Largest Islands of United Kingdom

Geography

The British Isles lie at the juncture of several regions with past episodes of tectonic mountain building. These orogenic belts form a complex geology that records a huge and varied span of Earth's history. Of particular note was the Caledonian orogeny during the Ordovician and early Silurian periods, when the craton Baltica collided with the terrane Avalonia to form the mountains and hills in northern Britain and Ireland. Baltica formed roughly the north-western half of Ireland and Scotland. Further collisions caused the Variscan orogeny in the Devonian and Carboniferous periods, forming the hills of Munster, south-west England, and southern Wales.

History

2.5 million years ago, the British Isles were repeatedly submerged beneath an ice sheet that extended into the middle of the North Sea, with a larger ice sheet that covered a significant proportion of Scandinavia on the opposite side. Around 1.9 million years ago, these two ice sheets frequently merged, essentially creating a land bridge between Scandinavia and northern Great Britain. Further south was a direct land bridge, now known as Doggerland, which was gradually submerged as sea levels rose. However, the Irish Sea was formed before Doggerland was completely covered in water, with Ireland becoming an island roughly 6,000 years before Great Britain did.

Demographics

England has a generally high population density, with almost 80% of the total population of the islands. Elsewhere in Great Britain and Ireland, high density of population is limited to areas around a few large cities. The largest urban area by far is the Greater London Built-up Area with 9 million inhabitants. Other major population centres include the Greater Manchester Built-up Area (2.4 million), West Midlands conurbation (2.4 million) and West Yorkshire Urban Area (1.6 million) in England, Greater Glasgow (1.2 million) in Scotland and Greater Dublin Area (1.9 million) in Ireland.

Geography

Great Britain lies on the European continental shelf, part of the Eurasian Plate and off the north-west coast of continental Europe, separated from this European mainland by the North Sea and by the English Channel, which narrows to 34 km (18 nmi; 21 mi) at the Straits of Dover. It stretches over about ten degrees of latitude on its longer, north–south axis and covers 209,331 km2 (80,823 sq mi), excluding the much smaller surrounding islands. The North Channel, Irish Sea, St George's Channel and Celtic Sea separate the island from the island of Ireland to its west. The island is since 1993 joined, via one structure, with continental Europe: the Channel Tunnel, the longest undersea rail tunnel in the world.

History

The oldest evidence for archaic humans in Britain are the Happisburgh footprints and associated stone tools found in Norfolk, dating to around 950–850,000 years ago. Prior to 450,000 years ago, Britain formed a peninsular extension of mainland Europe until catastrophic flooding between then and 130,000 years ago resulted in the creation of the English Channel and Britain becoming an island during warm interglacial periods like the Last Interglacial/Eemian (130–115,000 years ago), though it remained connected to mainland Europe during glacial periods when sea levels were low. Archaic humans repeatedly occupied Britain before abandoning the area during cooler periods.

Demographics

London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom as a whole, and is the seat of the United Kingdom's government. Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, and is the seat of the Scottish Government as well as the highest courts in Scotland. The Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Cardiff is the capital city of Wales, and is the seat of the Welsh Government.

All the modern Brythonic languages (Breton, Cornish, Welsh) are generally considered to derive from a common ancestral language termed Brittonic, British, Common Brythonic, Old Brythonic or Proto-Brythonic, which is thought to have developed from Proto-Celtic or early Insular Celtic by the 6th century AD.

Geography

Ireland is located in the north-west of Europe, between latitudes 51° and 56° N, and longitudes 11° and 5° W. The island is separated from Great Britain by the Irish Sea and the North Channel, which has a width of 23 kilometres (14 mi) at its narrowest point. To the west is the northern Atlantic Ocean and to the south is the Celtic Sea, which lies between Ireland and Brittany, in France. Ireland has a total area of 84,421 km2 (32,595 mi2), of which the Republic of Ireland occupies 83 percent. Ireland and Great Britain, together with many nearby smaller islands, are known collectively as the British Isles. As the term British Isles can be controversial in relation to Ireland, the alternate term Britain and Ireland is sometimes used as a neutral term for the islands.

History

During the last glacial period, much of Ireland was periodically covered by ice sheets. The relative sea level was less than 50 m lower, resulting in an ice bridge rather than a land bridge forming between Ireland and Great Britain. By 14,000 BC this ice bridge existed only between Northern Ireland and Scotland and by 12,000 BC Ireland was completely separated from Great Britain. Later, around 6,100 BC, Great Britain became separated from continental Europe. Until recently, the earliest evidence of human activity in Ireland was dated at 12,500 years ago, demonstrated by a butchered bear bone found in a cave in County Clare.

