Northern Europe as defined by the United Nations^[1] (marked blue):

  Northern Europe

  Western Europe

  Eastern Europe

  Southern Europe

A satellite photograph of Northern Europe

Northern Europe is the northern part or region of the European continent. A United Nations report published in 2011 defines Northern Europe as including the following ten countries and dependent regions: Denmark (with Faroe Islands), Estonia, Finland (with Åland), Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway (Svalbard and Jan Mayen), Sweden, and the UK (with Guernsey, Isle of Man and Jersey).^[1]

The United Kingdom and Ireland are sometimes included in Western Europe;^[2] as is Iceland for historical, cultural, linguistic and political reasons (compare Greenland which is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, but is geographically located in Northern Europe, and is sometimes considered to be in Northern Europe or the Nordic countries, though rarely Scandinavia proper). The Baltic states are sometimes included in Eastern Europe due to their former occupation by the Soviet Union.^[3]

Before the establishment of the Nordic Council in 1952, the term 'Nordic', or 'Northern', was commonly used to also refer to the Lutheran Baltic countries Estonia and Latvia, as well as the northern sections of European Russia.

History[edit]

A map of Northern Europe after Ptolemy

A Dutch map of Northern Europe, 1601

Historically, when Europe was dominated by the Mediterranean region (i.e., the Roman Empire), everything not near this sea was termed Northern Europe, including Germany, the Low Countries, and Austria. This meaning is still used today in some contexts, such as in discussions of the Northern Renaissance. In medieval times, the term (Ultima) Thule was used to mean a mythical place in the extreme northern reaches of the continent.

Geography[edit]

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Northern Europe consists of the Scandinavian peninsula, the peninsula of Jutland, the Baltic plain that lies to the east and the many islands that lie offshore from mainland northern Europe, Greenland and the main European continent. The area is defined by the volcanic islands of the far northwest, notably Iceland and Jan Mayen, the mountainous western seaboard, extending from the mountainous sections of Great Britain & Ireland to the Scandinavian mountains, the central north mountains and hills of Sweden (which are the foothills of the Scandinavian mountains) and the large eastern plain, which contains, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Finland.

The region has a south west extreme of just under 50 degrees north and a northern extreme of 81 degrees north. The entire region's climate is affected by the Gulf Stream which has a mild influence on the climate. From the west climates vary from maritime and maritime subarctic climates. In the north and central climates are generally subarctic or Arctic and to the east climates are mostly subarctic and temperate/continental. As the climate and relief varies vegetation is also extremely variable, with sparse tundra in the north and high mountains, boreal forest on the north-eastern and central regions temperate coniferous forests (formerly of which a majority was in the Scottish highlands and south west Norway) and temperate broadleaf forests growing in the south, west and temperate east.

With the exception of the United Kingdom and Ireland, Northern European countries are known for harsh winters. For example, the Winter of 2010-2011 in Europe began already in November. Temperatures can reach as low as minus 50 degrees Celsius in some parts of Northern Europe.^[4]

Demographics[edit]

Countries in Northern Europe are known to have large, developed economies and some one of the highest standards of living in the world. All countries score highly on surveys measuring quality of life, such as the Human Development Index and the Happy Planet Index.

Northern Europe:[1]
Country	Area (km²)	Population (2011 est.)	Population density (per km²)	Capital	GDP (PPP) $M USD	GDP per capita (PPP) $ USD
Åland (Finland)	1,527	28,007	18.1	Mariehamn	(Finland)
Denmark	43,098	5,564,219	129	Copenhagen	$204,060	$36,810
Faroe Islands (Denmark)	1,399	48,917	35.0	Tórshavn	(Denmark)
Estonia	45,227	1,340,021	29	Tallinn	$27,207	$20,303
Finland	336,897	5,374,781	16	Helsinki	$190,862	$35,745
Guernseyd[›]	78	65,573	836.3	St Peter Port	$2,742	$41,815
Iceland	103,001	318,452	3.1	Reykjavík	$12,664	$39,823
Ireland	70,273	4,581,269	65.2	Dublin	$188,112	$42,076
Isle of Mand[›]	572	80,085	140	Douglas	$2,719	$33,951
Jerseyd[›]	116	92,500	797	Saint Helier	$5,100	$55,661
Latvia	64,589	2,067,900	34.3	Riga	$38,764	$17,477
Lithuania	65,200	3,221,216	50.3	Vilnius	$63,625	$19,391
Norway	385,252	4,905,200	15.1	Oslo	$256,523	$52,229
Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands (Norway)	61,395	2,572	0.042	Longyearbyen	(Norway)
Sweden	449,964	9,354,462	20.6	Stockholm	$381.719	$40,393
United Kingdom	243,610	62,008,048	254.7	London	$2,256,830	$38,376
Total	1,811,176	99,230,679	54.8 / km²		$3,591,077	$36,226

See also[edit]

	Geography portal
	Europe portal

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Northern Europe

References[edit]

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