Great Britain
Island northwest of continental Europe / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Great Britain?
Summarize this article for a 10 years old
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe. With an area of 209,331 km2 (80,823 sq mi), it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world.[6][note 1] It is dominated by a maritime climate with narrow temperature differences between seasons. The 60% smaller island of Ireland is to the west—these islands, along with over 1,000 smaller surrounding islands and named substantial rocks, form the British Isles archipelago.[8]
Other native names
| |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
.svg) | |
| Geography | |
| Location | North-western Europe |
| Coordinates | 54°N 2°W |
| Archipelago | British Isles |
| Adjacent to | Atlantic Ocean |
| Area | 209,331 km2 (80,823 sq mi)[1] |
| Area rank | 9th |
| Highest elevation | 1,345 m (4413 ft) |
| Highest point | Ben Nevis[2] |
| Administration | |
| Countries | |
| Largest city | London (pop. 8,878,892) |
| Demographics | |
| Population | 60,800,000 (2011 census)[3] |
| Population rank | 3rd |
| Pop. density | 302/km2 (782/sq mi) |
| Languages | |
| Ethnic groups | |
| Additional information | |
| Time zone | |
| • Summer (DST) | |
Connected to mainland Europe until 9,000 years ago by a landbridge now known as Doggerland,[9] Great Britain has been inhabited by modern humans for around 30,000 years. In 2011, it had a population of about 61 million, making it the world's third-most-populous island after Java in Indonesia and Honshu in Japan.[10][11]
The term "Great Britain" can also refer to the political territory of England, Scotland and Wales, which includes their offshore islands.[12] This territory and Northern Ireland constitute the United Kingdom.[13] The single Kingdom of Great Britain resulted from the 1707 Acts of Union between the kingdoms of England (which at the time incorporated Wales) and Scotland.