Geography of the United Kingdom

• The full name of the UK is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

• It consists of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

• The official language is English.

• The UK is in north-west Europe between the North Sea and the Atlantic ocean. An island country, it is the 9th largest island in the world.

• It covers an area of 243,610 sq km. Roughly the same size as Romania. It is the 80th largest country in the world.

• The population of the UK is 63,395,574 . It is the 22nd largest population in the world. It is 51st most densely populated country in the world.

• The tallest mountain in the UK (and British Isles) is Ben Nevis, in the Grampian Mountains, Scotland.

• The longest river is the River Severn which flows from Wales into England.

• The English Channel is in the south between England and France.

• People travel to France by ferry across the English Channel or by train through the Channel Tunnel which goes under the sea.

England

• England is the biggest of the four countries in the United Kingdom.

• Over 50 million people live in England and that’s around 80 per cent of the total UK population.

• The English Channel is in the south between England and France.

• People travel to France by ferry across the English Channel or by train through the Channel Tunnel which goes under the sea.

• The capital city is London which has a population of 8 million.

Scotland

• Scotland is a country in Great Britain, to the north of England. Scotland has nearly 800 islands, but people only live on some of them.

• Scotland is a very beautiful country with many mountains, forests, beaches, rivers and lochs (the Scots word for lakes).

• The capital city is Edinburgh.

• About five million people live in Scotland, which is 8.5 per cent of the UK population.

• Most people live in the south of the country in and around the cities of Edinburgh, Glasgow.

Wales

• It’s a small country with England to the east.

• In Wales there are a lot of beaches!

• As well as beaches, there are a lot of mountains and also three national parks, including Snowdonia. It is in north Wales and its highest mountain, Snowdon, is 1,085m.

• The population of Wales is just over three million people, around five per cent of the total UK population.

• Most Welsh people live in south Wales in the capital city, Cardiff.

Northern Ireland

• It is to the north of the Republic of Ireland, on an island next to Great Britain.

• Around 1.8 million people live in Northern Ireland, which is about three per cent of the population of the UK.

• The capital city is Belfast.

• In Northern Ireland you can find beautiful beaches, forests and mountains.