The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK, or Britain) is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands. Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK with a land border, sharing it with the Republic of Ireland. Apart from this land border, the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel and the Irish Sea. The largest island, Great Britain, is linked to France by the Channel Tunnel. The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and unitary state consisting of four countries: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. It is governed by a parliamentary system with its seat of government in London, the capital, but with three devolved national administrations in Belfast, Cardiff and Edinburgh, the capitals of Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland respectively. The Channel Island bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey, and the Isle of Man are Crown Dependencies which means they are constitutionally tied to the British Monarch but are not part of the UK. The UK has fourteen overseas territories, all remnants of the British Empire, which at its height in 1922 encompassed almost a quarter of the world's land surface, the largest empire in history. British influence can still be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. (via Wikipedia)

About United Kingdom

Capital: London

Language: English (de facto)

As Of: Jan 1, 2007

Largest City: London

Population Density (sq mi): 637

GDP (nominal): $2.680 trillion

Time Zone: GMT

Area: 94526

GDP (per capita PPP) Rank: 7th
18th

Religion: Anglicanism
Anglican

GDP (nominal per capita): $43,733

GDP (nominal) Rank: 6th

GDP (nominal per capita) Rank: 20th

As of: Jan 1, 2008

Lower House: House of Commons

Upper House: House of Lords

Legislature: Parliament

Government type: Parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy

As of: Jan 1, 2008

ccTLD: .uk

Currency (code): GBP

Latitude: N

Currency: Pound sterling

Country Calling Code: 44

Longitude: W

Latitude (Minutes): 30

Longitude (Minutes): 7

Latitude (Degrees): 51

As of: Jan 1, 2005

HDI Rank: 21st

HDI: 0.947

Longitude (Degrees): 0

Gini: 34

Census Date: Jan 1, 2001

As Of: Jan 1, 2009

Ethnic groups: 0.4% Chinese
2.0% Black
0.4% Other
4.0% South Asian
92.1% White (mainly of British Isles descent, with minorities of other descent)
1.2% Mixed

Anthem: "God Save the Queen"

EU Accession: Jan 1, 1973

EU Seats: 78

Conventional Long Name: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Demonym: British or Briton

Name: the United Kingdom

Drives On: left

Total Population: 61,113,205

GDP (per capita PPP): $2.228 trillion