Demographics

The population of Ireland is just over 7 million, of which approximately 5.1 million reside in the Republic of Ireland and 1.9 million reside in Northern Ireland.

People have lived in Ireland for over 9,000 years. Early historical and genealogical records note the existence of major groups such as the Cruthin, Corcu Loígde, Dál Riata, Dáirine, Deirgtine, Delbhna, Érainn, Laigin, Ulaid. Later major groups included the Connachta, Ciannachta, Eóganachta. Smaller groups included the aithechthúatha (see Attacotti), Cálraighe, Cíarraige, Conmaicne, Dartraighe, Déisi, Éile, Fir Bolg, Fortuatha, Gailenga, Gamanraige, Mairtine, Múscraige, Partraige, Soghain, Uaithni, Uí Maine, Uí Liatháin. Many survived into late medieval times, others vanished as they became politically unimportant.

Economy

The GDP of the Republic of Ireland as of 2021 was €423.5 billion (nominal), and in Northern Ireland in 2021, it was £52 billion (GVA Balanced). The GDP per capita in the Republic of Ireland was €84,049.9 (nominal) as of 2021, and in Northern Ireland 2021 was £27,154 (GVA Balanced). The Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom measure these numbers differently.

Despite the two jurisdictions using two distinct currencies (the euro and pound sterling), a growing amount of commercial activity is carried out on an all-Ireland basis.

Geography

The archipelago is about 500 kilometres (310 mi) south of the Maldives, 1,880 kilometres (1,170 mi) east of the Seychelles, 1,680 kilometres (1,040 mi) north-east of Rodrigues Island (Mauritius), 2,700 kilometres (1,700 mi) west of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and 3,400 kilometres (2,100 mi) north of Amsterdam Island (France).

The land area of the islands is 56.1 km2 (21.7 sq mi), the largest island, Diego Garcia, having an area of 32.5 km2 (12.5 sq mi). The total area, including lagoons within atolls, is more than 15,000 km2 (5,800 sq mi), of which 12,642 km2 (4,881 sq mi) are accounted by the Great Chagos Bank, the largest acknowledged atoll structure of the world (the completely submerged Saya de Malha Bank is larger, but its status as an atoll is uncertain).

History

According to Southern Maldivian oral tradition, local traders and fishermen were occasionally lost at sea and became stranded in one of the islands of the Chagos. Eventually they were rescued and brought back home. However, these islands were judged to be too far away from the Maldives to be settled permanently by Maldivians. Thus, for many centuries, the Chagos were ignored by their northern neighbours.

The first Europeans to become aware of the archipelago were Portuguese explorers. Although the Portuguese navigator Pedro de Mascarenhas (1470 – 23 June 1555) is credited with having encountered the islands during his voyage of 1512–13, there is little corroborative evidence; cartographic analysis points to 1532 or later.

Ecology

The Chagos, together with the Maldives and Lakshadweep, forms the Maldives–Lakshadweep–Chagos Archipelago tropical moist forests terrestrial ecoregion. The islands and their surrounding waters are a vast oceanic Environment Preservation and Protection Zone (EPPZ) (Fisheries Conservation and Management Zone (FCMZ) of 544,000 square kilometres (210,000 sq mi)), an area twice the size of the UK's land surface.

The deep oceanic waters around the Chagos Islands, out to the 200 nautical mile limit, include an exceptional diversity of undersea geological features (such as 6000 m deep trenches, oceanic ridges, and sea mounts). These areas almost certainly harbour many undiscovered and specially adapted species.

Geography

The northernmost of the South Sandwich Islands form the Traversay Islands and Candlemas Islands groups, while the southernmost make up Southern Thule. The three largest islands – Saunders, Montagu, and Bristol – lie between the two. The islands’ highest point is Mount Belinda (1,370 m or 4,495 ft) on Montagu Island. The fourth highest peak, Mount Michael (990 m or 3,248 ft) on Saunders Island has a persistent lava lake, known to occur at only eight volcanoes in the world.

The South Sandwich Islands are uninhabited, although an illegal permanently staffed Argentine research station was located on Thule Island from 1976 to 1982 (for details, see § History above). Automatic weather stations are on Thule Island and Zavodovski.

