chapter2(1)

Chapter2

Geography of the United Kingdom

Dr. Carol W. Pollard

Revision

?Some important terms: Rationalism, Idealism,

? a priori, a posteriori, the Renaissance, the Age

?of Enlightenment, Romanticism, Existentialism,

?Positivism, Pragmatism

?Three Phases of Western Civilization:

?Antiquity ; The Middle Ages (the Medieval Period) ; The Modern Age

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

?Geographically:

?located on the British Isles: the main island, Britain, containing England, Wales, and Scotland; part of the Irish Island; and a host of nearby smaller island

?Politically:

?The UK consists of the separate entities of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, as well ad the many islands around Britain and the few remnants of the British Empire

Map of Great Britain

the British Isles: 1. the main island-Britain 2. part of the Irish island 3. a host of nearby islands

General Characteristics of the United Kingdom

https://www.360docs.net/doc/8118464248.html,nd Area: 242,000 sq km 79

2. Climate: remarkably mild

3.Mountains:not very high by world standard

Ben Nevis(本尼维斯山) in Scotland

4. Population: aging and densely populated areas in Europe

5.Transportation: a. the Chunnel b. right-hand driver's seat

?

Scotland

?Population: over 5 million people

?Area: nearly 80,000 sq km

?Language: Caelic; Official Language: English

?Main Region: 1. the High lands and western isles;

? 2. the Lowlands; 3. the Southern Uplands Capital: Edinburgh All in all, the Highlands and Western Isles and the Southern Uplands main in agriculture, and the lowlands in industry, esp, the heavy industry. The former two regions are not developed, but the lowland is very developed

Northern Ireland

People: most live in Belfast and Derry

Capital: Belfast

Land and Resources: its geology is very similar with that of Scotland

Wales

Language: Cymru

People: nearly 3 million

Area: 20764 sq km land of mountain

Major source: Welsh slate

England

Population: 46,220,955

Arear: 130,836 sq km

Main regions: the Pennines，the Lake District

the Vale of Eden, Lowland of Central England, Southern Uplands, and South and So

Important Terms

The British Isles

The Chunnel

The Lake District

Hedgerows

The Fen Region

London Basin

?Questions：

? 1. In what ways has water been important to the UK?

? 2. The Welsh, Scottish, and Irish peoples have a "Celtic" culture in common. In what ways are their regions similar and dissimilar?

? 3.What geographic features aided the growth of Britain's industries?

? 4. How is the Uk linked to Europe?

Revision

The full name of Britain is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and the North Ireland. When people refer to this country, they often use different names, such as Britain, Great Britain, England, United Kingdom or U.K.

that located to the northwest of mainland Europe. It is made up of many small islands collectively known as Britain Isles(不列颠群岛)，covering an area of 242,910 square kilometers. The island of Britain accounts for more than 90% of the whole island, that's why the country also know as Great Britain. It is geographically and historically divided into three parts:England,Scoland and Wales. The Ireland is divided into two parts: Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland. Northern Ireland is part of Britain, while Republic of Ireland is a independent country.

英国的全称为大不列颠及北爱尔兰联合王国。当人们提及这个国家，通常用各种各样的名称，如不列颠、大不列颠、英格兰、联合王国或直接用其缩写U.K.处于欧洲大陆西北部，由被统称为不列颠群岛的众多小岛组成，总面积242，910平方千米，占英国国土的百分之九十多，这也是英国被称为大不列颠的原因。在地理上和历史上，英国被分为三部分：英格兰，苏格兰和威尔士。爱尔兰被分为两部分，及北爱尔兰和爱尔兰共和国。北爱尔兰属于英国的一部分，而爱尔兰共和国是一个独立的国家。

England

England is the largest part of Britain, located in the south of the island, with Wales to the west and Scotland to the north. It has an area of 130,410 square kilometers and covers nearly 60% of the whole island. The River Thames, the second longest river and the most important river of England, originates in southwest England, flow through the Midlands of England to London and empties into the North Sea. England is the most populous and wealthiest of the country, so people sometimes refer to the whole country as England, a name that people of Scotland, Wales and Ireland don't like very much. It is highly urbanized with 80% of the population living in cities. London,

the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, located in southeast England.

?

英格兰位于不列颠群岛的南部，北临苏格兰，西面威尔士，面积最大，达到130，410平方千米，几乎占不列颠群岛的百分之六十。泰晤士河是英格兰最长也是最重要的河流，它发源于英格兰西南部，流经英格兰中部到伦敦，最后汇入北海。英格兰是英国人口最稠密的地区，也是最富裕的地区，基于此，人们有时候把英国叫做英格兰。但苏格兰人、威尔士人和爱尔兰人都不大喜欢这个名字。它高度城市化，百分之八十是城市人口。伦敦位于英格兰东南部，是英格兰的行政中心也是英国的首都。

Scotland, with an area of 78,789 square kilometers, occupies the north portion of the Britain. It is the second largest of the four consistituent parts of the United Kingdom, both in population and in area. The Clyde River is the most important river of Scotland. Edinburgh(爱丁堡)is the capital of Scotland. Tourism is on e of the most important industry of Scotland. Tourists from all over the world come to enjoy the beauty of Scottish scenery, to drink Scotch Whisky, to see Scotsmen wearing kilts(苏格兰方格呢短裙) and playing bagpipes（风笛）.

苏格兰位于不列颠群岛的北部，面积78，789平方千米，人口数量和面积均排名第二。克莱德河是苏格兰最重要的河流。爱丁堡是苏格兰的行政中心。旅游业是当地最重要的工业之一。来自世界各地的游客观赏苏格兰风景，喝苏格兰的威士忌，看苏格兰人身穿苏格兰方格呢短裙演奏风笛，别有一番乐趣。

Wales

Wales is very close to the most densely populated parts of central England, with an entire area of about 20,758 square kilometers. It's capital is Cardiff(加的夫).The longest river of Britain, the Severn River, which is 354 kilometers long, originates in mid-Wales, flow through the Bristol Channel. Wales has been dominated by England longer than the other parts of Britain. However,it retains a powerful sense of its differed from England. It's own language, Welsh is spoken by 20% of the population, much more than those who speak Gaelic(盖尔语)in Scotland and Ireland.

威尔士总面积20，758平方千米，非常接近英格兰中心人口稠密地区。它的行政中心是加的夫，拥有英国境内最长的河流——塞文河。塞文河长达354千米，发源于威尔士中部，流经布鲁斯特海峡。历史上，威尔士是英格兰统治最久的地区。然而，它仍保留着一股与英格兰截然不同的风格。大约20%的人口讲威尔士语，比在苏格兰和爱尔兰讲盖尔语的总人数还要多。

Northern Ireland is the smallest of the four regions, both in population and in area. It has an area of 14,144 square kilometers and occupies the northern one sixth of the island. It's capital is Belfast(贝尔法斯特).Lough Neagh(讷湖)，the largest lake of Britain, is located in Northern Ireland. Although Northern Ireland is the smallest region, it is quite significant partly because of the political troubles there

北爱尔兰面积最小，为14，144平方千米，占岛屿北部面积的六分之一。它的行政中心是贝尔法斯特。讷湖位于北爱尔兰，是英国境内最大的湖。尽管北爱尔兰面积最小，但它却是英国极其特殊的一部分，这主要归因于那儿发生的政治事件。