The general outline of the historical development of the British civilization

The population and the problem of national minorities in the United Kingdom. Languages spoken in the U.K.

It is incorrect to call the inhabitants of the UK the English. Only people outside the British Isles do so.

People of four main nationalities inhabit the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northem Ireland. They are: the English, the Scots, the Welsh and the Irish.

These four nationalities make up the British nation or the Britons.

The British is the nation, whose ancestors settled in the British Isles at different times.

The density of population in Great Britain is one of the highest in the world and the average number is 220 people per square kilometre. Four out of every five people in Britain live in numerous towns and cities. This means that the majority of the population is urban.

People of different races live in the UK. They usually represent inhabitants of the former British colonies. There are also many people of Asian, West Indian and African origin living in Britain.

Until recently, British politics tended to be dominated by England, but both Wales and Scotland now have their own political assemblies, as well as they are represented in the British Parliament.

In Ireland, the political situation is difficult because of nationalism and religious views of its people.

As for the language, British law does not recognize any language as official. And the English language is not the only language that is spoken in the UK. But English is the only language used in England for general official business.

The other national languages of the UK are Welsh, Irish Gaelic and Scottish Gaelic. It is so because Welsh, Scottish and Irish people feel their national identity very strongly and value their cultural heritage.

Wales is officially bilingual. In Wales the Welsh language is used alongside English. Welsh is treated by law as an equal to English. And in Scotland over 75,000 people speak Scottish Gaelic.

Standard English or the Queen’s English is the same English language, but it is called so because it is spoken by educated people in Britain.

Besides standard literary English there exist regional and social dialects. One of such dialects which is well-known all over the world is the dialect called Cockney. Cockney is spoken colloquially in London.

The general outline of the historical development of the British civilization.

The history of the formation of the United Kingdom is long and complex. England and Scotland have existed as separate sovereign and independent states with their own monarchs and political structures since the ninth century. The once independent Principality of Wales fell under the control of English monarchs from the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284. Under the Acts of Union 1707, England (including Wales) and Scotland, which had been in personal union since the Union of the Crowns in 1603, agreed to a political union in the form of a unifiedKingdom of Great Britain

of the nine counties of the province of Ulster remaining within the UK, which then changed to the current name in 1927 of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Following the establishment of the union Great Britain entered a long period of internal peace and stability which was accompanied by the breakdown of internal borders and the expansion of trade. England, while ceasing to exist as an independent political entity, has remained dominant in what is now the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Due to her geographic size and large population, the dominant political and economic influence in the UK stems from England. London has remained the capital city of the UK and has built upon its status as the economic and political centre of the UK. It is also one of the world's great cities.

Поиск по сайту: