitals: Symbols: England – LONDON The rose Wales – CARDIFF The daffodil Scotland – Edinburgh The thistle Northern Ireland – Belfast The shamrock FLAG The Union Flag is so called because it embodies the emblems of three countries united under one Sovereign. It is colloquially known as The Union Jack. On the flag appear: The red cross of Saint George on a white ground – for E ngland The white diagonal cross of Saint Andrew on a blue ground – for Scotland The red diagonal cross of Saint Patrick on a white ground – for Ireland The Welsh flag – a red dragon on a white and green ground – does not appear on the Union Flag. Population: Britain ranks 20th in the world in terms of population size. In mid-2000, the population of Britain was 59.8 million, an increase of 21.6 million since 1901.The total population of England is estimated at 50 million, Wales is estimated at 2.95 million, Scotland at 5.1 million and Northern Ireland at 1.7 million people. England has the highest population density and Scotland has the lowest. Where is the UK? The UK is an island nation in Western Europe just off the coast of France. The mainland areas lie between latitudes 49°N and 59°N and longitudes 8°W to 2°E. The UK lies between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea, and comes within 35 km of the northwest coast of France, from which it is separated by the English Channel. Northern Ireland shares a 360 km international land boundary with the Republic of Ireland. The Channel Tunnel bored beneath the English Channel, now links the UK with France. How big an area does the UK cover? Interesting Fact No one in the UK lives more than 120 km (75 miles) from the sea. The UK has a total area of approximately 244,000 km², almost a quarter-of-a-million square kilometers. Seas surrounding the UK. The UK is made up of several islands. The only land border connecting the UK to another country is between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The UK is bordered by four seas: to the south by the English Channel, which separates it from continental Europe to the east by the North Sea to the west by the Irish Sea and the Atlantic Ocean The Land The UK Landscape is very varied, ranging from the Grampian Mountains of Scotland to the lowland fens of England which are at or below sea level in places. Scotland and Wales are the most mountainous parts of the UK. A ridge of hills, the Pennine, runs down the centre of northern England. Many coastal areas are low-lying, especially in the east and south of England. These include the wetlands of the Somerset levels that regularly flood during heavy rain. Most of the UK is made up of gently rolling hills with isolated areas of high ground such as Dart moor in the south-west of England or the Mourned Mountains in Northern Ireland. Lakes Northern Ireland is also home to the UK's largest lake, Lough Neagh, which covers an area of 396sq.km. Other major lakes include Windermere in the English Lake District and Loch Lomond in Scotland. Another of Scotland's lakes, Loch Ness is famous for sightings of 'Nessie', a mythical monster! UK Rivers Being a relatively small Island, the UK's rivers are not very long. The Severn, its longest river, is just 338 km in length, beginning in Wales and entering the Atlantic Ocean near Bristol in England. Other major rivers include the Thames, which flows through Oxford and London, and the Trent and Mersey rivers, which drain rainfall from large areas of central England. Facts: The capital of England is London. Sometimes referred to the capital of Britain. London is built along the River Thames Three quarters of the land in Britain is used for farming. Nine out of ten people live in towns and cities. The highest mountains are in Scotland and Wales. More than two-thirds of people own their own homes.

The Geography of Britain

The United Kingdom (the UK) takes up most of the British Isles. The largest of the islands is Great Britain, which is divided into England, Scotland and Wales.

The next largest island is Ireland, made up of Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK, and the Irish Republic. Western Scotland is fringed by the large island chains known as the Inner and Outer Hebrides, and to the north of the Scottish mainland are the Orkney and Shetland Islands.

With an area of about 243,000 square kilometers, excluding inland water, the UK is just under about 1,000 kilometers from the south coast to the extreme north of the Scottish mainland and just around 500 kilometers across at the widest point.

Highest mountain:

Ben Nevis, in the Highlands of Scotland, 1,343 m

Longest river:

The longest river in the British Isles is the river Shannon – 384 km – flowing from north to south in the Republic of Ireland. The longest river of Great Britain is the Severn – 322 km long – which rises in central Wales and flows through Shrewsbury, Worcester and Gloucester in England to the Bristol Channel.

Largest lake:

Lough Neagh, Northern Ireland, 396 sq km

Deepest lake:

Loch Morar in the Highlands of Scotland, 310 m deep

Deepest cave:

Ogof Ffynnon Ddu, Powys, Wales 308 m deep

Most northerly point on the British mainland:

Dunnet Head, north-east Scotland

Most southerly point on the British mainland:

Lizard Point, Cornwall

Most westerly point on the British mainland:

Land’s End

Most easterly town in England:

Lowestoft, Suffolk

The Channel Tunnel, near Dover in Kent, links England and France. It is 48 km long, of which nearly 37 km are actually under the English Channel.

