Editing Northern Europe

{{short description|Northern region of the European continent}}
{{Distinguish|Nordic countries}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2024}}
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[[File:Satellite image of Northern Europe2.jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|A composed satellite photograph of islands and continental areas in and surrounding the [[North Sea]] and [[Baltic Sea]]]]
The northern region of [[Europe]] has several definitions. A restrictive definition may describe '''northern Europe''' as being roughly north of the southern coast of the [[Baltic Sea]], which is about [[54th parallel north|54°N]], or may be based on other geographical factors such as [[climate]] and [[ecology]].

==Climate==
[[File:Europe Köppen Map.png|thumb|upright=1.25|European climate. The [[Köppen climate classification]] map is presented by the [[Climatic Research Unit]] of the [[University of East Anglia]] and the Global Precipitation Climatology Center of the {{lang|de|[[Deutscher Wetterdienst]]|italic=no}}.]]

The climate is mainly [[Oceanic climate]] (Cfb), [[Humid continental climate]] (Dfb), [[Subarctic climate]] (Dfc and Dsc) and [[Tundra]] (ET).

==Geography==
{{Main|British Isles|Scandinavian Peninsula|Fennoscandia|Jutland|Baltic region}}
Northern Europe might be defined roughly to include some or all of the following areas: [[British Isles]], [[Fennoscandia]], the peninsula of [[Jutland]], the [[Baltic region|Baltic]] plain that lies to the east, and the many islands that lie offshore from mainland northern Europe and the main European continent. In some cases, [[Greenland]] is also included, although it is only politically European, comprising part of the [[Kingdom of Denmark]], and not considered to be geographically in Europe.

The area is partly mountainous, including the northern volcanic islands of [[Iceland]] and [[Jan Mayen]], and the mountainous western seaboard, [[Scotland]] and [[Scandinavia]], and also often includes part of the large plain east of the [[Baltic Sea]].

The entire region's climate is at least mildly affected by the [[Gulf Stream]]. From the west climates vary from [[oceanic climate|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 climate|continental]].

Just as both climate and relief are variable across the region, so too is vegetation, 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.

==Classifications==
There are various definitions of northern Europe which always include the [[Nordic countries]], often the [[British Isles]] and [[Baltic states]], and sometimes [[Greenland]].

===UN geoscheme classification===
[[File:Europe subregion map UN geoscheme.svg|thumb|upright=1.15|Subregions of Europe by [[United Nations geoscheme]]:<small>{{legend|#FF8080|[[Eastern Europe]]}}
{{legend|#4080FF|Northern Europe}}
{{legend|#00FF00|[[Southern Europe]]}}
{{legend|#00FFFF|[[Western Europe]]}}</small>]]

The United Nations geoscheme is a system devised by the [[United Nations Statistics Division]] (UNSD) which divides the countries of the world into [[region]]al and [[subregion]]al groups, based on the [[UN M49|M49 coding classification]]. The partition is for statistical convenience and does not imply any assumption regarding political or other affiliation of countries or territories.<ref name="m49">{{Cite web|url=https://unstats.un.org/unsd/methodology/m49/|title=UNSD — Methodology|website=unstats.un.org|access-date=17 June 2019|archive-date=30 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170830170949/https://unstats.un.org/unsd/methodology/m49/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the UN geoscheme, the following countries are classified as being in northern Europe:<ref name="m49" />
* [[Denmark]]
* [[Estonia]]
* [[Finland]]
* [[Iceland]]
* [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]]
* [[Latvia]]
* [[Lithuania]]
* [[Norway]]
* [[Sweden]]
* [[United Kingdom]]

as well as the dependent areas:
* [[Åland]]
* [[Channel Islands]]
** [[Bailiwick of Guernsey]]
** [[Bailiwick of Jersey]]
* [[Faroe Islands]]
* [[Isle of Man]]
* [[Svalbard and Jan Mayen]]

