2. Population and major cities
3. National Parks
4. Ethnic minority groups
5. Religions
6. Imports and exports
7. Union Flag
8. ‘GMT’ and ‘British Summertime’
Click on the map to ZOOM in on the UK
1- What is the difference between the United Kingdom and Great Britain ?
The United Kingdom is made up of the countries of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Its full name is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Great Britain (or 'Britain'), on the other hand, comprises only England, Scotland and Wales. It is the largest island of the British Isles. Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic form the second largest island.
The Isle of Man and the Channel Islands (Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, Herm, Lihou, Jethou, Brecqhou) are not part of the United Kingdom. They are largely self-governing with their own legislative assemblies and systems of law. The British Government is, however, responsible for their defence and international relations. In this site the term ‘Britain’ is used informally to mean the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
More (Encarta)
England - Scotland - Northern Ireland - Wales
2- What is the population of Britain and its major cities?
Britain ranks 18th in the world in terms of population size. In mid-2003, the population of Britain was 59.6 million, an increase of 3.7 million since mid-1971.
The total population of England is estimated at 49.9 million, Wales is estimated at 2.9 million, Scotland at 5.1 million and Northern Ireland at 1.7 million people.
England has the highest population density and Scotland has the lowest.
The population of some of Britain’s major cities in 2001 are as follows: London 7,172,091; Birmingham 977,087; Manchester 392,819; Glasgow 577,869; Edinburgh 448,624; Belfast 271,596 (in 2003); Cardiff 305,353.
More
National Statistics - Census 2001
3- What are National Parks and where are they?
National Parks aim both to protect the outstanding countryside within their boundaries and to provide opportunities for outside recreation for their many thousands of visitors each year.
There are nine National Parks in England - Dartmoor, Exmoor, Lake District, North York Moors, Northumberland, the Peak District and the Yorkshire Dales, the Broads and the New Forest.
In Scotland, Loch Lomond and the Trossachs form the first national park, and the Caimgorms became the second in September 2003. It is the largest in Britain (3,800 square kilometres).
4- Which are Britain’s largest ethnic minorities groups?
The largest ethnic minorities in Britain are those of Caribbean or African descent (1,149,000 people).
The next largest ethnic groups are Indians (1,053,000 people),and Pakistani and Bangladeshis (1,030,000 people).
Overall, ethnic minority groups represent 7.9 per cent of the population of Great Britain. The ethnic population has evolved from the substantial immigration of people from former British colonies in the Caribbean and South Asian sub-continent during the 1950s and 1960s.
5- Which religions are represented in Britain?
Everyone in Britain has the right to religious freedom.
Britain is predominantly Christian - one British citizen in 10 is a member of the Roman Catholic Church and there are 1.7 million members of the Anglican church - the ‘established church’, that is the church legally recognised as the official church of the State.
In Scotland, there are 1.1 million members of the Presbyterian Church - the established church in Scotland.
In Northern Ireland, about half the people regard themselves as Protestants and nearly 40 per cent as Roman Catholics.
In Wales, the Anglican church was disestablished in 1920. This means that there is no one officially established church, but Methodism and Baptism are the two most widespread religions.
Britain has one of the largest Muslim communities in Western Europe, estimated to be between 1 and 1.5 million people, with over 600 mosques and prayer centres. One of the most important Muslim institutions in the Western world is the Central mosque in London and its associated Islamic Cultural Centre.
The Sikh community in Britain comprises between 400,000 and 500,000 people, with the largest groups of Sikhs concentrated in Greater London, Manchester and Birmingham. The oldest Sikh temple was established in London in 1908.
The Hindu community in Britain accounts for a further 320,000 people. The first Hindu temple was opened in London in 1962, and there are now over 150 throughout Britain.
6- What are Britain’s main imports and exports?
Despite having only one per cent of the world’s population, Britain is the fifth largest trading nation in the world.
The chemical industry is Britain’s largest export earner, and the third largest in Western Europe. Since the 1970s, oil has contributed significantly to Britain’s overseas trade, both in exports and a reduced need to import oil. British Petroleum (BP) is Britain’s biggest and Europe’s second biggest industrial company.
Britain imports six times as many manufactures as basic materials. EU countries account for seven of the 10 leading suppliers of goods to Britain and Germany is Britain’s biggest supplier of imports. Food, beverages and tobacco account for half of non-manufactured imports, whilst machinery and road vehicles account for two-thirds of finished imported manufactures. Other major imports include chemicals, fuels, clothing and footwear.
7- What does the Union Flag stand for and how should it be flown?
• the red cross of St. George, for England, on a white ground;
• the white diagonal cross, or saltire, of St. Andrew, for Scotland, on a blue ground;
• the red diagonal cross of St. Patrick, for Ireland, on a white ground.
Wales is not represented in the Union Flag because, when the first version of the flag appeared, Wales was already united with England. The national flag of Wales, a red dragon on a field of white and green, dates from the 15th century and is widely used throughout the Principality.
N.B.
and the narrower diagonal band of white (right) uppermost in the fly (furthest from the pole).
8- What are ‘GMT’ and ‘British Summertime’?
GMT or ‘Greenwich Mean Time’ is the local time of the 0 degree meridian that passes through Greenwich in London, from which the standard times of different areas of the globe are calculated. Thus it is the standard time for Britain, and a basis for other time zones in the world. Summer time or BST (British Summer Time) runs from the end of March to the end of October (the last Sunday in each month), when clocks are advanced one hour ahead of GMT to gain maximum use of daylight hours. 
