British Isles British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe that consists of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man and over six thousand smaller isles. They have a total area of about 315,159 km and a combined population of just under 70 million, and include two sovereign states, the Republic of Ireland (which covers roughly five-sixths of the island of Ireland) and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The islands of Alderney, Jersey, Guernsey and Sark, and their neighbouring smaller islands, are sometimes
Terminology of the British Isles occasional misuse can be found on their web sites. The term "British Isles" can also be considered irritating or offensive by some on the grounds that the modern association of the term "British" with the United Kingdom makes its application to Ireland inappropriate. The term "British Isles" can also be considered to imply a proprietary title on the entire archipelago. The policy of the government of Ireland is that no branch of government should use the term, and although it is on occasion used in a geographical sense in Irish parliamentary debates, this is often done in a way that