E ngland

England is the largest country of the UK, occupying well over half of its geographical area. Whilst its identity is bound up with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in many ways, it is at the same time a separate country with its own distinct features, history, characteristics and culture.

E ngland's population is estimated to reach 52.5 million by 2021. England has a diverse population. For centuries, immigrants have arrived in England from abroad and from other parts of the British Isles, bringing with them their cultures, religious beliefs, customs and languages. Many aspects of English life have been greatly enriched as a result of this diversity.

The diverse backgrounds and traditions of ethnic peoples who have made their home in England have influenced the quality and breadth of the arts and of popular culture, as well as business, design, food and other aspects of life.

One of the defining features of England is its 'green and pleasant' countryside. The vast majority of England's land is rural, and, while most people live in cities, many travel to the countryside for recreation and holidays, where they can enjoy the peace and beauty of the English countryside.

A strong streak of creativity lies at the heart of the English character. In fashion, design, architecture and the Arts, English creatives are making their mark on the international stage, from creating some of the world's landmark buildings, to show-stopping fashion and thought-provoking art.

Originality and the willingness to 'think different' has put the English in the forefront of developments that are helping to shape the modern world, in the fields of science, design, technology or discovery.

S cotland

Scotland is part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It is the northern part of the island of Britain situated between latitudes 54"38' and 60"51' north and longitude 1"45' and 6"14' west. Scotland is bounded west and north by the Atlantic Ocean and by the North Sea to the east. In the south the border with England stretches for 60 miles, roughly along the line of the Cheviot Hills.

Scotland has three natural divisions. The fertile plains of the Lowlands in the south merge into the industrial heartland of central Scotland which in turn gives way to the fast r ivers, quiet lochs and picturesque mountains of the Highlands in the north.

It is the third of the land mass of Britain and accounts for 10 percent of the British population.

An historic event took place in Edinburgh, Scotland's capital city, in July 1999 when HM the Queen opened the first Scottish Parliament for nearly 300 years. The Scottish parliament has assumed the powers previously administered by The Scottish Office. However, Scotland still remains part of Britain and not all the functions of Government have been devolved.

Wales

Wales is essentially an upland country, about a quarter being more than 300m above sea level. E xtensive tracts of high plateau and shorter stretches of mountain ranges are deeply bisected by a series of river valleys which typically radiate from the centre of the upland area. The lower lying ground is largely confined to the relatively narrow coastal belt and the floors or lower slopes of the river valleys. The longest rivers are the Dee, S evern and Wyes, which fall to the lowlands of the English border.

The total population of Wales is estimated at more than 2.9 million representing about five percent of the total British population. The land area represents nine percent of the area of Britain.

Welsh is a language belonging to the Celtic family, its nearest cousins being Cornish (now almost extinct) and Breton. The oldest living language of Britain and among the oldest in Europe, Welsh has a rich and varied literature, stretching from medieval times to the present day, particularly distinguished by the poetic tradition. The Welsh language is used widely in everyday speech and also in education, the media, public administration and culture.

N orthern Ireland

Northern Ireland, with a population of more than 1.6 million, consists of six of the nine counties of the Old Irish Province of Ulster. Just over 50 percent of the people regard themselves as Protestants and just under 40 percent as Roman Catholics, according to the last census. The remainder belongs to religious minorities or chooses not to identify their beliefs. The population is expected to grow to 1.75m by 2025.

Most Protestants are descendants of Scots or English settlers who crossed to north-eastern Ireland, mainly in the 17th century; they are mostly British by culture and tradition and committed to maintaining the Union with Great Britain. The Roman Catholic population is mainly Irish by culture and history, the majority favouring a united Ireland.

Nature has been generous to Northern Ireland, endowing it with a rich landscape of mountains and glens, rolling drumlin hills and island-studded lakes. Although compact in size, it has a rich variety of scenery and cultural attractions, a rapidly growing economy and a first class environment for living as well as doing business.

The people are hospitable, friendly and warm - characteristics obscured by television images and news reports over the past three decades. Northern Ireland people have a passion for life and thanks to the strong education system, have a can-do attitude as well as being highly skilled and easily motivated.

Long recognized for producing a wealth of talented individuals who have made a real impact on the world stage, Northern Ireland is proud of its sense of social responsibility and generous nature.