===EuroVoc===
[[File:European_Regions_EuroVoc_(Denmark_in_Northern_Europe).png|thumb|upright=1.15|European sub-regions according to [[EuroVoc]]:<small>{{legend|#0076D3|Northern Europe}}
{{legend|#67E863|[[Western Europe]]}}
{{legend|#FCFC00|[[Southern Europe]]}}
{{legend|#E62121|[[Central and Eastern Europe]]}}</small>]]
[[EuroVoc]] is a multilingual thesaurus maintained by the [[Publications Office of the European Union]], giving definitions of terms for official use. In the definition of "northern Europe", the following countries are included:<ref>{{cite web |last1=Publications Office of the European Union |title=EU Vocabularies 7206 Europe |url=https://publications.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/th-concept-scheme/-/resource/eurovoc/100277?target=Browse |publisher=[[EuroVoc]] |access-date=24 April 2019 |archive-date=24 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190424195555/https://publications.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/th-concept-scheme/-/resource/eurovoc/100277%3Ftarget%3DBrowse |url-status=live }}</ref>
*[[Estonia]]
*[[Latvia]]
*[[Lithuania]]
*[[Denmark]]
*[[Finland]]
*[[Iceland]]
*[[Norway]]
*[[Sweden]]
as well as the dependent area:
*[[Faroe Islands]]
In this classification [[Jersey]], [[Guernsey]], the [[Isle of Man]], the [[United Kingdom]] and [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]] are included in [[Western Europe]].

===''CIA World Factbook''===
[[File:Europe subregion map world factbook.svg|thumb|upright=1.15|Regions of Europe based on ''[[The World Factbook|CIA World Factbook]]'':<small>{{legend|#007FFF|Northern Europe}}
{{legend|#00FFFF|[[Western Europe]]}}
{{legend|#F0DC82|[[Central Europe]]}}
{{legend|#FF0000|[[Southwest Europe]]}}
{{legend|#66FF00|[[Southern Europe]]}}
{{legend|#D2691E|[[Southeast Europe]]}}
{{legend|#F88379|[[Eastern Europe]]}}</small>]]

In the ''[[The World Factbook|CIA World Factbook]]'', the description of each country includes information about "Location" under the heading "Geography", where the country is classified into a region. The following countries are included in their classification "northern Europe":<ref>{{cite web |last1=CIA |title=The World Factbook |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/ |access-date=26 January 2021 |archive-date=4 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210104183935/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
*[[Denmark]]
*[[Finland]]
*[[Iceland]]
*[[Norway]]
*[[Sweden]]
as well as the dependent areas:
*[[Faroe Islands]] 
*[[Jan Mayen]]
*[[Svalbard]]
In this classification [[Jersey]], [[Guernsey]], the [[Isle of Man]], the [[United Kingdom]] and [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]] are included in [[Western Europe]], while [[Estonia]], [[Latvia]] and [[Lithuania]] are included in [[Eastern Europe]].

===World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions===
[[File:WGSRPD Northern Europe.svg|thumb|upright=1.15|Northern Europe, as defined by the World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions]]
The [[World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions]] is a biogeographical system developed by the international [[Biodiversity Information Standards (TDWG)]] organization, formerly the International Working Group on Taxonomic Databases. The WGSRPD standards, like other standards for data fields in botanical databases, were developed to promote "the wider and more effective dissemination of information about the world's heritage of biological organisms for the benefit of the world at large". The system provides clear definitions and codes for recording [[plant]] distributions at four scales or levels, from "botanical continents" down to parts of large countries. The following countries are included in their classification of "northern Europe":<ref>{{Cite book |last = Brummitt |first = R. K. |year = 2001 |title = World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions |edition = 2nd |publisher = International Working Group on Taxonomic Databases For Plant Sciences (TDWG) |url = https://raw.githubusercontent.com/tdwg/wgsrpd/master/109-488-1-ED/2nd%20Edition/TDWG_geo2.pdf |access-date = 27 July 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160125135239/http://www.nhm.ac.uk/hosted_sites/tdwg/TDWG_geo2.pdf |archive-date = 25 January 2016}}</ref>
*[[Denmark]]
*[[Finland]]
*[[Iceland]]
*[[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]]
*[[Norway]]
*[[Sweden]]
*[[United Kingdom]]
as well as the dependent areas:
*[[Åland]]
*[[Faroe Islands]]
*[[Isle of Man]]
*[[Jan Mayen]]
*[[Svalbard]]

==Demographics==
[[File:AtlEurRelig.jpg|thumb|right|Map of Europe showing the largest religions by region. Islam is represented in green, Eastern Orthodox Christianity in blue, Roman Catholicism in purple, and the other colors represent branches of Protestantism.]]
Countries in northern Europe generally have developed economies and some of the highest standards of living in the world. They often score highly on surveys measuring quality of life, such as the [[Human Development Index]]. Aside from the United Kingdom, they generally have a small population relative to their size, most of whom live in cities. The quality of education in much of Northern Europe is rated highly in international rankings, with [[Estonia]] and [[Finland]] topping the list among the [[Programme for International Student Assessment|OECD]] countries in Europe.{{citation needed|date=January 2023}}

