NationStates Jolt Archive


United Kingdom or Great Britain?

Zouloukistan
17-07-2005, 02:33
I know that the GB (England, Wales and Scottland) is part of the UK (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland).

OK? Fine for now?

I also know that Northern Ireland is semi-autonomious (forgive spelling).

So why does everyone keep saying Great Britain (or worse, England) when talking oh the UK?!?!!??!?! :headbang: :headbang: I HATE IT!!!! I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!!!

I get pissed off when people say GB BECAUSE OF WHAT?!?!?!?!? THEY ARE RACIST AGAINST THE NORTHERN-IRISHES?!?!!?!?!?!?! ARGGGHHH!!!! CAN I BITE SOMEONE?!??!?!

*bites the closest person before he/she could answer*

:sniper: :mp5: :gundge: :gundge: :sniper: :gundge: :sniper: :gundge:

*earases the insults first written here to avoid being kicked*
Nadkor
17-07-2005, 02:35
I also know that Northern Ireland is semi-autonomious (forgive spelling).

Scotland has more autonomy right now
Bodies Without Organs
17-07-2005, 02:38
I also know that Northern Ireland is semi-autonomious (forgive spelling).


It isn't. No more so than Wales or Scotland - all three have their own particular form of regional assembly, but the Northen Ireland one is currently suspended and is likely to stay that way for the foreseeable future.
Zouloukistan
17-07-2005, 02:38
Scotland has more autonomy right now
Ah. I didn't know.
Zouloukistan
17-07-2005, 02:40
It isn't. No more so than Wales or Scotland - all three have their own particular form of regional assembly, but the Northen Ireland one is currently suspended and is likely to stay that way for the foreseeable future.
Ah. So the dictionnary Petit Larrousse 2002 lied me.
Bodies Without Organs
17-07-2005, 02:41
Ah. So the dictionnary Petit Larrouse 2002 lied me.

Quite possibly, however that may have been written at one of the (very few) times when the Legislative Assembly here was actually in operation, or it may have just been a somewhat over optimistic projection of the results of the Good Friday Agreement.

THEY ARE RACIST AGAINST THE NORTHERN-IRISHES?!?!!?!?!?!?!

Whatever else we may be here, we aren't a race.
Zouloukistan
17-07-2005, 02:43
Whatever else we may be here, we aren't a race.
So are they discrimating you?
Nadkor
17-07-2005, 02:45
So are they discrimating you?
if you dont include withholding money for education, and ridiculously overcharging us for our electricity compared to the rest of the UK, then no they arent.
Zouloukistan
17-07-2005, 02:50
if you dont include withholding money for education, and ridiculously overcharging us for our electricity compared to the rest of the UK, then no they arent.
You still use the same pounds, like the ones that are in, like London or Liverpool?
Nadkor
17-07-2005, 02:53
You still use the same pounds, like the ones that are in, like London or Liverpool?
Yes, we are in the UK, we use GBP
Zouloukistan
17-07-2005, 02:55
Yes, we are in the UK, we use GBP
Does GBP stands for GREAT BRITAIN Pounds?

See the discrimination!!! You poor Northern-Irishes!!!
(The word Irishes does not exist, does it?)
Bodies Without Organs
17-07-2005, 02:56
You still use the same pounds, like the ones that are in, like London or Liverpool?

We use the same currency (Sterling), but just to complicate matters the banks in Northern Ireland produce their own peculiar versions of (Sterling) banknotes. This means that many people in the rest of the UK do not believe that we use the same actually use the same money as them.
Zouloukistan
17-07-2005, 02:58
We use the same currency (Sterling), but just to complicate matters the banks in Northern Ireland produce their own peculiar versions of (Sterling) banknotes. This means that many people in the rest of the UK do not believe that we use the same actually use the same money as them.
Good to know.
The Isle of Man has its own coins, I think... ?
Bodies Without Organs
17-07-2005, 03:06
Good to know.
The Isle of Man has its own coins, I think... ?

Yup, and they produced their own banknotes a few years ago, I believe they still do. The Bank of Scotland and a couple of other Scottish banks also produce their own banknotes, but the rest of the UK (ie. England and Wales) operates on Bank of England notes almost exclusively.
Randomlittleisland
17-07-2005, 12:23
I say Britain

*hides under desk* :eek:
Glorious Terra
17-07-2005, 12:35
I usually say UK, although I don't really see the problem with calling it GB - I mean, if people want to work towards greater autonomy and independence of areas of the Kingdom, then shouldn't their energies be focused towards more constructive efforts than complaining about the name 'GB'?
Olantia
17-07-2005, 12:37
Yes, we are in the UK, we use GBP
That's interesting... why not UKP?
Zouloukistan
17-07-2005, 15:49
That's interesting... why not UKP?
YES!!!! WHY?!?!?!?!?

(See post 11)
I V Stalin
17-07-2005, 16:00
That's interesting... why not UKP?
Probably because when pounds sterling were introduced we were Great Britain - the UK didn't exist at that time. And no one's changed it since, because it's now traditional for it to be GBP. And, as readers of the Discworld series know, there's nothing worse than not following tradition.
Olantia
17-07-2005, 16:07
Probably because when pounds sterling were introduced we were Great Britain - the UK didn't exist at that time. And no one's changed it since, because it's now traditional for it to be GBP. ...
I think you were England, not Great Britain, when the pound was introduced. And three-letter currency codes are, certainly, a recent phenomenon.
New Burmesia
17-07-2005, 16:15
I say Britain, simply as an abbreviation for GB and Northern Ireland.

It's not because i'm racist at all. It's more because I don't like the monarchy, and hate having to refer to the country I live in as the Royal Family's, not mine.

I also HATE,HATE,HATE it when people refer to the UK as England. As a scot (ok, I live in England, but I wasn't born there...) I find it really annoying.

As an afterthought: do the Irish Unionists consider themselves British?
Ashmoria
17-07-2005, 16:29
im an american. i consider myself extremely sophisticated that i know when the use of england, great britain, or UK is incorrect. to expect me to know which is MOST correct in whatever situation is just too much. im an american, dammit, ask me something important like "are brad and angelina dating?"
Psychotic Mongooses
17-07-2005, 16:36
*snip*
As an afterthought: do the Irish Unionists consider themselves British?

Meh, most do. Some consider themselves Northern Irish- but does it matter? Potential can o' worms being opened with this tangent.... :eek:
Nadkor
17-07-2005, 16:42
As an afterthought: do the Irish Unionists consider themselves British?
Eh...yea. That's the whole point of being a Unionist...that you want NI to remain within the Union, and to remain British. But a fair few would say Northern Irish and Irish as well.

I, personally, would say im British, Irish, and Northern Irish. Just to confuse people.
New Burmesia
17-07-2005, 16:43
Meh, most do. Some consider themselves Northern Irish- but does it matter? Potential can o' worms being opened with this tangent.... :eek:

Probably right, best not going down that road...
ProMonkians
17-07-2005, 16:50
Saying Brittain is fine by me since my nationallity is Brittish (not united-kingdom-ist/ish/whatever).
El Porro
17-07-2005, 16:51
I know that the GB (England, Wales and Scottland) is part of the UK (United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland).
Typical yank mistake. Great Britain and the UK are interchangeable terms - one is not 'in' the other (like you incessantly claim that Scotland is 'in' England, honestly, you really crack us up..).

Great Britain as a term predates the United Kingdom (which refers to when England and Scotland were politically unified in the early 18th Century - both countries were linked as a sovreign state since the reign of James I [VI of Scotland] in the mid-17th Century.), as a reference to all the British Isles.

I tend to say 'UK', as saying yukay is a little more funky and fresh than saying geebee, which is a bit geeky.. You know what I mean.

'GB', however, tends to be the more official term (see: Olympics, international car stickers, etc) because the initials translate better. For example, 'united kingdom' in Italian is 'regno unito', 'RU', but 'great britain' is 'grande britannia', 'GB'. This pattern works for French and Spanish as well. Hence the greater simplicity in favouring 'GB'.

That is why we have two equally interchangeable terms.
Nadkor
17-07-2005, 16:55
Typical yank mistake. Great Britain and the UK are interchangeable terms - one is not 'in' the other (like you incessantly claim that Scotland is 'in' England, honestly, you really crack us up..).

Actually....GB is in the UK. That's why its the United Kingdom of GB and NI. GB is part of the UK, GB is not the UK.
El Porro
17-07-2005, 17:00
Actually....GB is in the UK. That's why its the United Kingdom of GB and NI. GB is part of the UK, GB is not the UK.
Oh yeah.
Fuck.
This heat is warping my brain..
Psychotic Mongooses
17-07-2005, 17:01
For me personally, what gets my goat is the "British Isles" references.... ain't all the islands there in Britain... no.

