Back Британиаду AB Keurajeuën Inggréh ACE Британиешхо Пачъыхьыгъо ADY Verenigde Koninkryk AF Vereinigtes Königreich ALS የተባበሩት የሀገር ንጉሳዊ አገዛዝ AM United Kingdom AMI Reino Uniu AN Ġeānod Cynerīċe ANG यूनाइटेड किंगडम ANP

United Kingdom


"UK" redirects here. For other uses, see United Kingdom (disambiguation) and UK (disambiguation).

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
A flag composed of a red cross edged in white and superimposed on a red saltire, also edged in white, superimposed on a white saltire on a blue background
Anthem: "God Save the King"[a]
Coats of arms:

Used in relation to Scotland (right) and elsewhere (left)
Location of the United Kingdom (dark green)

in Europe (dark grey)

Capital
and largest city
London
51°30′N 0°7′W / 51.500°N 0.117°W / 51.500; -0.117
Official language
and national language
Regional and minority languages[b]
Ethnic groups
(2011)
Demonym(s)
Constituent countries
GovernmentUnitary[e] parliamentary constitutional monarchy
• Monarch
Charles III
Rishi Sunak
LegislatureParliament
• Upper house
House of Lords
• Lower house
House of Commons
Formation
1535 and 1542
24 March 1603
22 July 1706
1 May 1707
1 January 1801
5 December 1922
Area
• Total
243,610 km2 (94,060 sq mi)[7][8][9] (78th)
• Water (%)
1.51 (2015)[10]
Population
• 2022 estimate
Neutral decrease 66,971,411[11] (22nd)
• 2011 census
63,182,178[12] (22nd)
• Density
270.7/km2 (701.1/sq mi) (50th)
GDP (PPP)2023 estimate
• Total
Increase $3.872 trillion[13] (9th)
• Per capita
Increase $56,836[13] (30th)
GDP (nominal)2023 estimate
• Total
Increase $3.332 trillion[13] (6th)
• Per capita
Increase $48,913[13] (23rd)
Gini (2020)Positive decrease 35.5[14]
medium
HDI (2021)Increase 0.929[15]
very high · 18th
CurrencyPound sterling[f] (GBP)
Time zoneUTC+0 (Greenwich Mean Time, WET)
• Summer (DST)
UTC+1 (British Summer Time, WEST)
[g]
Date format
  • dd/mm/yyyy
  • yyyy-mm-dd (AD)
Driving sideleft[h]
Calling code+44[i]
ISO 3166 codeGB
Internet TLD.uk[j]

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain,[k][16] is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland.[17] It comprises England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.[l][18] It includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland, and most of the smaller islands within the British Isles.[19] Northern Ireland shares a land border with the Republic of Ireland; otherwise, the United Kingdom is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel, the Celtic Sea and the Irish Sea. The total area of the United Kingdom is 94,060 square miles (243,610 km2),[20][21] with an estimated 2022 population of nearly 67 million people.

The United Kingdom has evolved from a series of annexations, unions and separations of constituent countries over several hundred years. The Treaty of Union between the Kingdom of England (which included Wales) and the Kingdom of Scotland in 1707 resulted in their unification to become the Kingdom of Great Britain. Its union in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland created the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Most of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, which formally adopted its name in 1927.[m] The nearby Isle of Man, Guernsey and Jersey are not part of the UK, being Crown Dependencies, but the British government is responsible for their defence and international representation.[22]

The UK became the first industrialised country and was the world's foremost power for the majority of the 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly during the "Pax Britannica" between 1815 and 1914.[23][24] The British Empire, at its height in the 1920s, encompassed almost a quarter of the world's landmass and population, and was the largest empire in history; however, its involvement in the First World War and the Second World War damaged Britain's economic power and a global wave of decolonisation led to the independence of most British colonies.[25][26][27] British influence can be observed in the legal and political systems of many of its former colonies, and the UK's culture remains globally influential, particularly in literature, language, music and sport. English is the world's most widely spoken language and the third-most spoken native language.[28]

The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy.[n][30] The capital and largest city of the United Kingdom (as well as the capital of England) is London. The cities of Edinburgh, Cardiff, and Belfast are respectively the national capitals of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Other major cities include Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow, and Leeds.[31] The UK consists of three distinct legal jurisdictions: England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. This is due to these areas retaining their existing legal systems even after joining the UK.[32] Since 1998, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland also have their own devolved governments and legislatures, each with varying powers.[33]

The UK has the world's sixth-largest economy by nominal gross domestic product (GDP), and the ninth-largest by purchasing power parity. It is a recognised nuclear state and is ranked fourth globally in military expenditure.[34][35] The UK has been a permanent member of the UN Security Council since its first session in 1946. It is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, the Council of Europe, the G7, the OECD, NATO, the Five Eyes, AUKUS and the CPTPP.

