Chapter 2: What is the UK? — Set 2

The Republic of Ireland is a separate independent state. It left the UK in the 1920s and is not part of it.

Shetland is Scotland's — and the UK's — most northerly island group, lying well north of the Scottish mainland.

Unlike the Isle of Man, the Isle of Wight is part of England. It sits just off the Hampshire coast.

Jersey, Guernsey and the smaller Channel Islands lie in the English Channel, much nearer to France than to England.

Several banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland issue their own banknotes. These notes are in pounds sterling and are accepted throughout the UK.

Since decimalisation, a pound has been made up of 100 pence, with coins ranging from 1p to £2.

England holds well over half of the UK population — roughly five out of every six people — far more than the other three countries combined.

Scottish Gaelic survives mainly in the Highlands and the Western Isles of Scotland, where road signs and broadcasting use it alongside English.

Ulster Scots is spoken in parts of Northern Ireland, reflecting historic links between Ulster and Scotland.

The UK is an island nation sitting off Europe's north-western edge, separated from the continent by the English Channel and the North Sea.

The Atlantic Ocean washes the UK's western coasts. The North Sea lies to the east and the English Channel to the south.

Trains run through the tunnel beneath the English Channel between Folkestone in England and Calais in France.

Stonehenge, a prehistoric ring of standing stones, is on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England.

Loch Ness is a deep freshwater lake in the Scottish Highlands, near Inverness.

Big Ben is the nickname of the Great Bell in the tower beside the Houses of Parliament. The tower itself is called the Elizabeth Tower.

William the Conqueror's fortress stands on the north bank of the River Thames in London, where it guarded the city from attack by water.

The Falkland Islands are a self-governing British Overseas Territory. The Isle of Man and Jersey are Crown Dependencies, and the Isle of Wight is part of England.

British Overseas Territories such as Bermuda and the Falkland Islands are under British sovereignty but are not part of the UK. They have their own governments and laws and are not represented by MPs in the UK Parliament.

The Union Flag combines the crosses of St George for England, St Andrew for Scotland and St Patrick for Ireland, so St George and St Patrick both feature in it. St David's cross does not appear in the flag, and St Piran is the patron saint of Cornwall, not of a UK country.

Scotland's flag, the Saltire, shows St Andrew's white diagonal cross against a sky-blue field.

A red dragon, an emblem linked with Wales for centuries, dominates the Welsh flag against a green and white background.

England's flag is the cross of St George: a plain red cross centred on a white background.

The Isle of Man sits in the middle of the Irish Sea, roughly midway between England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland.

Anglesey lies just off the north-west coast of Wales and is joined to the Welsh mainland by road and rail bridges.