===Language===
[[Germanic languages]] are widely spoken in northern Europe with [[North Germanic languages]] being the most common first language in the Faroe Islands ([[Faroese language|Faroese]]),<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.faroeislands.fo/arts-culture/language/ |title=The Faroese Language |website=faroeislands.fo |access-date=27 June 2021 |archive-date=16 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210816183723/https://www.faroeislands.fo/arts-culture/language/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Iceland ([[Icelandic language|Icelandic]]),<ref>{{cite web |title=Act [No 61/2011] on the status of the Icelandic language and Icelandic sign language |url=http://eng.menntamalaraduneyti.is/media/MRN-pdf/Icelandic-Language-Act-tr-260711.pdf |publisher=[[Ministry of Education, Science and Culture (Iceland)|Ministry of Education, Science and Culture]] |access-date=15 November 2013 |page=1 |quote=Article 1; National language – official language; Icelandic is the national language of the Icelandic people and the official language in Iceland. Article 2; The Icelandic language — The national language is the common language of the Icelandic general public. Public authorities shall ensure that its use is possible in all areas of Icelandic society. All persons residing in Iceland must be given the opportunity to learn Icelandic and to use it for their general participation in Icelandic society, as further provided in leges speciales. |archive-date=11 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011124402/https://eng.menntamalaraduneyti.is/media/MRN-pdf/Icelandic-Language-Act-tr-260711.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> Denmark ([[Danish language|Danish]]),<ref name="Ethnologue">{{cite book |editor1-first=M. Paul |editor1-last=Lewis |year=2009 |title=Ethnologue: Languages of the World |edition=16th |publisher=SIL International. |location=Dallas, Texas |isbn=978-1-55671-216-6 |url=http://www.ethnologue.com/ |access-date=27 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071227170852/http://www.ethnologue.com/ |archive-date=27 December 2007 |url-status=live  }}</ref> Norway ([[Norwegian language|Norwegian]])<ref name="Vikor">{{cite web|url=http://www.sprakrad.no/Tema/Fakta/|author=Vikør, Lars|author-link=Lars Vikør|title=''Fakta om norsk språk''|access-date=9 February 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203190655/http://www.sprakrad.no/Tema/Fakta/|archive-date=3 February 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> and Sweden ([[Swedish language|Swedish]]).<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Parkvall |first1=Mikael |title=Sveriges språk. Vem talar vad och var? |journal=RAPPLING 1. Rapporter Från Institutionen för Lingvistik Vid Stockholms Universitet |date=2009 |page=24 |url=http://www.xn--sprkfrsvaret-vcb4v.se/sf/fileadmin/PDF/Parkvall_spraakstatistik.pdf |access-date=1 January 2023 |archive-date=20 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140920233246/http://www.xn--sprkfrsvaret-vcb4v.se/sf/fileadmin/PDF/Parkvall_spraakstatistik.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[West Germanic language]] [[English (language)|English]] is the most common first language in Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of Man, the United Kingdom and Ireland, however, the West Germanic language [[Scots (language)|Scots]] is also spoken as a minority language in parts of Scotland and Ireland.<ref name="Facts about Jersey">{{Cite news |date=30 November 2015 |title=Facts about Jersey |work=[[Government of Jersey]] |url=https://www.gov.je/Leisure/Jersey/Pages/Profile.aspx |access-date=4 January 2023 |archive-date=21 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191221081233/https://www.gov.je/Leisure/Jersey/Pages/Profile.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="English in UK">{{cite web |title=Languages – Languages |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/european_languages/countries/uk.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201102173300/http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/european_languages/countries/uk.shtml |archive-date=2 November 2020 |access-date=1 January 2023 |website=BBC}}</ref><ref name="Ranelagh">{{cite book |last1=Ranelagh |first1=John |title=A Short History of Ireland |date=1994 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-46944-9 |page=118 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xfx0VGIXiPYC&pg=PA118 |language=en |access-date=1 January 2023 |archive-date=18 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230918133912/https://books.google.com/books?id=xfx0VGIXiPYC&pg=PA118 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="UNESCO Languages"/> Beyond this, the [[Finnic languages]] of [[Finnish language|Finnish]] and [[Estonian language|Estonian]] are the most common first languages of Finland<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sprakinstitutet.fi/sv/om_sprak/sprak_i_finland |language=sv |title=Språk i Finland |trans-title=Language in Finland |date= |website=[[Institute for the Languages of Finland]] |access-date=4 January 2023 |archive-date=4 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104021948/https://www.sprakinstitutet.fi/sv/om_sprak/sprak_i_finland |url-status=live }}</ref> and Estonia<ref>{{cite web |title=The Estonian Language |url=http://www.estonica.org/en/Society/The_Estonian_Language/ |website=Estonica.org |access-date=15 October 2022 |archive-date=3 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200703043901/http://www.estonica.org/en/Society/The_Estonian_Language/ |url-status=live }}</ref> respectively. The [[Baltic languages]] of [[Lithuanian language|Lithuanian]] and [[Latvian language|Latvian]] are the most common first languages of Lithuania<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rodiklių duomenų bazė |title=Oficialiosios statistikos portalas |url=https://osp.stat.gov.lt/statistiniu-rodikliu-analize/?hash=ea516958-db7e-431f-931e-0f42e7f9e6bc&portletFormName=visualization#/ |website=osp.stat.gov.lt |language=lt-LT |access-date=4 January 2023 |archive-date=4 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104021935/https://osp.stat.gov.lt/statistiniu-rodikliu-analize/?hash=ea516958-db7e-431f-931e-0f42e7f9e6bc&portletFormName=visualization#/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and Latvia<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dažādu tautu valodu prasme |url=http://www.vvk.lv/index.php?sadala=129&id=389 |website=vvk.lv |language=lv |access-date=4 January 2023 |archive-date=11 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011121119/http://www.vvk.lv/index.php?sadala=129&id=389 |url-status=live }}</ref> respectively. A number of [[Celtic languages]] are spoken in the British Isles including the [[Brittonic languages|Brythonic]] [[Welsh language|Welsh]] and the [[Goidelic]] [[Scots Gaelic]] and [[Irish language|Irish]]. The Celtic languages [[Cornish language|Cornish]] and [[Manx language|Manx]] have been revived since becoming classed as extinct, being now spoken to a limited extent in [[Cornwall]] and the Isle of Man respectively.<ref name="UNESCO Languages">{{cite web |title=Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger |url=https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000187026/PDF/187026eng.pdf.multi |website=unesdoc.unesco.org |access-date=31 December 2022 |pages=39–40,164–165,182–183 |archive-date=20 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220920200715/https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000187026/PDF/187026eng.pdf.multi |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Norman language]]s of [[Jèrriais]] and [[Guernésiais]] are spoken in Jersey and Guernsey, though are listed as endangered due to the increasing prominence of English in the islands.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.endangeredlanguages.com/lang/8649|title=Endangered Languages Project – Jèrriais|language=en|access-date=10 September 2019|archive-date=11 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211112813/http://www.endangeredlanguages.com/lang/8649|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Sallabank |first=Julia |date=1 July 2013 |title=Can majority support save an endangered language? A case study of language attitudes in Guernsey |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2013.794808 |journal=Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development |volume=34 |issue=4 |pages=332–347 |doi=10.1080/01434632.2013.794808 |s2cid=144265439 |issn=0143-4632 |access-date=4 January 2023 |archive-date=18 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230918133916/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01434632.2013.794808 |url-status=live }}</ref>

