|
U United Kingdom of
Great Britain and
Northern Ireland[1] |
|
 |
 |
|
Flag |
Royal coat of
arms |
|
Motto: "Dieu
et mon droit" (French)
"God and my right" |
Anthem: "God
Save the Queen"
|
|
|
 |
|
Location
of United
Kingdom |
|
Capital
(and largest city) |
London
 51°30′N,
0°7′W |
|
Official languages |
English[4] |
|
Recognised
regional languages |
Welsh,
Irish,
Ulster Scots,
Scots,
Scottish Gaelic,
Cornish[5] |
|
Ethnic groups (2001) |
92.1%
White,
4.00%
South Asian, 2.00%
Black, 1.20%
Mixed Race, 0.80%
East Asian and
Other |
|
Demonym |
British,
Briton |
|
Government |
Parliamentary system
and
Constitutional monarchy |
|
- |
Monarch |
Queen Elizabeth II |
|
- |
Prime Minister |
Gordon Brown
MP |
|
Legislature |
Parliament |
|
- |
Upper House |
House of Lords |
|
- |
Lower House |
House of Commons |
|
Formation |
|
- |
Acts of Union |
1 May
1707 |
|
- |
Act of Union |
1 January
1801 |
|
- |
Anglo-Irish Treaty |
12 April
1922 |
|
EU
accession |
1 January
1973 |
|
Area |
|
- |
Total |
244,820 kmē (79th)
94,526 sq mi |
|
- |
Water (%) |
1.34 |
|
|
Population |
|
- |
mid-2006 estimate |
60,587,300[1] (22nd) |
|
- |
2001 census |
58,789,194[6] |
|
- |
Density |
246/kmē (48th)
637/sq mi |
|
GDP (PPP) |
2006 estimate |
|
- |
Total |
US$2.270
trillion (6th) |
|
- |
Per capita |
US$37,328 (13th) |
|
GDP (nominal) |
2007 estimate |
|
- |
Total |
$2.772
trillion (5th) |
|
- |
Per capita |
US$45,845 (9th) |
|
Gini (2005) |
34[2] |
|
HDI (2005) |
▲ 0.946 (high) (16th) |
|
Currency |
Pound sterling (Ģ) (GBP) |
|
Time zone |
GMT
(UTC+0) |
|
- |
Summer (DST) |
BST (UTC+1) |
|
Internet TLD |
.uk
[7] |
|
Calling code |
+44 |
|
The United
Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland, commonly
known as the United Kingdom,
the UK, or Britain,
is a sovereign island country
located off the northwestern
coast of continental Europe. The
UK includes the island of Great
Britain, the northeast part of
the island of Ireland and many
small islands. Northern Ireland
is the only part of the UK with
a land border, sharing it with
the Republic of Ireland.[6]
Apart from this land border, the
UK is surrounded by the Atlantic
Ocean, the North Sea, the
English Channel and the Irish
Sea. The largest island, Great
Britain, is linked to France by
the Channel Tunnel.
The United Kingdom is a
union[7][8] of four constituent
countries: England, Northern
Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The
United Kingdom is governed by a
parliamentary system with its
seat of government in London,
the capital, and is a
constitutional monarchy with
Queen Elizabeth II as the head
of state. The Crown Dependencies
of the Channel Islands and the
Isle of Man, formally
possessions of the Crown, are
not part of the UK but form a
federacy with it.[9] The UK has
fourteen overseas
territories,[10] all remnants of
the British Empire, which at its
height encompassed almost a
quarter of the world's land
surface, making it the largest
empire in history. As a result
of the empire, British influence
can be observed in the language,
culture and legal systems of
many of its former colonies such
as Canada, Australia, India, and
the United States. Queen
Elizabeth II remains the head of
the Commonwealth of Nations and
head of state of each of the
Commonwealth realms.
The UK is a developed country,
with the fifth (nominal GDP) or
sixth (PPP) largest economy in
the world. It was the world's
foremost power during the 19th
and early 20th century,[11] but
the economic cost of two world
wars and the decline of its
empire in the latter half of the
20th century diminished its
leading role in global affairs.
The UK nevertheless retains
strong economic, cultural,
military and political influence
and is a nuclear power, with the
second or third (depending on
method of calculation) highest
defence spending in the world.
It is a member state of the
European Union, holds a
permanent seat on the United
Nations Security Council, and is
a member of the G8, NATO, WTO
and the Commonwealth of Nations.