Scotland

Scotland (English/Scots Scotland [ˈskɔtlənd], Scottish Gaelic Alba [ˈal̪ˠapə] listen^{? /i}, Latin Caledonia) is a largely autonomous part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Scotland consists of the northern third of Europe's largest island, Great Britain, plus several island groups, and has a population of about 5.5 million. The Scottish capital has been Edinburgh (previously Perth) since 1437.

The Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England were ruled in personal union from 1603. In 1707, the two states were united to form the Kingdom of Great Britain. Through the merger with the Kingdom of Ireland, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was formed in 1801.

In recent decades, a strong movement has emerged in Scotland for a dissolution of the union with England and thus secession from the United Kingdom. The country already has largely autonomous status within the United Kingdom through the process of internal British devolution. In a referendum in September 2014, a majority of voters chose to remain in the United Kingdom. After the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union in a referendum on 23 June 2016, there have been calls for a new Scottish referendum on secession from the United Kingdom. The majority of Scottish citizens had voted to remain in the European Union in the referendum.

Etymology

Scotland comes from Scoti, the Latin name for the Gaels. The further origin is uncertain, one of the suggestions being a relationship with the ancient Greek skotos (σκότος) = dark. The Latin word Scotia (land of the Gaels) was originally used for Ireland. From the 11th century at the latest, Scotia was used in Gaelic-speaking Scotland north of the River Forth to refer to Scotland, alongside Albania or Albany, both of which were derived from the Gaelic equivalent Alba. Since the late Middle Ages, the use of the words Scots and Scotland has generally encompassed anything from Scotland.

Geography

Edinburgh Glasgow Aberdeen Dundee Livingston Hamilton Dunfermline Inverness Elgin Perth Ayr Kilmarnock Greenock Glenrothes Stirling Fort William Oban Dumfries Hawick Peterhead Stornoway Kirkwall Lerwick Ullapool NORTHERN IRELAND   ENGLAND IRELAND   Shetland Orkney   Hebrides ATLANTIK   NORDSEE SCOTTISHESEE   IRISH SEA Ben Nevis Càrn Eige Schiehallion Sgùrr Alasdair Ben Hope Ben Macdui Lochnagar Ben Lomond

Scotland covers the northern third of the island of Great Britain and has an area of about 78,000 km². It borders England to the south for 96 km between the Solway Firth in the west and the River Tweed on the east coast. It is divided into three geographical regions: the Highlands, the Central Lowlands and the Southern Uplands. The highest mountain in Scotland (and the whole of Great Britain) is the 1345 m high Ben Nevis near Fort William. It belongs to the so-called Munros.

The southernmost point of the Scottish mainland is at 54 degrees 38' on the Mull of Galloway peninsula, the northernmost at Dunnet Head at latitude 58 degrees 40'. This puts the southernmost mainland part of Scotland at the same latitude as, for example, the German Hallig Langeneß, which lies in the North Sea, and the northernmost at the level of southern Norway. Overall, however, Scotland is essentially at the same latitude as Denmark.

The longest river in Scotland is the Tay with a length of 193 kilometers. Other major rivers are the Spey, Clyde, Dee and Don.

Due to the rugged landscape of the Highlands, many lochs and partly deeply cut sea lochs were created, which are called lochs in Scotland. The most famous examples are Loch Ness and Loch Lomond.

To the west of Scotland is the archipelago of the Hebrides, which are clearly separated into the groups of the Inner and Outer Hebrides. To the north of Scotland are the Orkney Islands and much further afield the Shetland Islands.

The population is concentrated in the Central Belt between Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Climate

The climate in Scotland is temperate with a tendency to very unstable weather. In the Atlantic regions it is warmed by the Gulf Stream. Temperatures are lower than in the rest of the UK as a result of its more northerly location. Scotland's high moors reached the lowest temperatures ever recorded in the UK in January 1982, around -27.2 °C at Braemar in the Grampian Mountains. Summer temperatures are around 18 °C. The highest temperature recorded was 32.9 °C on 9 August 2003 at Greycrook on the Scottish Borders. In general, the west is warmer than the east of Scotland, as the Gulf Stream makes the waters of the Atlantic warmer than those of the North Sea. The Western Highlands are the rainiest with 3000 mm of annual rainfall. In winter, snowfall is only to be expected regularly at high altitudes.

Fauna

Scotland's wilderness is typical of north-west Europe, although some of the larger mammals such as the lynx, brown bear, wolf, moose and walrus were hunted to extinction in historic times. There are important populations of seals and internationally important nesting sites for a variety of seabirds, such as gannets and puffins. The golden eagle is something of a national symbol.

On the high mountain peaks during the winter months some species such as the rock ptarmigan can be seen with their white plumage, the snow hare and the stoat can be seen with their white winter coats. Remnants of native Scots pine forest still exist and within these areas the Scottish crossbill, Britain's only endemic bird and vertebrate species, can be seen alongside capercaillie, wildcat, red squirrel and pine marten. Various animals have been reintroduced, including the white-tailed eagle in 1975, the red kite in the 1980s, and there have been experimental projects with beaver and wild boar.

Flora

The flora of the land is diverse and includes deciduous and coniferous forest as well as bog and tundra species. However, large-scale commercial tree planting and management of the High Heath habitat for sheep grazing and commercial sporting activities is affecting the distribution of native plants and animals. Throughout Scotland's history, many forests have fallen victim to massive logging. Today, much of the remaining native Caledonian forest lies in the Cairngorms National Park and the remainder in 84 sites across Scotland. Remnants of the once widespread oak-dominated temperate rainforest can still be found on the west coast, particularly on the Taynish Peninsula in Argyll, which is designated as a National Nature Reserve. The largest tree in Britain is a large coastal fir planted beside Loch Fyne, Argyll in the 1870s. The age of Fortingall Yew, a yew tree in Perthshire, is estimated to be up to 5000 years old, it is probably the oldest living thing in Europe. Although the number of native vascular plants is low by world standards, Scotland's mosses are of considerable global importance.

Outline map of Scotland, (topographic map)