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Official Name: The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Also known as; the UK, Britain, Great Britain, the United Kingdom.
Nationalities: The UK is officially a single entity; however there are a number of separate national identities in the country. England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland all see themselves as unique nations underneath the British flag and are commonly referred to as the Home Nations. Anyone born in any part of the UK is a British citizen.
Capital: The Capital of the United Kingdom is London. The capitals of the various British Nations are as follows; England – London, Scotland – Edinburgh, Wales – Cardiff, Northern Ireland – Belfast.
Location: The United Kingdom consists of a number of islands situated in Western Europe including one – sixth of the northern part of Ireland. The UK has no land borders except for the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The country is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, English Channel, North Sea, Irish Sea, and Celtic Sea, and is located directly north of France. The UK is connected to France by means of a tunnel underneath the English Channel, referred to as the Chunnel.
Size: Britain has a total area of approximately 244,800 square kilometers, and a coastline of 12,429 kilometers.
Climate: There is a temperate climate throughout the British Isles. The weather throughout the country is stereotypically overcast, however the UK can experience extremely hot summers. There is a prevalence for snow in the north of the country during winter.
Population: The population of Britain is approximately 60,776,200. The country ranks as the 22nd most populated nation in the world.
Life expectancy at birth: Life expectancy in the UK is 78.7 years at birth.
Prevalence of HIV/AIDS: Approximately 0.2% of the British population is suffering from the HIV/Aids virus. This equals about 51,000 people.
Major illnesses: The United Kingdom as a developed nation has a low risk for many diseases; however, the country is a major stop over point for many migratory birds and frequent cases of H5N1 (Avian Influenza) have been reported.
Ethnic Groups: There are many different ethnic groups located throughout the UK. These are; Caucasian – 92.1%, Black – 2%, Indian – 1.8%, Pakistani – 1.3%, Mixed – 1.2%, Other Miscellaneous ethnicity – 1.6%. From the majority Caucasian group the break down in terms of ethnicity are as follows; English – 83.6%, Scottish – 8.6%, Welsh – 4.9%, Northern Irish – 2.9%.
Languages: The de facto official language in the UK is English. The majority of the population will only speak this language.
Religion: There are a number of different religions practiced throughout the United Kingdom these are; Christian – 71.6%, Muslim – 2.7%, Hindu – 1%, None – 23.1%, other – 1.6%.
Government: The United Kingdom has a constitutional monarchy. This means that while the Monarch is the official head of state, they have very limited legislative authority.
Head of State: Queen Elizabeth II. The heir apparent to the throne of England is Prince Charles
Head of Government: Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
Military: The UK has an extremely technologically advanced military. The age of enrollment for the British military is 16 years. Women in the British military are excluded from combat situations and some naval postings, but enjoy an overall amount of equality.
Economy: The economy of the United Kingdom is one the best in the world. The British government, in recent years, has reduced the amount of control that it has over various industry sectors leading to a boom in private business. However, social welfare reforms have seen large amounts of investment, leading to an extremely stable financial platform in which small and medium sized enterprises are flourishing. The UK has not joined the European Monetary Union, and the British Currency, the pound, is one of the strongest in the world.
GDP: The UK has a purchasing power parity of USD$ 1.93 Trillion and a per capita GDP of USD$ 31,800, making the country one of the richest in the world.
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