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United Kingdom

(1) The Royal motto in Scotland is Nemo Me Impune Lacessit (Latin: "No-one harms me with impunity"). (2) Officially recognised regional languages: in Wales: Welsh; and in the Western Isles: Scottish Gaelic. (3) Formed as United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Name changed to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in 1927. (4) unofficial (5) ISO 3166-1 is .gb

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a state in western Europe, usually known simply as the United Kingdom, the UK or less accurately as Great Britain or Britain. The UK was formed by a series of Acts of Union which united the formerly distinct nations of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland under a single government in London. The greater part of Ireland left the United Kingdom (then formally called the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland) in 1922, and is today the Republic of Ireland, whilst the north-eastern portion of the island, Northern Ireland, remains part of the United Kingdom.

The UK is situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe, surrounded by the North Sea, the English Channel and the Atlantic Ocean. Also under the sovereignty of the United Kingdom, though not part of the United Kingdom itself, are the Crown dependencies of the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man and a number of overseas territories.

Great Britain, now sometimes called simply Britain, is the geographical name for the largest island in the British Isles, and includes the mainland nations of England, Wales and Scotland, sometimes also including their islands. Additionally, Britain is regularly used by the media as shorthand for the United Kingdom. The term "Great" is used in opposition to "Little" Britain or Brittany in France (the '-ny' ending being diminutive).

The British Isles refers to an archipelago of islands including Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Isle of Wight, Orkney, the Hebrides, Shetland Isles, Channel Islands and others. The term is unpopular in Ireland.

United Kingdom geography

Most of England consists of rolling lowland terrain, divided east from west by more mountainous terrain in the northwest (Cumbrian Mountains of the Lake District) and north (the upland moors of the Pennines) and limestone hills of the Peak District by the Tees-Exe line. The lower limestone hills of the Isle of Purbeck, Cotswolds, Lincolnshire Wolds and chalk downs of the North Downs, South Downs and Chilterns of southern England. The main rivers and estuaries are the Thames, Severn and the Trent & Ouse feeding the Humber Estuary; major cities include London, Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield, Liverpool, Leeds, Bristol and Newcastle upon Tyne. Near Dover, the Channel Tunnel links the United Kingdom with France.

Wales is mostly mountainous, the highest peak being Snowdon, at 1,085 m above sea level. North of the mainland is the island of Anglesey. Main and capital city is Cardiff, located in the south of Wales.

Scotland's geography is varied, with lowlands in the south and east and highlands in the north and west, including Ben Nevis, the UK's highest mountain (1343 m). There are many long and deep sea arms, firths, and lochs. A multitude of islands west and north of Scotland are also included, notably the Hebrides, Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands. Main cities are Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen.

Northern Ireland, making up the northeastern part of Ireland, is mostly hilly. The main cities are Belfast and Derry.

In total it is estimated that the UK is made up of around 1098 small islands, some being natural and some being crannogs, a type of artificial island which was built in past times using stone and wood, gradually enlarged by natural waste building up over time.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "United Kingdom".