Also, "The British Lions"..... finally amended to the "British AND Irish Lions".... Captained this year by an Irishman. :p
Sweetfloss
17-07-2005, 17:13
Oh yeah.
Fuck.
This heat is warping my brain..

At least you tried dude, at least you tried...
Carops
17-07-2005, 18:07
For me personally, what gets my goat is the "British Isles" references.... ain't all the islands there in Britain... no.

Also, "The British Lions"..... finally amended to the "British AND Irish Lions".... Captained this year by an Irishman. :p

Well British Isles is a geographical term and not really anything to do with being in the UK. Great Britain is the largest island of the British Isles. Ireland is the second largest. It has nothing to do with them being British (as in belonging to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Island). And it is only fair that they changed it to British and Irish Lions.
Bodies Without Organs
17-07-2005, 18:32
Well British Isles is a geographical term and not really anything to do with being in the UK. Great Britain is the largest island of the British Isles. Ireland is the second largest.

Question: which is the third largest, Anglesey, Skye or Lewis?
The Vuhifellian States
17-07-2005, 18:36
I say United Kingdom most of the time, being that the formal name of the country is:

The United Kingdom of Great Britain & Northern Ireland.

Its just like referring to the U.S.
ChuChulainn
17-07-2005, 18:40
We use the same currency (Sterling), but just to complicate matters the banks in Northern Ireland produce their own peculiar versions of (Sterling) banknotes. This means that many people in the rest of the UK do not believe that we use the same actually use the same money as them.

Got to love the plastic fivers. They brighten up my day
Nadkor
17-07-2005, 18:48
Got to love the plastic fivers. They brighten up my day
I love those notes.

But nobody outside NI believes they're actually real money.

And they sell on ebay (http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=47400&item=8319310468&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW) for more than a fiver :D
Bodies Without Organs
17-07-2005, 18:50
Got to love the plastic fivers. They brighten up my day

Indeed. I was quite relieved when it was announced that they wouldn't be withdrawn unlike the higher denominations of the Northern Bank notes following the robbery in December.
Bodies Without Organs
17-07-2005, 18:52
And they sell on ebay (http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=47400&item=8319310468&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW) for more than a fiver :D

Interesting...
ChuChulainn
17-07-2005, 18:52
I love those notes.

But nobody outside NI believes they're actually real money.

And they sell on ebay (http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=47400&item=8319310468&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW) for more than a fiver :D

I like how they are made more rare due to the bank raid. Maybe I should find some of the old £20 notes and try to jack up the price on them too
Gataway_Driver
17-07-2005, 18:55
I love those notes.

But nobody outside NI believes they're actually real money.

And they sell on ebay (http://cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=47400&item=8319310468&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW) for more than a fiver :D

I heard they were made because they are harder to be destroyed by a bomb. Any truth in that?
ChuChulainn
17-07-2005, 18:58
I heard they were made because they are harder to be destroyed by a bomb. Any truth in that?

I thought it was just to stop them getting destroyed in the wash. I'm sure they would melt in a bomb explosion though
Nadkor
17-07-2005, 18:59
I heard they were made because they are harder to be destroyed by a bomb. Any truth in that?
Nope...they were made for the new millennium...they made a run of 2 million of them, with special editions having the date "1st January 2000" and the prefix Y2K
ChuChulainn
17-07-2005, 19:01
Nope...they were made for the new millennium...they made a run of 2 million of them, with special editions having the date "1st January 2000" and the prefix Y2K

Live and learn
ChuChulainn
17-07-2005, 19:02
I heard they were made because they are harder to be destroyed by a bomb. Any truth in that?

On second thoughts why would you bomb money anyway? :confused: especially when it was all distributed into public use. The last thing i would be worrying about if a bomb went off was if my plastic fiver was ok
Nadkor
17-07-2005, 19:03
Live and learn
Heh, I just picked that up from reading auctions on ebay
Olantia
17-07-2005, 19:05
Question: which is the third largest, Anglesey, Skye or Lewis?
Lewis?

I think there was a suggestion to use a term 'Islands of North Atlantic' instead of 'British Isles', but it didn't enter general use.
ChuChulainn
17-07-2005, 19:05
Heh, I just picked that up from reading auctions on ebay

NO NO NO dont give away your secrets. T'is better to pretend it all came from your own head. At least thats my motto
Eutrusca
17-07-2005, 19:07
"United Kingdom or Great Britain?"

Whatever the citizens of "Merry Old" would like to be called. :)

Unlike certain ... "others," most of us in the US show enough courtesy toward the citizens of other nations to call them by the name they have chosen. It's incorrect and insulting to refer to the citizens of other nations by a name you just pulled out of thin air because you don't like the one they chose for themselves.
Bodies Without Organs
17-07-2005, 19:07
Lewis?