  1. ^ Berry, Ciara (15 January 2016). "National Anthem". The Royal Family. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
  2. ^ "List of declarations made with respect to treaty No. 148". Council of Europe. Archived from the original on 12 December 2013. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
  3. ^ "Welsh language on GOV.UK – Content design: planning, writing and managing content – Guidance". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 3 August 2018.; "Welsh language scheme". GOV.UK. Retrieved 3 August 2018.; "Welsh language scheme". GOV.UK. Retrieved 3 August 2018.
  4. ^ Bradbury, Jonathan (2021). Constitutional Policy and Territorial Politics in the UK: Volume 1: Union and Devolution 1997–2012. Policy Press. pp. 19–20. ISBN 978-1-5292-0588-6.
  5. ^ Leith, Murray Stewart (2012). Political Discourse and National Identity in Scotland. Edinburgh University Press. p. 39. ISBN 978-0-7486-8862-3.
  6. ^ Gagnon, Alain-G.; Tully, James (2001). Multinational Democracies. Cambridge University Press. p. 47. ISBN 978-0-521-80473-8.; Bogdanor, Vernon (1998). "Devolution: the Constitutional Aspects". In Beatson, Jack (ed.). Constitutional Reform in the United Kingdom: Practice and Principles. Oxford: Hart Publishing. p. 18. ISBN 978-1-901362-84-8.
  7. ^ Demographic Yearbook – Table 3: Population by sex, rate of population increase, surface area and density (PDF) (Report). United Nations Statistics Division. 2012. Retrieved 9 August 2015.
  8. ^ "United Kingdom". Central Intelligence Agency. 27 February 2023. Archived from the original on 10 January 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2023 – via CIA.gov.
  9. ^ "United Kingdom country profile". BBC News. 24 February 2020. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  10. ^ "Surface water and surface water change". Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Retrieved 11 October 2021.
  11. ^ "Population, total - United Kingdom". World Bank Open Data. Retrieved 18 September 2023.
  12. ^ "2011 UK censuses". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
  13. ^ a b c d "World Economic Outlook Database, October 2023 Edition. (UK)". International Monetary Fund. 10 October 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
  14. ^ "Inequality – Income inequality". us.oecd.org. OECD. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
  15. ^ "Human Development Report 2021/2022" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
  16. ^ "Great Britain | island, Europe". Encyclopedia Britannica. 2 April 2023.
  17. ^ United Kingdom Permanent Committee on Geographical Names (May 2017). "Toponymic guidelines for the United Kingdom". GOV.UK. 10.2 Definitions. usually shortened to United Kingdom ... The abbreviation is UK or U.K.; "United Kingdom". Encyclopedia Britannica. 27 May 2023.
  18. ^ "Countries within a country". Prime Minister's Office. 10 January 2003. Archived from the original on 9 September 2008. Retrieved 8 March 2015.
  19. ^ "Definition of Great Britain in English". Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 29 October 2014. Great Britain is the name for the island that comprises England, Scotland and Wales, although the term is also used loosely to refer to the United Kingdom.
  20. ^ "United Kingdom country profile". BBC News. 24 February 2020. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
  21. ^ "United Kingdom". Central Intelligence Agency. 27 February 2023. Archived from the original on 10 January 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2023 – via CIA.gov.
  22. ^ "Key facts about the United Kingdom". Directgov. Archived from the original on 15 October 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2015. The full title of this country is 'the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland'. Great Britain is made up of England, Scotland and Wales. The United Kingdom (UK) is made up of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. 'Britain' is used informally, usually meaning the United Kingdom.
    The Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are not part of the UK.
  23. ^ Mathias, P. (2001). The First Industrial Nation: the Economic History of Britain, 1700–1914. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-26672-7.; Ferguson, Niall (2004). Empire: The rise and demise of the British world order and the lessons for global power. New York: Basic Books. ISBN 978-0-465-02328-8.
  24. ^ McDougall, Walter A. (4 May 2023). "20th-century international relations". Britannica. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
  25. ^ Brown, Judith (1998). The Twentieth Century, The Oxford History of the British Empire Volume IV. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-924679-3. Archived from the original on 3 January 2014. Retrieved 22 July 2009. p. 319
  26. ^ Louis, Wm. Roger (2006). Ends of British Imperialism: The Scramble for Empire, Suez and Decolonization. I.B. Tauris. ISBN 978-1-84511-347-6. Archived from the original on 22 February 2017. Retrieved 22 July 2009. p. 337
  27. ^ Abernethy, David (2000). The Dynamics of Global Dominance, European Overseas Empires 1415–1980. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-09314-8. Archived from the original on 14 December 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2009. p. 146
  28. ^ "What are the top 200 most spoken languages?". Ethnologue. 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  29. ^ What is the UK Constitution?, The Constitution Unit of UCL, 9 August 2018, retrieved 6 February 2020
  30. ^ The British Monarchy, "What is constitutional monarchy?". Retrieved 17 July 2013; "United Kingdom" CIA The World Factbook. Retrieved 17 July 2013
  31. ^ "Population of Cities in United Kingdom 2023". World Population Review. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
  32. ^ Dewart, Megan (2019). The Scottish Legal System. UK: Bloomsbury Academic. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-5265-0633-7. The laws and legal institutions of Scotland and of England and Wales were not merged by the Union of 1707. Thus, they remain separate 'law areas', with separate court systems (as does Northern Ireland), and it is necessary to distinguish Scots law and English law (and Northern Irish law).; "The justice system and the constitution". Courts and Tribunals Judiciary. Archived from the original on 21 May 2023. Retrieved 13 June 2023. The United Kingdom has three separate legal systems; one each for England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. This reflects its historical origins and the fact that both Scotland and Ireland, and later Northern Ireland, retained their own legal systems and traditions under the Acts of Union 1707 and 1800.
  33. ^ "Devolution of powers to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland". United Kingdom Government. Retrieved 17 April 2013. In a similar way to how the government is formed from members from the two Houses of Parliament, members of the devolved legislatures nominate ministers from among themselves to comprise executives, known as the devolved administrations...; "Country Overviews: United Kingdom". Transport Research Knowledge Centre. Archived from the original on 4 April 2010. Retrieved 28 March 2010.
  34. ^ "IISS Military Balance 2021". The Military Balance. 121 (1): 23–29. January 2021. doi:10.1080/04597222.2021.1868791. S2CID 232050862. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
  35. ^ da Silva, Diego Lopes; Tian, Nan; Béraud-Sudreau, Lucie; Marksteiner, Alexandra; Liang, Xiao (April 2022). Trends in World Military Expenditure, 2021 (fact sheet). SIPRI. doi:10.55163/DZJD8826. S2CID 248305949.


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