History

The southern eight islands of the South Sandwich Islands were discovered by Captain James Cook in 1775 during his second voyage aboard HMS Resolution. On 31 January, Cook described sighting "three rocky islots of considerable height," naming the outermost "Freezland Peak" after the sailor who first spotted it. He named the area "Sandwich Land" in honor of John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, then First Lord of the Admiralty. The designation "South" was later added to distinguish these islands from the "Sandwich Islands," now known as Hawaii.

Geography

The islands form an archipelago whose major islands are Lewis and Harris, North Uist, Benbecula, South Uist, and Barra. Lewis and Harris has an area of 2,178.98 square kilometres (841 sq mi) and is the largest island in Scotland and the third-largest in the British Isles, after Great Britain and Ireland. It incorporates Lewis in the north and Harris in the south, both of which are frequently referred to as individual islands, although they are connected by land. The island does not have a single name in either English or Gaelic, and is referred to as "Lewis and Harris", "Lewis with Harris", "Harris with Lewis" etc.

The largest islands are deeply indented by arms of the sea such as Loch Ròg, Loch Seaforth and Loch nam Madadh.

History

In Scotland, the Celtic Iron Age way of life, often troubled but never extinguished by Rome, re-asserted itself when the legions abandoned any permanent occupation in 211 AD. Hanson (2003) writes: "For many years it has been almost axiomatic in studies of the period that the Roman conquest must have had some major medium or long-term impact on Scotland. On present evidence that cannot be substantiated either in terms of environment, economy, or, indeed, society. The impact appears to have been very limited. The general picture remains one of broad continuity, not of disruption... The Roman presence in Scotland was little more than a series of brief interludes within a longer continuum of indigenous development."

Geology

Most of the islands have a bedrock formed from Lewisian gneiss. These are amongst the oldest rocks in Europe, having been formed in the Precambrian period up to three billion years ago. In addition to the Outer Hebrides, they form basement deposits on the Scottish mainland west of the Moine Thrust and on the islands of Coll and Tiree. These rocks are largely igneous in origin, mixed with metamorphosed marble, quartzite and mica schist and intruded by later basaltic dykes and granite magma. The gneiss's delicate pink colours are exposed throughout the islands and it is sometimes referred to by geologists as "The Old Boy".

Granite intrusions are found in the parish of Barvas in west Lewis, and another forms the summit plateau of the mountain Roineabhal in Harris.

Climate

The Outer Hebrides have a cool temperate climate that is remarkably mild and steady for such a northerly latitude, due to the influence of the North Atlantic Current. The average temperature is 6 °C (44 °F) in January and 14 °C (57 °F) in summer. The average annual rainfall in Lewis is 1,100 millimetres (43 in) and sunshine hours range from 1,100 to 1,200 per year. The summer days are relatively long and May to August is the driest period. Winds are a key feature of the climate and even in summer there are almost constant breezes.

Geography and geology

Shetland is around 106 miles (170 kilometres) north of Great Britain and 143 mi (230 km) west of Bergen, Norway. It covers an area of 567 sq mi (1,468 km2) and has a coastline 1,679 mi (2,702 km) long.

Lerwick, the capital and largest settlement, has a population of 6,958. About half of the archipelago's total population of 22,920 people live within 10 mi (16 km) of the town.

Scalloway on the west coast, which was the capital until 1708, has a population of fewer than 1,000 people.

Only 16 of about 100 islands are inhabited. The main island of the group is known as Mainland. The next largest are Yell, Unst, and Fetlar, which lie to the north, and Bressay and Whalsay, which lie to the east.

History

The expanding population of Scandinavia led to a shortage of available resources and arable land there and led to a period of Viking expansion, so the Norse gradually shifted their attention from plundering to invasion. Shetland was colonised during the late 8th and 9th centuries, the fate of the existing indigenous Pictish population being uncertain. Modern Shetlanders still retain the Norse DNA with many family trees showing the Norse patronymic system (-sson/son, -dottir/daughter). Modern DNA studies such as the Viking Health Study are considered to be severely flawed as they account for only a tiny fraction of the population.

Vikings used the islands as a base for pirate expeditions to Norway and the coasts of mainland Scotland.

Economy

Today, the main revenue producers in Shetland are agriculture, aquaculture, fishing, renewable energy, the petroleum industry (crude oil and natural gas production), the creative industries and tourism. Unst also has a rocket launch site called SaxaVord Spaceport (previously known as Shetland Space Centre). A February 2021 news item indicated that a rocket manufacturer from Germany, HyImpulse Technologies, planned to launch spacecraft powered by hydrogen from the Spaceport, starting in 2023. During the previous month, the Space Centre had filed plans with Council for a "satellite launch facility and associated infrastructure".

