Northern Europe
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The definition of continental subregions in use by the United Nations. |
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Northern Europe is marked in dark blue. |
Northern Europe is the northern part of the
European continent. At various times this region has been defined variously, but today it is generally seen to include:
* the
Nordic countries, including
Denmark,
Finland,
Iceland,
Norway and
Sweden, as well as
Åland, the
Faroe Islands and occasionally
Karelia,
Kola Peninsula,
Greenland and
Svalbard* the
Baltic states, i.e.
Lithuania,
Latvia, and
Estonia.
* the
Republic of Ireland, the
United Kingdom, the
Isle of Man and the
Channel Islands* occasionally other areas bordering the
Baltic Sea and the
North Sea, e.g. north-western
Russia, northern
Poland,
the Netherlands,
Belgium,
Luxembourg,
northern Germany.
Before the
19th century, the term 'Nordic' or 'Northern' was commonly used to mean Northern Europe in a sense that included the Nordic countries,
European Russia, the
Baltic countries (at that time
Livonia and
Courland) and
Greenland.
In earlier eras, 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 semi-
mythical place in the extreme northern reaches of the continent.
In a
European Union context,
Denmark,
Sweden,
Finland,
Germany,
Belgium and the
Netherlands are often seen as belonging to a
Northern group.
Danevirke and the
English Channel are often considered the dividing lines between the North and South of Europe, since everything below it was once ruled by the
Franks under
Charlemagne and everything above it was once ruled by the
Kingdom of England under
Canute the Great.
# The
Baltic (Sea) countries, as a related term, also include
Germany,
Poland and
Russia# The
Baltic States were during the
Cold War and before that during the height of the
Russian Empire considered to be part of
Eastern Europe, although the peoples are not
Slavs, and the
Baltic States share much history and many common traits with the
Nordic countries.#
Scandinavia is a somewhat ambiguous concept covering some or all of the Nordic countries.
