The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (1)

The names “Great Britain”, “The United Kingdom” and “England” are often used interchangeably. The use of “Great Britain” is often shortened to “Britain”. Officially this state is called “The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland”.

The United Kingdom (the UK) is situated on the British Isles lying off the north-western coast of Europe. The north-west and west of the British Isles are surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean. The British Isles consist of two large islands, Great Britain and Ireland, separated by the Irish Sea, and a group of small islands. The UK is separated from the European continent by the English Channel and a Strait of Dover.

The population of Great Britain is over 58 million. The capital is London. Historically the UK is divided into 4 parts: Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales, and England. Their capitals are Edinburgh, Belfast, Cardiff and London.

Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland. It is the 7th largest city in the United Kingdom and the 2nd largest Scottish city. Edinburgh is often considered one of the most picturesque cities in Europe. Edinburgh is well-known for the Edinburgh Festivals. The most famous of these events is the Edinburgh Comedy Festival (the largest comedy festival in the world). This city is one of Europe's major tourist destinations, attracting 1 million visitors a year.

Belfast is the capital city of Northern Ireland. Belfast has over forty public parks. Belfast is the home of The News Letter, the oldest English language newspaper in the world still in publication.

Cardiff is the capital and most populous city in Wales. It is Wales's centre for business, education, sport, tourism, culture, media and government. Cardiff is part of the Euro cities network of the largest European cities. Cardiff has speakers of at least 94 languages.

English is the official language, but some people speak Scottish in western Scotland, Welsh in parts of northern and central Wales and Irish in Northern Ireland.

The formal name of the British national flag is Union Flag, which is known as the Union Jack. It is made up of three crosses. The flag combines the St. George’s cross of England, St. Andrew’s cross of Scotland and St. Patrick’s cross of Ireland.

There are some animals on British royal coat of arms. One of them is lion, which has been used as a symbol of national strength and of British monarchy. The other one is unicorn. The unicorn is a mythical animal and the symbol of purity.

A red rose is the national emblem of England. The 23rd of April is regarded as England’s national day. A thistle is the national emblem of Scotland. The 30th of November is regarded as Scotland’s national day. A yellow daffodil is the national emblem of Wales. The 1st of March is regarded as national day of Wales. The national emblem of Ireland is a shamrock. The 17th of March is considered as a national day in Northern Ireland.

The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy. It means, formally the head of the country is a king or a queen, but all the real power is in the hands of Parliament, which is one of the oldest in the world. Parliament is made up of two chambers, the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Now the official head of the state is the Queen Elisabeth II. The real head of the state is the Prime Minister. The person, being a leader of one of the two main parties, labour or conservative, which wins in the elections, becomes the Prime Minister of the country.

There are no high mountains in Britain, but some low mountains are situated on the North of the country, in Scotland. The central part of the country is plain.

There are many rivers and lakes in the UK, but the main rivers are the Thames and the Severn. The Severn is the largest river; the Thames is the most important one.

The climate of the UK is influenced by the warm current of the Gulf Stream flowing across the Atlantic Ocean and is very mild. The temperature on the British Isles seldom reaches of hot or cold. Almost all the time the country is covered with fog.

The UK is one of the most industrialized countries. Such branches as coal mining, metal industry and light, especially textile industry are very well developed here. For many years England was famous throughout the world as the main producer of wool. Agriculture takes also an important sector in the economy of the country. British people grow wheat, fruit, vegetables and oats.

Great Britain is well-known for its great writers such as W.Scott, Ch.Dickens, A.Christie, scientists I.Newton, J.Joule, J.Watt and many others famous people.

In Britain there are such famous Universities as Cambridge and Oxford, which were founded as far back the 12^th century.