Geography

East Falkland, which has an area of 6,605 km2 (2,550 square miles), a little over half the total area of the islands consists of two land masses of approximately equal size. The island is almost bisected by two deep fjords, Choiseul Sound and Brenton Loch-Grantham Sound, which are separated by the 2.2 kilometres (1.4 mi) wide isthmus that connects Lafonia in the south to the northern part of East Falkland. The island's 1,670 km (1,040-mile) coastline has many smaller bays, inlets and headlands.

The northern part of the island, apart from the coastal strip bordering the Choiseul Sound, is largely underlain by Palaeozoic rocks in the form of quartzite and slate, which tend to form rugged landscapes and coastlines and to cause the soil to be poor and acidic.

History

The first permanent settlement on East Falkland began with Louis de Bougainville establishing Port Louis on Berkeley Sound in 1764. The French settlement included a number of Bretons, and the islands became known as "Îles Malouines" (the islands of St Malo), later Hispanicised as "Islas Malvinas". For years, Port Louis was the main settlement, not only on East Falkland, but the entire archipelago and a subject of controversy.

In October 1820, Colonel David Jewett sought shelter in the islands after his ship, the frigate Heroina, was damaged in a storm. Jewett was an American privateer employed as captain by the Buenos Aires businessman Patrick Lynch, who had obtained a privateering licence for the ship from the Buenos Aires Supreme Director Jose Rondeau.

Economy

The main industries on the island are fishing, sheep farming, and tourism. Some oats are also grown, but due to high humidity and acidic soil, the land is mainly used for grazing.

As Stanley is the capital, and East Falkland is the most populous island, it performs an economic role as the hub of the archipelago. Many cruise ships now stop there.

A large economic role is also played by RAF Mount Pleasant, which has a number of British military personnel based there. Although these number a few hundred, their economic role in a population of under two thousand is significant.

Smaller industries include horse and cattle farming, and there is also recent evidence to suggest possible valuable mineral deposits on the island.

Geography and wildlife

West Falkland is hillier on the side closest to East Falkland. The principal mountain range, the Hornby Hills, runs parallel with Falkland Sound. Mount Adam, the highest hill in the islands, is 700 metres (2,300 ft) above sea level.

Formerly it was thought that Mount Robinson at 695 metres (2,280 ft) above sea level was the highest point. However, a later survey found that Mount Adam was higher. At this, the Argentines transferred the name Monte Independencia from Mount Robinson to Mount Adam.

The major industry on the island is sheep farming, while it is also known for its penguin and cormorant colonies. Fishing is also popular in the two main rivers, the Warrah and the Chartres.

In the 19th century as today, indigenous land fauna was very scanty.

History

Early explorers reported the remains of canoes on West Falkland but it is unclear whether it was a one way trip, or indeed if the canoes were not swept in from Patagonia.

"Wednesday this morning we weighed and stood unto an harbour on ye west side and there came to ane anchor and sent our boat on shoar for fresh water and did kill abundance of geese and ducks but as far as wood there is none."

Although Strong recorded a lack of wood in the area, driftwood frequently washes up on Falkland beaches. This may be accounted for by the sheltered nature of Bold Cove. Strong named Falkland Sound, which gave its name to all the islands.

While the first recorded landing on the main islands of the Falklands was on West Falkland, it was settled remarkably late.

Geography, climate and fauna

The island's climate is classified as ET or polar tundra climate by the Köppen-Geiger classification system. It has no tree cover, and there is generally snow on the island during the winter months (April–November). The terrain is mountainous, with a central ridge and many fjords and bays along the coast. South Georgia is a breeding ground for elephant seals, fur seals, and king penguins. The island is home to the South Georgia pintail and the South Georgia pipit, which are endemic to the island.

There are 25 native vascular plants on South Georgia, and 76 non-native species have been recorded.

The island's topography includes a stepped sequence of flat surfaces interpreted as wave-cut platforms formed when sea level was higher relative to the island.

History

The island of South Georgia was probably discovered in 1675 by Anthony de la Roché, a London merchant, and was named Roche Island on a number of early maps. It was sighted by a commercial Spanish ship named León operating out of Saint-Malo on 28 or 29 June 1756. According to Argentine and some Brazilian historians, it was explored on 29 June 1756, St Peter's Day, hence its Spanish and Portuguese names Isla San Pedro and Ilha São Pedro, literally 'St Peter's Island'.

