| Revision as of 01:53, 17 November 2001 view sourceEob (talk | contribs)498 edits Gathered together the discussion of the acceptibility of the term "British Isles" into a single paragraph with some attempt at NPOV.← Previous edit | Revision as of 08:21, 17 November 2001 view source Hank Ramsey (talk | contribs)147 edits common usageNext edit → | ||
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| The '''British Isles''' is |
The '''British Isles''' is the term commonly used to identify the group of islands off the northwest coast of Europe consisting of Great Britain, Ireland and adjacent islands. | ||
| It is essential to recognize that the term "British Isles" refers to these islands as a geographical - not a political - unit (although the Channel Islands are only included due to their political association). In particular, Ireland is NOT British. | |||
| Many people in ] do not like the term "British Isles" because it implies that Ireland is British. They prefer the term "]", though there are some cases where this term is not accurate because the intent is also to include the smaller islands in the group. People who prefer the term "British Isles" counter that term defines a purely geographic area - not a political area (although the inclusion of the Channel Islands is essentially for political reasons). | |||
| Many people in ] dislike the term "British Isles" because it may suggest incorrectly that Ireland is British. This is understandable, but unfortunately there really is no suitable alternative. The term "]" is not equivalent because it does not include the other islands in the group. | |||
Revision as of 08:21, 17 November 2001
The British Isles is the term commonly used to identify the group of islands off the northwest coast of Europe consisting of Great Britain, Ireland and adjacent islands.
It is essential to recognize that the term "British Isles" refers to these islands as a geographical - not a political - unit (although the Channel Islands are only included due to their political association). In particular, Ireland is NOT British.
Many people in Ireland dislike the term "British Isles" because it may suggest incorrectly that Ireland is British. This is understandable, but unfortunately there really is no suitable alternative. The term "Britain and Ireland" is not equivalent because it does not include the other islands in the group.
These islands are an archipelago off the west coast of Europe (121,674 square miles), consisting of:
- The Isle of Man
- The Isle of Wight
- The Channel Isles
- The Orkney Isles
- The Shetland Isles
- The Hebrides
and many other smaller islands.