Scotland, along with England,
Wales, and Northern
Ireland, is part of the United
Kingdom. The United
Kingdom is located in northwestern Europe and is part
of the British Isles, which also include the Republic
of Ireland.
Scotland is located on the northern end of Great Britain which also contains England and Wales. Scotland is bordered on the south by England, on the east by the North Sea, and on the north and west by the North Atlantic Ocean. A number of offshore islands and island groups (nearly 800 islands in total) are also Scottish; the largest of these island groups are the Shetland Islands, the Orkney Islands and the Hebrides.
The Union Jack, is the national flag of the United Kingdom. It's comprised of the flags of England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Scotland's portion of the Union Jack - the cross of Saint Andrew - is a diagonal white x on a blue background.
The total land area of Scotland is 30,167 square miles, approximately the size of South Carolina.
The ancient capital city of Scotland is Edinburgh. As part of the United Kingdom though, Scotland's official capital city is London.
The Scots have a distinct cultural tradition of which they are very proud. They agreed to join England as a unified entity, Great Britain, by the Act of Union in 1707. The form of government of Great Britain is a constitutional monarchy, headed presently by Queen Elizabeth II, an elected Prime Minister, and a bicameral Parliament, consisting of the House of Lords and the House of Commons.
As a result of a strong nationalist movement in recent decades which demanded full independence of Scotland from the United Kingdom, the British government has formally devolved legislative power over virtually all domestic affairs in Scotland to the popularly elected Scottish Parliament established as a result of a referendum in 1997. The Scottish Parliament has 129 members elected every four years by a combination of direct voting and proportional representation. It is headed by a First Minister. Elections to the new Scottish Parliament were first held in 1999. Powers were transferred to the Scottish legislature on 1 July 1999.
Scotland remains part of Great Britain, so Queen Elizabeth II is still the chief of state, and the British Parliament has retained authority in matters relating to defense, foreign affairs, and economic and monetary policy, in which Scottish interests are represented as part of the United Kingdom. Scottish citizens continue to elect their representatives to the British Parliament. Constitutional issues since 2003 are handled by the British Department of Constitutional Affairs.
The Scots also have their own legal system, separate from the rest of the United Kingdom. It is a combination of Roman law and ancient feudal law. There is some discussion in Scotland concerning modernizing this system. The judiciary consists of the Court of Session and the Court of the Judiciary.
The population of Scotland is 5,094,800 at mid-year 2005. (General Register Office for Scotland)
The predominant language in Scotland is English, though a Scottish form of Gaelic is spoken by a growing number of inhabitants as a result of increasing interest. Figures vary, but one estimate says that currently 100,000 of the population can speak Gaelic. Gaelic was the primary language of Scotland until the 16th century. "Lallans" is spoken by southern Lowlands Scots. (This is a Germanic-English dialect which includes the words "wee" for little and "aye" for yes.)
The predominant religion in Scotland is Christianity, There are 95,000 Scottish inhabitants who profess a religion other than Christianity. The national church, The Church of Scotland, is Presbyterian. Since the early 18th century, a succession of small groups has left the national church. The Free Presbyterians are an existing dissenting group. There is also a sizable Roman Catholic community and there are other Christian denominations. Islam, Sikhism, and Hinduism are practiced by immigrants from the Indian subcontinent. There is also a Jewish community.
The currency is the Pound Sterling.
Web Sites
Websites for Kids:
Catalog
Search the library's catalog for Scotland
Databases
Enter Scotland in these databases: