It should not be surprising that most Americans do not have a common understanding of the terms used to describe that batch of islands separated from mainland Europe by the English Chanel. England, Britain, United Kingdom, British Isles, Great Britain – are they different names for the same place? The confusion becomes evident when a person decides to look up information about travel to England. They go to a research website like the CIA FactBook and scan through the list of world countries looking for England to find it does not exist in the list. Hmmm…. of course, England is a country! Try Britain – not there! Great Britain – not there! And then all the way at the bottom of the alphabetic list of world countries is United Kingdom. Next, let’s look up the currency exchange rate. Scan the list of world currencies for United Kingdom – not there! Must be Great Britain – not there! England – not there! Oh, there it is under British Pound.
Let’s see if we can make sense of this. England has been around as a country since the 10th century. England is located on an island that today is known as Great Britain – Britain for short. Two other countries share the island – Wales and Scotland. England joined with Wales in the year 1536 and with Scotland in 1707 to form the political union called Great Britain. And then in 1801 Ireland was added to the union and it became known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Throughout the 1800’s the maritime and economic influence of this powerful union spread around the world, and about one fourth of the world became known as the British Empire.
In 1921 fierce disagreement within Ireland led to the six northern counties becoming known as Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland remained a part of the United Kingdom, but Ireland did not. So, today the formal name of the nation is The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The more familiar shortened name is United Kingdom and the common abbreviation is UK. The UK is a member of the European Union (EU) but does not participate in the economic and monetary activities of the EU. This is why the currency of the UK remains the Great Britain Pound (GBP) and not the Euro as is used in most other European nations.
To make a potentially long story short, the island of Great Britain, often called just Britain, includes the countries of England, Scotland and Wales. Those three countries, Great Britain, unite with Northern Ireland to become the actual nation which is known as The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland or the UK.
Thousand of American tourists arrive in the UK daily. First timers to the UK might consider a guided, escorted tour to be able to see as much as possible under the care and guidance of those who know their country best. Travelers who prefer not to be part of a group may want to consider a flexible independent travel plan, one where they tour about on their own but with the occasional guidance of a local host. Another option is to rent a car and self-drive through the countryside staying at country homes, B&B’s or village inns. Of course driving in the UK one must constantly remember to stay on the “wrong” side of the road. My greatest challenges while driving in the UK were going around the rotaries (traffic circles) in the opposite direction of that in the USA, and making turns onto split-lane, dual highways. London city driving is not recommended for American tourists.
Are you ready to go to the UK?
May All of Your Travels Be Happy and Safe!