Britain is made up of three- countries: England, Scotland,
Wales and Ireland. Many
years ago these were separate countries, each with its own language and
government, but now they are united and English is spoken everywhere. Great Britain is the largest island in Europe. It is in the north-west of Europe.
country includes several small islands: the Is 313b17d le of Wight, the Scilly Isles (England), Anglesey (Wales)
and the island groups of the Hebrides, Orkneys and Shetlands (Scotland). The
Channel Islands in the English Channel and the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea are independent.
Ireland lies to the west of Great Britain. It is known as the
Emerald Isle because of the greenness of its countryside. Ireland is
shaped like a saucer, with mountains close to the coast and a flat plain in the
centre. It consists of two separate countries: Eire, or the Republic of Ireland
and Northern Ireland
Ulster (part of the U.K).
RIVERS AND LAKES
The most famous English river is the Thames.
It is 215 miles long. The Severn, the longest river in the United Kingdom,
is 240 miles long. Other important rivers are the Trent,
Mersey, Tyne, Tees, Forth and Clyde. Lakes can
be found in the north of England
(Lake District), in Scotland
and in Ulster.
The most beautiful lakes, like Loch Lomond and Loch Katrine, are in Scotland and the Lake
District, where the most famous are Windermere and Derwentwater.
British mountains are low; the highest, in Scotland, is Ben Nevis (4,406 ft/1343 m)
followed by Snowdon in Wales
Other ranges are the Grampians in Scotland and the Cambrian mountains in Wales, The
areas lie in
the north and west and constitute most of Scotland
The Pennine chain I is a region of low mountains
extending from the Cheviot Hills to the River
The British Isles are washed by the Atlantic Ocean to
the west, the North Sea to the north and east and the English
Channel to the south. The lrish Sea
separates Ireland from Great Britain.
no extreme contrasts in temperature in Britain because of the current of
flowing from the gulf of Mexico called the Gulf Stream.
The climate is mainly temperate with variations between the high- lands and the
lowlands: much of Scotland
is cool in summer and cold in winter compared with most of England.
Average British temperatures do not rise above
32°C in the summer and do not fall below -10°C in the winter.
Britain has a
reputation for being rainy; actually the total national rainfall average is
about 1,100 mm annually, March to June tend to be the driest months, September
to January the wettest, and drought conditions are infrequent, although they do
occur and can cause problems for agriculture.
The United Kingdom of Great Britain an Northern Ireland
is the full title of what is often referred to as the United Kingdom, or U .K, or Britain. These
are political names and include the countries of England,
Scotland and Wales (Great
Britain) and Northern
The Republic of Ireland
(Eire) is a separate country. The Channel
Islands and the Isle of Man are not part of the United Kingdom, either; they have
their own parliaments and legal systems although the British Government is
responsible for their defence and international relations.
Europe only the Netherlands
(Holland) has a higher density of population
speaking, the true Britons are descendents of the Celtic tribes who original1y
carne; from the Iberian peninsula and settled in the
western parts of the British Isles. The rest
of the population is generally considered Anglo- Saxon in origin.
Nowadays Britain is a
multiracial society. In fact, it has an
ethnic: minority population of about 2.58 million (in 1991) corresponding to
4.7% of the total population.
of these people were actually born in Britain.
immigrants originated from the Commonwealth countries, such as the West Indies, India
complete religious freedom in England
today, and a person can belong to any religion or none. Only the monarch must
belong to the Church of England.
of England, or Anglican Church, was founded in 1534, when king Henry VIII broke
away from the supremacy of Rome and declared himself head of the new Church.
The Monarch is the 'Supreme Governor' while the Archbishop of Canterbury is its
spiritual head. The Roman Catholic Church has a large following and there are a
number of so-called Free Churches, such as the Methodist, Baptist and Evangelist Churches.
community is the second largest in Europe.
Immigration into Britain during
the last fifty years has resulted in a substantial growth of non-Christian
communities. There are now about 1.5 million Muslims, 500,000 Sikhs and 300,000
1. Fill in the missmg words in the following
Britain is the largest island of the .......Isles
is a country in the south of Great Britain..... Wales is in the
......... and Scotland is in the ...........
3. The English Channel
separates Great Britain
4. Ulster is in
the north-east of......
5. The Thames
6. .........Ben Nevis, which is 4,406 ft
high, is in .......
7. The Isle of Wight is in the English
2. Complete the sentences with the correct
1. Great Britain
is separated from France....
the English Channel.
2. The British Isles ore washed.... the Atlantic Ocean
is... the north ....Great
is.... the west ....Great
5. The River Severn
6. The Isle of Man is... Great Britain and Ireland.
3. Insert the following adjectives in the superlative
form: famous, large, long, beautiful, high.
1. The Severn is the...... river in Great Britain.
2. The .........lakes are in Scotland.
3. Great Britain
is the ....... island in Europe.
4. The Thames is the ........ river in the British Isles.
5. Ben Nevis is the ......... mountain in Great Britain.