BRITISH ISLES
The UK is a self-descriptive short-form name for “United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland”. *
The name Great Britain or Larger Britain, from Mediaeval Latin Britannia Maior, was first recorded by Geoffrey of Monmouth, who used it to distinguish the island from Britannia Minor (Little Britain) or Brittany in modern France. In classical times, Ptolemy also called the island Megale Brettania, in contrast to the smaller island of Ireland, which he called Mikra Brettania (Little Britain). The name Britain (or Latin name Britannia) most likely originates - via French or Welsh (Prydain) - from pretani, meaning the “painted ones”. It refers to the use of body-paint and tattoos by early inhabitants of the islands. It may also be derived from the Celtic goddess Brigid. On the earliest classical world maps (e.g. Strabo) the name Albion wass used to identify the island. Most likely it is derived from the Latin word Albus, meaning “white” and referring to the chalk cliffs of Dover. In medieval times the name England (or Latin Anglia) was often used to identify the entire island of Great Britain. It means “Land of the Angles” and refers to the Celtic people living on the island prior to the Anglo-Saxon conquest. On later maps Anglia was limited to the southern part of the Island, and Scotia (Scotland) identified the Northern part. The British Isles were already described by Ptolemy in his Geographia (150AD). The accompanying maps were worked out again by European cartographers at the end of the 15th century. The first (printed) separate maps appeared in the 16th century. The capital city of London was originally founded by the Romans in about 43AD. Early settlements date back to pre-historic times. A map of the city was included in the first European town atlas, published by Braun & Hogenberg in 1572 onwards.
*Before the independence of Ireland in 1916, the UK comprised present-day England (plus Wales), Scotland, Northern-Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The term British Isles is still used to identify these 5 entities.
Historical e-atlas UK49 maps
150AD - present
144 pages
4.90 Euro
- Historical e-atlas Scotland
- 49 maps
- 150AD - present
- 144 pages
- 4.90 Euro
