Background Note: United Kingdom
Geography
Area: 243,610 sq. km. (94,058 sq. mi.); slightly smaller than Oregon.
Cities: Capital--London (metropolitan pop. about 8.615 million). Other cities--Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Sheffield, Liverpool, Bradford, Manchester, Edinburgh, Bristol, Belfast.
Terrain: 30% arable, 50% meadow and pasture, 12% waste or urban, 7% forested, 1% inland water.
Land use: 25% arable, 46% meadows and pastures, 10% forests and woodland, 19% other.
Climate: Generally mild and temperate; weather is subject to frequent changes but not often to temperature extremes.
People Nationality: Noun--Briton(s). Adjective--British.
Population (July 2011 est.): 62,698,362.
Annual population growth rate (2011 est.): 0.557%.
Major ethnic groups (2001 census): White 92.1% (of which English 83.6%, Scottish 8.6%, Welsh 4.9%, Northern Irish 2.9%), black 2%, Indian 1.8%, Pakistani 1.3%, mixed 1.2%, other 1.6%.
Major religions (2001 census): Christian (Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist) 71.6%, Muslim 2.7%, Hindu 1%, other 1.6%, unspecified or none 23.1%.
Major languages: English, Welsh, Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic.
Education: Years compulsory--12. Attendance--nearly 100%. Literacy--99%.
Health: Infant mortality rate--4.62 deaths/1,000 live births. Life expectancy (2011 est.)--males 77.95 years; females 82.25 years; total 80.05 years.
Work force (2009, 31.25 million): Services 80.4%; industry 18.2%; agriculture 1.4%.
Government Type: Constitutional monarchy.
Constitution: Unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice.
Branches: Executive--monarch (head of state), prime minister (head of government), cabinet. Legislative--bicameral Parliament: House of Commons, House of Lords; Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly, and Northern Ireland Assembly. Judicial--magistrates' courts, Crown Court, high court, appellate courts, Supreme Court.
Subdivisions: Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland (municipalities, counties, and parliamentary constituencies).
Political parties: Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrats, U.K. Independence Party, British National Party, Green Party. Also, in Scotland, Scottish National Party; in Wales, Plaid Cymru (Party of Wales); in Northern Ireland, Democratic Unionist Party, Sinn Fein, Ulster Unionist Party, Social Democratic and Labour Party, Alliance Party, Traditional Unionist Voice, Green Party, Progressive Unionist Party.
Suffrage: British subjects and citizens of other Commonwealth countries and the Irish Republic resident in the U.K., at 18.
Economy GDP (at current market prices; International Monetary Fund (IMF), 2011): $2.481 trillion.
Annual growth rate (IMF, 2010): +1.14%.
Per capita GDP (at current market prices; IMF, 2011): $39,604.
Natural resources: Coal, oil, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica.
Agriculture (0.6% of GDP; U.K. Office for National Statistics (ONS), 2011): Products--cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables, cattle, sheep, poultry, fish.
Industry (21.9% of GDP; ONS, 2011): Types--steel, heavy engineering and metal manufacturing, textiles, motor vehicles and aircraft, construction (7.0% of GDP), electronics, chemicals.
Services (77.4% of GDP; ONS, 2011): Types--financial, business, distribution, transport, communication, hospitality.
Trade (at current prices, 2011 exchange rates; ONS, 2011): Exports of goods and services--$782.7 billion. Major goods exports--manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals, food, beverages, tobacco. Major export markets--U.S., European Union. Imports of goods and services--$827.6 billion. Major goods imports--manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, foodstuffs. Major import suppliers--U.S., European Union, and China.
PEOPLE The United Kingdom's population in 2011 surpassed 62 million. Its overall population density is one of the highest in the world. Almost one-third of the population lives in England's prosperous and fertile southeast and is predominantly urban and suburban--with about 8.615 million in the capital of London, which remains the largest city in Europe. The United Kingdom's high literacy rate (99%) is attributable to universal public education introduced for the primary level in 1870 and secondary level in 1900. Education is mandatory from ages 5 through 18. The Church of England and the Church of Scotland are the official churches in their respective parts of the country, but most religions found in the world are represented in the United Kingdom.
A group of islands close to continental Europe, the British Isles have been subject to many invasions and migrations, especially from Scandinavia and the continent, including Roman occupation for several centuries. Contemporary Britons are descended mainly from the varied ethnic stocks that settled there before the 11th century. The pre-Celtic, Celtic, Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Norse influences were blended in Britain under the Normans, Scandinavian Vikings who had lived in Northern France. Although Celtic languages persist in Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, the predominant language is English, which is primarily a blend of Anglo-Saxon and Norman French.
HISTORY The Roman invasion of Britain in 55 B.C. and most of Britain's subsequent incorporation into the Roman Empire stimulated development and brought more active contacts with the rest of Europe. As Rome's strength declined, the country again was exposed to invasion--including the pivotal incursions of the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes in the fifth and sixth centuries A.D.--up to the Norman conquest in 1066. Norman rule effectively ensured Britain's safety from further intrusions; certain institutions, which remain characteristic of Britain, could develop. Among these are a political, administrative, cultural, and economic center in London; a separate but established church; a system of common law; distinctive and distinguished university education; and representative government.
Cities: Capital--London (metropolitan pop. about 8.615 million). Other cities--Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds, Sheffield, Liverpool, Bradford, Manchester, Edinburgh, Bristol, Belfast.
Terrain: 30% arable, 50% meadow and pasture, 12% waste or urban, 7% forested, 1% inland water.
Land use: 25% arable, 46% meadows and pastures, 10% forests and woodland, 19% other.
Climate: Generally mild and temperate; weather is subject to frequent changes but not often to temperature extremes.
People Nationality: Noun--Briton(s). Adjective--British.
Population (July 2011 est.): 62,698,362.
Annual population growth rate (2011 est.): 0.557%.
Major ethnic groups (2001 census): White 92.1% (of which English 83.6%, Scottish 8.6%, Welsh 4.9%, Northern Irish 2.9%), black 2%, Indian 1.8%, Pakistani 1.3%, mixed 1.2%, other 1.6%.
Major religions (2001 census): Christian (Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist) 71.6%, Muslim 2.7%, Hindu 1%, other 1.6%, unspecified or none 23.1%.
Major languages: English, Welsh, Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic.
Education: Years compulsory--12. Attendance--nearly 100%. Literacy--99%.
Health: Infant mortality rate--4.62 deaths/1,000 live births. Life expectancy (2011 est.)--males 77.95 years; females 82.25 years; total 80.05 years.
Work force (2009, 31.25 million): Services 80.4%; industry 18.2%; agriculture 1.4%.
Government Type: Constitutional monarchy.
Constitution: Unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice.
Branches: Executive--monarch (head of state), prime minister (head of government), cabinet. Legislative--bicameral Parliament: House of Commons, House of Lords; Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly, and Northern Ireland Assembly. Judicial--magistrates' courts, Crown Court, high court, appellate courts, Supreme Court.
Subdivisions: Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland (municipalities, counties, and parliamentary constituencies).
Political parties: Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrats, U.K. Independence Party, British National Party, Green Party. Also, in Scotland, Scottish National Party; in Wales, Plaid Cymru (Party of Wales); in Northern Ireland, Democratic Unionist Party, Sinn Fein, Ulster Unionist Party, Social Democratic and Labour Party, Alliance Party, Traditional Unionist Voice, Green Party, Progressive Unionist Party.
Suffrage: British subjects and citizens of other Commonwealth countries and the Irish Republic resident in the U.K., at 18.
Economy GDP (at current market prices; International Monetary Fund (IMF), 2011): $2.481 trillion.
Annual growth rate (IMF, 2010): +1.14%.
Per capita GDP (at current market prices; IMF, 2011): $39,604.
Natural resources: Coal, oil, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica.
Agriculture (0.6% of GDP; U.K. Office for National Statistics (ONS), 2011): Products--cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables, cattle, sheep, poultry, fish.
Industry (21.9% of GDP; ONS, 2011): Types--steel, heavy engineering and metal manufacturing, textiles, motor vehicles and aircraft, construction (7.0% of GDP), electronics, chemicals.
Services (77.4% of GDP; ONS, 2011): Types--financial, business, distribution, transport, communication, hospitality.
Trade (at current prices, 2011 exchange rates; ONS, 2011): Exports of goods and services--$782.7 billion. Major goods exports--manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals, food, beverages, tobacco. Major export markets--U.S., European Union. Imports of goods and services--$827.6 billion. Major goods imports--manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, foodstuffs. Major import suppliers--U.S., European Union, and China.
PEOPLE The United Kingdom's population in 2011 surpassed 62 million. Its overall population density is one of the highest in the world. Almost one-third of the population lives in England's prosperous and fertile southeast and is predominantly urban and suburban--with about 8.615 million in the capital of London, which remains the largest city in Europe. The United Kingdom's high literacy rate (99%) is attributable to universal public education introduced for the primary level in 1870 and secondary level in 1900. Education is mandatory from ages 5 through 18. The Church of England and the Church of Scotland are the official churches in their respective parts of the country, but most religions found in the world are represented in the United Kingdom.
A group of islands close to continental Europe, the British Isles have been subject to many invasions and migrations, especially from Scandinavia and the continent, including Roman occupation for several centuries. Contemporary Britons are descended mainly from the varied ethnic stocks that settled there before the 11th century. The pre-Celtic, Celtic, Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Norse influences were blended in Britain under the Normans, Scandinavian Vikings who had lived in Northern France. Although Celtic languages persist in Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, the predominant language is English, which is primarily a blend of Anglo-Saxon and Norman French.
HISTORY The Roman invasion of Britain in 55 B.C. and most of Britain's subsequent incorporation into the Roman Empire stimulated development and brought more active contacts with the rest of Europe. As Rome's strength declined, the country again was exposed to invasion--including the pivotal incursions of the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes in the fifth and sixth centuries A.D.--up to the Norman conquest in 1066. Norman rule effectively ensured Britain's safety from further intrusions; certain institutions, which remain characteristic of Britain, could develop. Among these are a political, administrative, cultural, and economic center in London; a separate but established church; a system of common law; distinctive and distinguished university education; and representative government.
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