Country's Full Name: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; note - Great Britain includes England, Scotland, and Wales

Brief History: It is believed homoerectus lived in United Kingdom 700,000 years ago. 'Angles' tribesmen from Germany, Denmark and other places inhabited the place in 5th and 6th century AD naming the country - England. England has rich cultural history and has made great impact in world history. Although poor in natural resources it was the first industrialized country. England and Scotland merged to form a Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. Later Ireland became part of the union on 1801 and seceded in 1920 naming the country as United Kingdom of "Great Britain and Northern Ireland". British rein was established to one fourth of earth at one time. Today, England is the most populous and an important constituent of United Kingdom. United Kingdom still has a reigning monarch. The present Queen of United Kingdom is functionary head of state of many countries.

What is the country known for:
"English" language originated from this country. English is the current "vehicular language" for science, business and aviation.
The English common laws forms the guideline for many countries legal system
The "Westminster type of parliament" is followed by many democratic countries.

Main Industries:
Machine tools, electric power equipment, automation equipment, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, electronics and communications equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles, clothing, other consumer goods.

Agriculture - products: cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle, sheep, poultry; fish.

Main Trading Partners:
Exports partners (2006): US, Germany, France, Ireland, Netherlands, Belgium, Spain; Exports: $468.8 billion f.o.b.; Exports - commodities: manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food, beverages, tobacco

Imports partners (2006): Germany, US, France, Netherlands, China, Norway, Belgium; Imports: $603 billion f.o.b.; Imports - commodities: manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs

Major Cities: London (capital), Birmingham, Glasgow, Belfast, Aberdeen, Manchester, Liverpool, Bristol, Plymouth, Sussex, York, Oxford.

Location: Western Europe, islands including the northern one-sixth of the island of Ireland between the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea, northwest of France.

Geographic coordinates:
54 00 N, 2 00 W

Size: total: 244,820 sq km
land: 241,590 sq km
water: 3,230 sq km
note: includes Rockall and Shetland Islands

Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Oregon

Time Zone:
Standard time zone: No UTC/GMT offset
Daylight saving time: 1 hour
Current time zone offset: UTC/GMT 1 hour (British Summer Time)

BST started on Sunday, March 25, 2007 at 1:00 AM local standard time
BST ends on Sunday, October 28, 2007 at 2:00 AM local daylight time

Type of Government:
England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland function under one bicameral parliament. House of Lords is the upper house, (618 seats; consisting of approximately 500 life peers, 92 hereditary peers, and 26 clergy) and House of Commons is the lower house (646 seats since 2005 elections; members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms unless the House is dissolved earlier).

UK remains a constitutional monarchy where head of state is the hereditary monarch.

Monarch - Queen Elizabeth II (since February 6, 1952)
Prime Minister - Gordon Brown (since June 27, 2007)

National Holidays:

2010
1 Jan New Year's Day.
2 Apr Good Friday.
5 Apr Easter Monday (except Scotland).
3 May Early May Bank Holiday.
31 May Spring Bank Holiday.
30 Aug Summer Bank Holiday (except Scotland).
25 Dec Christmas Day*.
26 Dec Boxing Day*.

2011
1 Jan New Year's Day.
22 Apr Good Friday.
25 Apr Easter Monday (except Scotland).
2 May Early May Bank Holiday.
30 May Spring Bank Holiday.
29 Aug Summer Bank Holiday (except Scotland).
25 Dec Christmas Day*.
26 Dec Boxing Day*.

Note
* If the date falls on the weekend the public holiday will be observed on the next working day.
Public holidays are usually referred to as ‘bank holidays’ in the UK.
Please see the individual Public Holiday sections for details of additional holidays in each country.

Population:
60,776,238 (July 2007 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 17.2% (male 5,349,053/female 5,095,837)
15-64 years: 67% (male 20,605,031/female 20,104,313)
65 years and over: 15.8% (male 4,123,464/female 5,498,540) (2007 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 78.7 years
Male: 76.23 years, female: 81.3 years (2007 est.)

Ethnic groups:
White (of which English 83.6%, Scottish 8.6%, Welsh 4.9%, Northern Irish 2.9%) 92.1%, black 2%, Indian 1.8%, Pakistani 1.3%, mixed 1.2%, other 1.6% (2001 census)

Religion:
Christian (Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist) 71.6%, Muslim 2.7%, Hindu 1%, other 1.6%, unspecified or none 23.1% (2001 census)

Language:
English, Welsh (about 26% of the population of Wales), Scottish form of Gaelic (about 60,000 in Scotland)

Local Customs:
Handshaking is customary when introduced to someone new.
Smoking is banned in all enclosed public spaces, including pubs and restaurants, and on public transport. The ban is also in effect in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
There is a strict etiquette on escalators - stand on the right, walk on the left.
Learn the English table manners when eating.

Best Time to go:
Weather in UK is temperate with plenty of rains. British weather remains pleasant from April to the end of September. However, hotel accommodation is scarce in these months, booking in advance is required. Winter months add darkness where things close early.


Currency:
Although part of European Union, UK maintains its own currency known as British Sterling.
US Dollar = 0.48993 British Pound
1 British Pound (GBP) = 2.04110 US Dollar (USD)

1 Euro = 0.69536 British Pound
1 British Pound (GBP) = 1.43810 Euro (EUR)

Customs Regulations:
For Non-E.U. Nationals, 18 Plus -- 200 cigarettes, 100 cigarillos, 50 cigars, or 250 grams of smoking tobacco. The amount allowed for each of these goods is doubled if you live outside Europe. Over 22 you can bring in 2 liters of wine.

For E.U. Citizens -- Visitors from fellow European Union countries can bring into England (UK) any amount of goods, as long as the goods are intended for their personal use -- not for resale.

Tipping: Tipping:
Tips of 10 to 15% is expected in restaurants and upmarket hotels if a service charge hasn't been included. Hotel service staff receives an optional amount. Taxi drivers are usually given 10 to 15% of the fare. Other services are discretionary.