Difference Between United Kingdom, Great Britain and England

1.      United Kingdom (UK) (Reino Unido) is a STATE formed by: 1) Great Britain and 2) Northern Ireland.  Besides, the United Kingdom has fourteen British Overseas Territories, which are remnants of the former British Empire. The United Kingdom government defines the UK as “sovereign state” which means that it has a centralized government: The Queen and the Prime Minister. The term “United Kingdom” refers to the political area. The United Kingdom is formed by countries, but it is also a country itself. In other words, the UK can be seen as a single country, one that is also commonly known as “a country of countries”.

a.      Notice: “Ireland” is an island. The term “Ireland” refers to the geographical area, not political. The island of Ireland is the 20^th largest island in the world, and the 3^rd largest Island of Europe.

b.      Ireland is politically divided into: 1) Northern Ireland, and 2) the Republic of Ireland (Southern Ireland).

c.      As already said, Northern Ireland is a country or region from the UK, whereas the Republic of Ireland is a country which is not part of the UK. The Republic of Ireland gained political independence from the UK in 1922, but only until 1949 was declared a “republic”. Sometimes people just call it “Ireland”, that’s why confusion arises between “Ireland (the Island)” and “Ireland (the country; i.e. Southern Ireland)” which is not the same. The capital of the Republic of Ireland is Dublin. In this country, Irish is the "national language" according to the Constitution, but English is still the dominant language. It is estimated that about 40% of its people can speak Irish fluently, according to a 2006 census.

2.      Great Britain (Gran Bretaña) is [an Island] of the United Kingdom, constituted by three countries: 1) England, 2) Scotland, and 3) Wales. The term “Great Britain” refers to the geographical area. It is the 9^th largest island in the world, and the 1^st largest island of Europe.

a.      Notice: The island of Ireland and the island of Great Britain are separated by the Irish Sea.

b.      Very often, people use the word “Britain” to refer to the United Kingdom as a whole,
or to refer only to the island of Great Britain. It depends on the context.

There are three countries that constitute Great Britain:

1. England (Inglaterra) is a contry that is part of the United Kingdom. It is in the island of Great Britain.

2. Scotland (Escocia) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is in the island of Great Britain.

3. Wales (Gales) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is in the island of Great Britain. Around 20% of the population in Wales speaks Welsh. Both Welsh and English are official languages.

3.      With the 3 countries that constitute the Great Britain plus Northern Island, we have in total 4 countries that constitute the United Kingdom (UK), to which also belong the British territories overseas.

a.      While the four countries that make up the UK are considered separate in the minds of locals and in certain sporting events, their powers for local law and control are devolved politically as a whole in the UK.

b.      Think of the 50 states of the United States, while each state has their own set of laws, they all are still under the power of the federal government. In the case of the UK, it is somewhat similar, though certain responsibilities are also implied, like healthcare and education, that are delegated to three of the four countries.

c.      When it comes to international politics, it is the “sovereign nation” of the UK that is recognized and not any of the four constituent countries. Northern Ireland are also historically divided in six counties, but nowadays local government divides it into 26 different districts.

d.      The countries of Wales and England are divided in regions called “counties” (sometimes "shires" in Scotland).

4.      The Commonwealth of Nations (Mancomunidad de Naciones) is a voluntary association of 54 countries with historic links to the British Empire. Is an intergovernmental organisation of 54 member states that were mostly territories of the British Empire. Each country has a  self-governing dominion.  The countries are independientes y semi-independientes.

5.      The “Crown dependencies” are three semi-independent Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man that are not recognized as part of the UK, (and therefore, not part of the European Union), but are still under their subjection. are the three crowns

In summary:

The United Kingdom is a state formed by four nations (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) and the British overseas territories. Although English Scottish, Wales, and North-Irish people are not very united people, all of them are legally considered citizens of the UK, and all of them are, in official terms, “British”, whether they like it or not. Nevertheless, many in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales would prefer not to be called as such, because the word, for them, is not a defining feature of their identity.

The “British Islands” are Ireland (which includes Northern Ireland and The Republic of Ireland), and Great Britain (which includes England, Wales and Scotland). 

When people say they are Irish, they very often mean that they are from the Republic of Ireland, but not always, because Northern Irish people also may consider themselves simply Irish.

People can sometimes feel how others treat others in a way in which they could say: “they seem to act as if they think they are better than us”, which has to do with the issue of rivalries, likes and dislikes, within countries. The U.K. is no exception.

American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands are territories which belong to the United States, just the same way that Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man  belong, in political terms, to the United Kingdom or Hong Kong belongs to China and Dubai and Quatar to the Arab Emirates .