General Information about the UK

The British Isles is a geographical name of an archipelago which is situated to the northwest of continental Europe and is made up of two large islands - Great Britain and Ireland and a number of smaller islands. In total it is estimated that the UK includes around 1,000 islands. The UK is one of the smallest countries in the world. In size it is twice smaller than Spain or France. Its total area is about 245,000 square kilometers, but the population of the UK is over 60 million people.

In the north-west and west the country is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea, in the east - by the North Sea. The islands of Great Britain are separated from France by the English Channel. Northern Ireland, which is a part of Great Britain and which is situated on the island of Ireland, is separated from Great Britain by the North Channel.

The island of Great Britain is divided into two parts: mountainous (in the north and west of the island) and lowland (in the south and east). There are no very long rivers in Great Britain. The most important rivers are the Thames (the deepest) and the Severn (the longest). The rivers seldom freeze in winter. Due to the moderating influence of the sea Great Britain has an insular climate, rather humid and mild, without striking discrepancy between seasons.

Four countries that make up the UK are England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. England is situated in the central and southern part of Great Britain. Historically it's the most important part of the country. It's also the biggest and the most populated part of the UK. Scotland is the northern part of Great Britain and it is much smaller than England. Scotland is very close to the Arctic circle. Because of its geographical position Scotland is less populated than England. Wales is situated in the western part of the island.

Northern Ireland is the smallest part of the UK. It has only one-sixth of the territory of Ireland island. "Ulster" is sometimes used as the second name of Northern Ireland, but we should keep in mind that the name "Ulster" refers not only to Northern Ireland but also to a part of Ireland along the Atlantic Ocean.

Administratively Great Britain is divided into 55 counties. The biggest cities of Great Britain are London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, Edinburgh, and Cardiff.

England (its administrative status is a kingdom) is divided into 9 regions. Scotland (its administrative status is a kingdom) is made up of 32 burghs that is a Scottish name for cities with self government. Wales (its administrative status is a principality) consists of 8 preserved counties of Wales. Northern Ireland (its administrative status is a province) comprises 26 districts. Great Britain is a highly developed industrial country. The main fields of British industry are machine-building, ship-building, metallurgy, and electronics.

Task 4. Read the sentences, put in the necessary words.

is washed, is known, officially, written guarantees, on the advice, humid, mild, amounts to, includes, is separated

1. In addition to two big islands Great Britain... over five thousand small islands.

2. In the northwest and west the country... by the Atlantic Ocean.

3. Northern Ireland... from Great Britain by the North Channel.

4. Due to the moderating influence of the sea Great Britain has an insular climate, rather... and....

5. The population of England... 83% of the total population of Great Britain.

6. English...... by everyone there.

7.... the head of the state is the Queen (or the King).

8. British legislation does not provide...... of individual political rights.

9. The Queen acts only......... of the ministers and Parliament.