Karl's Blog: England vs the UK vs Great Britain

I've had a few USA bods get in touch yesterday about the Friday Factoid.

"I had NO IDEA that England wasn't the UK. What's the difference?!?"

Well, allow me to explain.

The UK is the short version of the "United Kingdom," which is the short version of the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland."

The UK consists of four countries: England; Wales; Scotland; and Northern Ireland.

In other words, all of the red bits on this map:

(Image courtesy David Liuzzo.)

Now, the biggest red island on that picture is called Great Britain. Yes, Great Britain is the name of the island itself, not the name of a country.

Great Britain is split into three parts: England, which covers most of it; Scotland, which is situated at the top, the "head" of the UK; and Wales, which is off in the west "hip."

London is the capital of England, which is in the south. Cardiff is the capital of Wales, and Edinburgh (pronounced "Ed-in-brer") is the capital of Scotland.

Now, the small red blob off to the left of the big red blob is Northern Ireland, which is of course part of Ireland itself. And if you take the whole of the UK and Southern Ireland, you get what we call the British Isles.

Trust me: It's simpler than it sounds.

There are no physical barriers or tolls between the countries, and everyone can travel between the countries freely. Yes, Wales does have its own language, but most people speak English too.

And the accents across the countries are diverse. England has everything from James Bond to The Full Monty. When you think of Scotland, think Billy Connolly. And when you think of Wales, think Tom Jones, minus the Californian tint.

And so there we have it...

The difference between England, the UK and Great Britain.

I'm sorry if this post has bored a few UK readers. But who knows... Maybe a couple of us have learned something too!

Have a GREAT Saturday! :)

Labels: durham, factoids, ramblings