Re: A language by any other name
Yow!
Things are getting confusing. Great Britain used to be called Britain by the
Romans (so if someone still does on this list, he must be very old.) Great
was not just added to include other places. Great Britain is just the modern
and correct way to call it. This or you can use UK, a synonym with Great
Britain which includes England, Scotland and Wales as well as other smaller
islands acquired by the Brits through historical battles and trades with the
French and Europe. One I know about personally is the isle of Wight: great
place for relaxing BTW.
Some definitions courtesy of dictionary.com:
Brit·ta·ny (brtn-) also Bre·tagne (br-täny)
A historical region and former province of northwest France on a peninsula
between the English Channel and the Bay of Biscay. It was settled c. 500 by
Britons driven out of their homeland by the Anglo-Saxons. The region was
formally incorporated into France in 1532.
Brit·ain1 (brtn)
The island of Great Britain during pre-Roman, Roman, and early Anglo-Saxon
times before the reign of Alfred the Great (871-899). The name is derived
from Brittania, which the Romans used for the portion of the island that
they occupied.
United Kingdom or United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Commonly called Great Britain or Britain.. Abbr. UK
A country of western Europe comprising England, Scotland, Wales, and
Northern Ireland. Beginning with the kingdom of England, it was created by
three acts of union: with Wales (1536), Scotland (1707), and Ireland (1800).
At the height of its power in the 19th century it ruled an empire that
spanned the globe. London is the capital and the largest city. Population:
58,091,000.
> From: "Jaldhar H. Vyas" <jaldhar@debian.org>
> Reply-To: "Jaldhar H. Vyas" <jaldhar@debian.org>
> Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2001 22:47:07 -0400 (EDT)
> To: debian-devel@lists.debian.org
> Subject: Re: A language by any other name
> Resent-From: debian-devel@lists.debian.org
>
> On Wed, 19 Sep 2001, Branden Robinson wrote:
>
>> AIUI, the island on which you find England,
>> Scotland, and Wales is called Britain. I'm not sure how "Great" modifies
>> that unless it's to include some of the smaller outlying islands, like
>> the Shetlands and the Isle of Man.
>>
>
> The island where England etc. is found is "Great" Britain as opposed to
> Bretagne or Britanny, a province of France which was settled by Celts who
> fled after the Saxon invasions.
>
> --
> Jaldhar H. Vyas <jaldhar@debian.org>
>
>
> --
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