Numbers

The Four Countries that Form the United Kingdom

• England
• Northern Ireland
• Scotland
• Wales

How It's Used

"After all, he [Prime Minister Gordon Brown] leads what must be the only country in the world that doesn't know its own name. (England? Britain? Great Britain? United Kingdom? You can find all four versions on drop-down internet menus, and very confusing it gets.)

"Just try explaining the problem to a curious nine-year-old. There are England, Scotland and Wales, which are all different countries, but then again no. And don't even get me started on Northern Ireland."

"From Downing Street to church spires the length of Albion, the flag of St George will fly today as part of what the present incumbent of No 10 insists is a celebration of Britishness that does not—and should not—preclude taking pride in 'Englishness, Scottishness, Welshness or Northern Irishness'.

"But a leading theologian and academic is highlighting the need for a spiritual figurehead to unite the domains of St George of England, St Andrew of Scotland, St David of Wales and St Patrick of Ireland. Step forward St Aidan of Lindisfarne, the Apostle of Northumbria.

"Dr Ian Bradley, reader in practical theology and Church history at the University of St Andrews and a respected commentator on religious issues, argues in a new book that the early medieval bishop, who was born in Ireland, possibly Connacht, educated in Scotland and lived for much of his life in Northumbria [Editor's Note: Northumbria was a medieval kingdom located in what is now northeast England] has the potential to represent Britishness in a way that none of the existing patron saints do. Indeed, the academic is questioning whether St George, a Greek-speaking soldier of the Roman Empire from Anatolia in modern-day Turkey who had no direct connection with the British Isles until his 'legend' was brought to England by returning Crusaders and claimed for our own, and his fellow patron saints are still the right symbols for the constituent parts of the United Kingdom."

"Last month a BBC Trust report found that BBC news was England-centric. Some readers were quick to point out that the same criticisms might be made of the Guardian. "When did you ever seriously examine coverage of current affairs (particularly since devolution) from the point of view of readers in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales?", asked a reader who complained that some writers seem to think that England is synonymous with United Kingdom.

"The Guardian's style guide says: 'Take care not to offend readers from other parts of the UK by saying England or English when you mean Britain or British, and vice versa.' The guidance is frequently ignored. An article, in April, about a stench hanging around southern England talked about the smell hitting 'Britain's nostrils' and in May a story about environmental noise maps for England, illustrated with maps of England, bore the headline 'The sound of Britain's roads'."

"Suddenly, the Union flag was everywhere: draped around the shoulders of swimmer Rebecca Adlington (England), cyclist Chris Hoy (Scotland), cyclist Geraint Thomas (Wales) and boxer Paddy Barnes (Northern Ireland). When Christine Ohuruogu won her 400 metres final in such tremendous style, and Ben Ainslie proved himself our most successful Olympic sailor, the surge of national pride was not artificially generated by politicians. This was a spontaneous outpouring and an unexpected return to habits buried deep in our shared history."

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