Exploring Britain

Book by Fodors

The British

The population of Great Britain numbers about 56 million. A small and densely populated country, it would fit neatly inside the American state of Oregon, which has a population of only 3 million. Or, keeping the comparison within Europe, the country has about the same number of people as France, in an area less than half the size.
Early ancestry

The British are a nation of mongrels, principally a mixture of Germanic and Celtic strains. The original "English," or Anglo-Saxons, came across the North Sea in their dragon-prowed longships from northwest Germany and southern Denmark some 1,500 years ago. They subjugated most of the native Celtic people, whom they dismissively called Welsh, meaning "foreigners."
More Germanic invaders came from Denmark and Norway in the Viking Age. Then the Norman Conquest of England in 1066 eventually gave all areas of the British Isles a new and initially French-speaking ruling class. From the 16th to the 18th centuries, thousands of French Protestants, known as Huguenots, came to England to escape religious persecution. The 19th century brought substantial Irish immigration to Britain and an influx of Jewish families fleeing from persecution in Russia and Eastern Europe. After World War II fresh waves of immigrants came from the West Indies, the Indian subcontinent, Cyprus, and many Commonwealth countries. Over the centuries, these incomers have enriched the British population and the British way of life.
Ethnic and Religious Mix

Despite the presence of many ethnic and religious minorities, statistics show that more than 80 percent of the U.K. population is still classified as English, about 10 percent as Scottish, 2.5percent as Irish and 2 percent as Welsh. Britain is 95 percent white, with West Indians, Indians, and Pakistanis numbering about 1 percent each. There are also tiny percentages of Bangladeshis and Chinese. Of the ethnic minority population, close to 50 percent is British by birth.
The population is overwhelmingly Christian, or thinks of itself that way. More than 85 percent of the British people regard themselves as Christians, but fewer than one person in five goes regularly to church or chapel. The Muslim population is about 2 percent, and practicing Jews total 1 percent.
Male and female members of the population are nearing equality in numbers. Throughout this century the British birth rate has increased extremely slowly, and in the 1970s the U.K. population actually fell for a time.
A national character? Whether there is anything that can be called a British national character is open to question. The Scots, the Welsh, and the Irish have retained their separate identities despite (or because of) English domination. Even in England itself, people from London, Yorkshire, Lancashire, the Northeast, the West Country, and other areas cherish their regional identities.
As seen by outsiders, qualities of the typical Englishman include reserve and politeness, helpfulness, a gift for understatement, and awkwardness with women and children (particularly in the upper and middle classes). The English pride themselves on fair play and a genius for compromise. Profoundly conservative by temperament, they suspect intellectuals and ideologies, change, professionalism, fads and fancies, and foreigners. They like gardens, dogs, and horses. Although they love the countryside, most of them do not actually live in it. They love sport, and taught the rest of the world organized games.
Perhaps the most fundamental trait that the British have in common is an ironic sense of humor which lets them make fun of themselves with good grace.
The Pub

Some pubs are dedicated to thoughtful imbibing and peaceful conversation, others to deafening taped music and clattering slot machines. There are venerable half-timbered Tudor hostelries, leaning at an angle and apparently held up as much by the strength of the ale on tap as they are by their massive black timbers. There are broad-fronted Georgian coaching inns, glittering Victorian "gin palaces," and dubious little backstreet taverns. There are pubs with romantic tales to tell of smugglers and highwaymen, rose-wreathed pubs idyllically set by rivers and canals, lobster-potted inns gazing over picturesque fishing harbors and patronized by sailing enthusiasts, while grim-faced pubs accustomed to wind and weather are perched high on remote moors are frequented by ramblers in thick boots and waterproof anoraks.
Then and Now        

Today's neighborhood pub is descended from the local alehouse of Anglo-Saxon and medieval England, an ordinary house whose occupants brewed and sold ale. In the 12th and 13th centuries inns began to open up, providing overnight accommodations for travelers. In recent years, the traditional pub has found a new identity: serving food -- "pub grub" -- has become more important, and there has been a comeback of "real ale," meaning old-fashioned beer, once threatened with extinction by the big commercial brewers. Most pubs have become less aggressively masculine, and women can feel quite comfortable in them.
What's in a Name?

Pubs have picture-signs hanging above their doors, illustrating their names -- a custom dating from days when few people could read. Some names are derived from heraldry, like the White Hart and the Red Lion. Others are named for royalty, as in the Crown or the King's Head. Other names reflect country life -- the Plough or the Fox and Hounds. There are New Inns that are centuries old, and there are strange and enigmatic names: the Pig and Whistle, the Cat and Fiddle. All are part of the richness and variety that keep the British pub a vital institution.