Looking for a geophysical term

[sleipnir214]

What is the geophysical term (not the separate geopolitical terms), for the archipelago that includes the U.K., Ireland and outlying islands?



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[ChrisHunt]

How about "British Isles"? There's a thorough definition.origin of the term at

http://www.wordiq.com/definition/British_Isles

, as well as mention of a less politically charged alternative: "Islands of the North Atlantic" (IONA).

-- Chris Hunt

http://www.mcgonagall-online.org.uk

http://www.napitalia.org.uk

http://www.leicesteryha.org.uk

 

[greyted]

Some interesting information here:

http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/British Isles

Ted

"The difference between a misfortune and a calamity is this: If Gladstone fell into the Thames, it would be a misfortune. But if someone dragged him out again, that would be a calamity."
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[CosmoKramer]

British Isles -- (Great Britain and Ireland and adjacent islands in the north Atlantic)

http://www.cogsci.princeton.edu/cgi-bin/webwn?stage=1&word=british+isles

Hoc nomen meum verum non est.

 

[sleipnir214]

British Isles" is okay, I suppose, but it holds political connotations that some from Ireland don't appreciate.

I've been curious about this for some time. I suppose "Hibernia archipelago" is a possibility.



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[rfr100]

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

It is impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so ingenious.

 

[Crowley16]

eh, does United Kingdom include ireland, or just n.ireland?

 

[rfr100]

The Great Britain bit includes N. Ireland.

The Ireland bit is Eire.

That's always been my understanding.



It is impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so ingenious.

 

[CosmoKramer]

sleipnir214,

Here's another good reference.....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Isles

Hoc nomen meum verum non est.

 

[sleipnir214]

Here's something....


This site contains the verbiage "(The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, The Republic of Ireland, and the off-shore islands. Sometimes known as the [red]britanno-hibernian archipelago[/red].)"



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[TonyJollans]

I was never aware of there being an all-encompassing non-political name. Indeed, it's hard to think of many names for any parts of the world which are completely non-political. Isn't [red]britanno-hibernian archipelago[/red] rather a mealy mouthed way obscuring the political aspect of the name?

Although there are many offshore islands round our coast, I never considered the area to be an archipelago. It is a group of islands but, in terms of size, it is dominated by just two. Is it just the outsider's perspective or is there a formal definition of what is and isn't an archipelage?


rfr100,

The correct term is The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and it is practically self-explanatory. Southern Ireland (Eire) is a separate country which is not part of the United Kingdom.

Enjoy,
Tony

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[happyabc]

Right. "Britain" was the name of the Roman Colony in England; "Great Britain" is England, Wales, and Scotland; "United Kingdom" is Great Britain and N. Ireland.

 

[ChrisHunt]

Sometimes known as the britanno-hibernian archipelago

I think "sometimes" is something of an overstatement. "Could be, but never is, known as..." would be nearer the mark.

. I suppose "Hibernia archipelago" is a possibility.

Well it is if you don't want anybody to know where you're talking about.

If you have to be PC about it, how about "Britain and Ireland"?

-- Chris Hunt

http://www.mcgonagall-online.org.uk

http://www.napitalia.org.uk

http://www.leicesteryha.org.uk

 

[sleipnir214]

TonyJollans:
archipelago

Every definition I've seen for "archipelago" is, basically, "a group of islands" or "a sea containing lots of small islands"

The first sense seems to apply here.


ChrisHunt:
I'm not trying to be PC. Political names for places tend to wander over time -- for example, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has only existed since either 1921 or 1927, depending on whether you count from the ratification of the Anglo-Irish treat that partitioned Ireland or the date of the formal name adoption.





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[xmsre]

ISO-3166 lists it as United Kingdom, which includes Guernsey, Isle of Man, and Jersey as well.

 

[johnwm]

xmsre
ISO-3166 also lists Ireland as a separate entity. I would doubt that any of the international organisations would be so insensitive to over 500 years of bitter war that they would attempt to include Ireland under the heading of United Kingdom. The separation was achieved over 80 years ago and is unlikely to be reversed in the near future

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