The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK, sometimes called «Britain» despite this excluding Noreen Ireland) is the given name to a country that lives next to mainland Europe, located in the North Sea.
The UK's head of state is the monarch, followed by the Prime Minister, the elected representative of the country. Despite the monarch being the formal head of state, in recent times their role has been largely ceremonial: signing bills that the government asks to be made official, serving as the unofficial face of the country, and hosting internal and state visits.
The natives of the country are called Britons (or «Brits»), who live in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, as well as other islands (the Falkland Islands, Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man).
The United Kingdom has historically played a leading role in developing parliamentary democracy and in advancing literature and science. At its zenith in the 19th century, the British Empire stretched over one-fourth of the Earth's surface. The first half of the 20th century saw the UK's strength seriously depleted in two world wars and the Irish Republic's withdrawal from the union. The second half witnessed the dismantling of the Empire and the UK rebuilding itself into a modern and prosperous European nation. As one of five permanent members of the UN Security Council and a founding member of NATO and the Commonwealth, the UK pursues a global approach to foreign policy. The Scottish Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales, and the Northern Ireland Assembly were established in 1998.
The UK has been an active member of the EU since its accession in 1973, although it chose to remain outside the Economic and Monetary Union. However, motivated in part by frustration at a remote bureaucracy in Brussels and massive migration into the country, UK citizens on 2016-06-23 narrowly voted to leave the EU.
Conventional long form: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; note - the island of Great Britain includes England, Scotland, and Wales.
Conventional short form: United Kingdom.
Abbreviation: UK.
Etymology: the name United Kingdom is self-descriptive; the name Britain probably derives from the Celtic word pretani, meaning «painted people;» the designation of Great Britain for England, Scotland, and Wales dates back to medieval times and was used to distinguish the island from Little Britain, or Brittany, in modern France; the name Ireland evolved from the Gaelic name Eriu, which is possibly derived from the Old Celtic iveriu, meaning «good land».
No official date of independence: 927 (minor English kingdoms unite); 3 March 1284 (enactment of the Statute of Rhuddlan uniting England and Wales); 1536 (Act of Union incorporates England and Wales); 1 May 1707 (Acts of Union unite England, Scotland, and Wales as Great Britain); 1 January 1801 (Acts of Union unite Great Britain and Ireland as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland); 6 December 1921 (Anglo-Irish Treaty formalizes partition of Ireland; six counties become Northern Ireland and remain part of the UK); 12 April 1927 (Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act establishes current name of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland)
The flag of the UK is a blue field with the red cross of Saint George (patron saint of England) edged in white superimposed on the diagonal red cross of Saint Patrick (patron saint of Ireland), which is superimposed on the diagonal white cross of Saint Andrew (patron saint of Scotland); properly known as the Union Flag, but commonly called the Union Jack; the design and colors (especially the Blue Ensign) have been the basis for a number of other flags including other Commonwealth countries and their constituent states or provinces, and British overseas territories.
Public-service British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is the largest broadcasting company in the world; BBC operates multiple TV networks with regional and local TV; mixed system of public and commercial TV broadcasters along with satellite and cable systems provide access to hundreds of international TV stations; BBC operates multiple national, regional, and local radio networks with multiple transmission sites; large number of commercial and satellite radio stations available.
Some or all of the text was taken from the CIA World Factbook (source), a work by the federal government of the the United States - all work by the US government lacks copyright.
Due to this using text that was written by the US government, please be aware that might not only be US-centric, but also have a pro-USA agenda.
This page was last edited on 2026-09-14 20:59:47.
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