The mariner Captain James Cook in HMS Resolution made the first landing, survey and mapping of South Georgia. As mandated by the Admiralty, on 17 January 1775 he took possession for Britain and renamed the island 'Isle of Georgia' for King George III.

Geography

Orkney is separated from the mainland of Scotland by the Pentland Firth, a ten-kilometre-wide (6 mi) seaway between Brough Ness on the island of South Ronaldsay and Duncansby Head in Caithness. Orkney lies between 58°41′ and 59°24′ north, and 2°22′ and 3°26′ west, measuring 80 kilometres (50 mi) from northeast to southwest and 47 kilometres (29 mi) from east to west, and covers 975 square kilometres (376 sq mi).

Orkney is separated from the Shetland Islands, a group further out, by a body of water called the Fair Isle Channel.

The islands are mainly low-lying except for some sharply rising sandstone hills on Mainland, Rousay and Hoy (where the tallest point in Orkney, Ward Hill, can be found) and rugged cliffs on some western coasts.

History

Late Upper Palaeolithic stone tools of the Ahrensburgian culture have been found in Stronsay and Brodgar on mainland Orkney, suggesting the islands have been inhabited around or prior to 8000 BC.

A charred hazelnut shell, recovered in 2007 during excavations in Tankerness on the Mainland, has been dated to 6820–6660 BC, indicating the presence of Mesolithic nomadic tribes. The earliest known permanent settlement is at Knap of Howar, a Neolithic farmstead on the island of Papa Westray, which dates from 3500 BC. The village of Skara Brae, Europe's best-preserved Neolithic settlement, is believed to have been inhabited from around 3100 BC. Other remains from that era include the Standing Stones of Stenness, the Maeshowe passage grave, the Ring of Brodgar and other standing stones.

Current demographics

In 2022 the census recorded a total population of 21,958 an increase of 2.85% since 2011 and of which 17,805 (81%) lived on the mainland.

The most numerous non-British residents were from Ireland (125 persons) and Poland (98 persons). 352 individuals were recorded as belonging to non-white ethnic groups of whom just over half were of Asian origin.

36% of the population identified as Christian, with 27% adhering to the Church of Scotland and 2.7% being Roman Catholic. Just under 2% professed to another religion of which the largest group was 197 individuals recorded as pagan. 62% of the population stated they had no religion or did not provide an answer to this question. The main language of all but 238 individuals over the age of 3 was either English or Scots.

Economy

The percentage of the Orkney population who are economically active is consistently higher than the Scottish average. In 2023 it was 89.8% compared to 77.9% for the latter, in which year average unemployment was 1.6%.

The soil of Orkney is generally very fertile and most of the land is taken up by farms, agriculture being by far the most important sector of the economy and providing employment for a quarter of the workforce according to a 2008 report.

History

The Virgin Islands were originally inhabited by the Arawak and Carib, many of whom are thought to have perished during the colonial period due to enslavement, foreign disease, and war brought about by European colonists.

European colonists later settled here and established sugar plantations and at least one tobacco plantation, and brought slaves from Africa. The descendants of the enslaved people remain the bulk of the population, sharing a common African-Caribbean heritage with the rest of the English-speaking Caribbean.

Like Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands that belonged to Spain were ceded to the United States in 1898. The United States took possession of the islands after the signing of the armistice that put an end to military operations in the Spanish–American War.

Demographics

The total population of the Virgin Islands is 147,778: 87,146 in the U.S. Virgin Islands, 31,758 in the British, and 11,119 in the Spanish. Roughly three-quarters of islanders are black in the British and U.S. Virgin Islands, while the majority of inhabitants in Culebra and Vieques are Puerto Rican of European descent, with a significant Afro-Puerto Rican community. The main languages are English and Virgin Islands Creole in the U.S. and British Virgin Islands, and Spanish in the Puerto Rican territory. St. Thomas is the most populous island, with St. Croix close behind (51,634 and 50,601, respectively).

Geography

The island is of volcanic origin, with a rugged cliff coastline. Unlike many other South Pacific islands, it is not surrounded by coral reefs that protect the coast. The only access to the island is via a small pier on Bounty Bay. Adamstown is the sole settlement.

Pawala Valley Ridge is the island's highest point at 346 m (1,135 ft) above sea level.

The volcanic soil and tropical climate with abundant rainfall make the soil productive.

The average temperature ranges from 19 to 24 °C (66 to 75 °F). The annual rainfall is 1,800 mm (71 in).