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Great Britain: a cultural and geographical snapshot
It is important to distinguish between the term "United Kingdom", and the term "Great Britain". The two are not the same. -
Scottish holiday celebrations
Whereas the Christian and even secular worlds see Christmas as one of the great highlights of the year, in Scotland the greatest emphasis is placed on New Year's celebrations a week later. -
Speaking Irish Gaelic
You might not need to learn Gaelic to order fish and chips, but knowing about the history of Ireland's indigenous language adds to the understanding of your new country's culture and history. -
The Doric language of Scotland
Many people from outside of Scotland will not even have heard of Doric, never mind be able to understand it. In the past, the term Doric was often used to describe the dialects of people living in the South of Scotland – the Lowlands -
The people of the United Kingdom
The UK presently has a population of approximately 61,100,000 (2009), 51,000,000 of whom live within England. A combination of more births, fewer deaths, and changes in migration patterns in and out of the UK have led to a sustained growth of around 0.5% per year in population.