I don't know. I can't seem to find areas for Lewis and Skye

I think there was a suggestion to use a term 'Islands of North Atlantic' instead of 'British Isles', but it didn't enter general use.

To me that would include Iceland, possibly even Greenland.
Olantia
17-07-2005, 19:12
I don't know. I can't seem to find areas for Lewis and Skye
I've just found that: http://users.erols.com/jcalder/UK.htm
So, it is Lewis.


To me that would include Iceland, possibly even Greenland.
Strictly speaking, yes.
King Graham IV
17-07-2005, 19:23
Ok sorry,

but WHO CARES! Call this country what you want, if you care that much about the name of this country, you need to get a hobby.

United Kingdom
Great Britain
Britain

Everyone knows what you are talking about when you say these, if one or another name offends you then you need to become alot more tolerant as there are going to be many more things that will offend you more!

Get a life, god's sake.
Bodies Without Organs
17-07-2005, 19:28
but WHO CARES! Call this country what you want, if you care that much about the name of this country, you need to get a hobby.

If you care so much about whether we care so much about the name of the country, then we are not the only ones that are in need of a hobby, no?
Gataway_Driver
17-07-2005, 19:34
On second thoughts why would you bomb money anyway? :confused: especially when it was all distributed into public use. The last thing i would be worrying about if a bomb went off was if my plastic fiver was ok

The Real IRA trying to de-stabalise the economy?
La Salette
17-07-2005, 19:35
I'm from Northern Ireland too (and, yes, I love the plastic £5 notes - I do love showing them to my English friends when they're over visiting.) I personally would refer to myself as "British," but feel very proud of coming from Northern Ireland. I certainly prefer the prefix "Northern" if anyone's going to call me "Irish." However, I don't think there's a massive importance attacked to difference between UK/GB - I would call the country "Britain" but the political entity "the United Kingdom," which, in a sense, is technically correct as four countries are united under one monarchy (which I very strongly support.)
Amethii
17-07-2005, 19:51
We use the same currency (Sterling), but just to complicate matters the banks in Northern Ireland produce their own peculiar versions of (Sterling) banknotes. This means that many people in the rest of the UK do not believe that we use the same actually use the same money as them.

Same problem in Scotland, the Royal Bank of Scotland, the Clydesdale Bank and the Bank of Scotland all produce notes which are rarely recognised in England
King Graham IV
17-07-2005, 20:03
If you care so much about whether we care so much about the name of the country, then we are not the only ones that are in need of a hobby, no?

nice, lol! Never thought of that way...i need to get of this forum i really do. Back outside to fiddle with cars, bye.
ChuChulainn
17-07-2005, 20:39
The Real IRA trying to de-stabalise the economy?

Why not just steal the cash instead? or if you're going to go to all the bother of bombing something make it something to inspire fear. There were only 2 million notes made apparently. I doubt their destruction would destabalize things too badly in the grand scheme of things
Gataway_Driver
17-07-2005, 20:47
Why not just steal the cash instead? or if you're going to go to all the bother of bombing something make it something to inspire fear. There were only 2 million notes made apparently. I doubt their destruction would destabalize things too badly in the grand scheme of things

steal it? And do what exactly? Like I said I only heard it through talking to someone. I didn't know only 2 million were made.
ChuChulainn
17-07-2005, 21:04
steal it? And do what exactly? Like I said I only heard it through talking to someone. I didn't know only 2 million were made.

No offense was meant. Sorry about that
Gataway_Driver
17-07-2005, 21:07
No offense was meant. Sorry about that

no offense was taken :) . I have skin especially when I'm not that well informed on the subject ;)
Nadkor
18-07-2005, 01:07
Why not just steal the cash instead?
Have you not been paying attention since just before Christmas? :p
Zouloukistan
18-07-2005, 02:18
Typical yank mistake.
Me, yankee? Ha, good joke... good joke...
Zouloukistan
18-07-2005, 02:22
I think there was a suggestion to use a term 'Islands of North Atlantic' instead of 'British Isles', but it didn't enter general use.
Newfoundland is an island in the North Atlantic, so... it's weel it didn't enter general use.
ChuChulainn
18-07-2005, 14:43
Have you not been paying attention since just before Christmas? :p

Yeah but its a little known fact that I thought of that plan before certain IRA members. They steal ideas as well as cash you know :p