British
The word British has several different uses. See the article on Britain for more details.
- In a geographical context, it usually applies to a person or object from the island of Great Britain; more contentiously, its use in the term "British Isles" is understood to include also the island of Ireland. The term "Briton" is increasingly used to describe a British citizen. Sometimes it applies to an area or territory currently or formerly under UK rule, for example the British Virgin Islands, the British Indian Ocean Territory or British Columbia, now a province of Canada.
- In a political context, before the Act of Union 1800, it applies to a person or object from the Kingdom of Great Britain; following that act, it often applies to the United Kingdom or territories under U.K. control. People who term themselves British typically also identify themselves with another nation under U.K. control. Peoples generally considering themselves to be British include the English, Scottish, Welsh, Northern Irish (although many catholics in Northern Ireland do not see themselves as British), Manx, as well as the people in the nations of Jersey, Guernsey, Gibraltar and Bermuda.
- In an historical context, it refers to a territory or person with allegiance to the British Empire.
- In a linguistic context, it refers to the various forms of the English language known as British English.
- In an ethnological context, it refers to the Brythonic people who once inhabited much of Great Britain, and a person of British descent either resident in the United Kingdom or abroad.
See also
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