While not the most common first languages in any country, [[Sámi languages]] such as [[North Sámi]], [[Lule Sámi]] and [[South Sámi]] are spoken in the transnational region of [[Sápmi]] and are listed as endangered.<ref name="UNESCO Languages"/>

===Religion===
{{See also|Reformation#Reformation outside Germany|label1=§ Reformation outside Germany}}
During the [[Early Middle Ages]], the [[Roman Catholic Church]] expanded into northern Europe and spread [[Christianity]] among the [[Germanic peoples]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Tanner |first1=Norman |title=New Short History of the Catholic Church |page=41}}</ref> Christianity reached the peoples of [[Scandinavia]] and the [[Baltic region]] in later centuries. The [[Latin alphabet]] <!-- replacing the [[runic alphabet]] in parts of [[Scandinavia]] and [[England]] -->along with the influence of [[Western Christianity]] spread northward from [[Rome]], leading to written [[English language|English]], [[German language|German]], [[Dutch language|Dutch]], [[Danish language|Danish]], [[Swedish language|Swedish]], [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]], [[Icelandic language|Icelandic]], [[Irish language|Irish]],<ref>{{Cite web |title=Celtic languages – Irish &#124; Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Celtic-languages/Irish |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230326031851/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Celtic-languages/Irish |archive-date=26 March 2023 |access-date=25 April 2023 |website=www.britannica.com}}</ref> [[Scottish Gaelic|Scottish]],<ref name=Mackenzie1992>{{cite journal|last=Mackenzie|first=Donald W.|year=1990–92|title=The Worthy Translator: How the Scottish Gaels got the Scriptures in their own Tongue|journal=Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness|volume=57|pages=168–202}}</ref> [[Welsh language|Welsh]],<ref name="Watkins">Watkins, T. Arwyn (1993) "Welsh" in Ball, Martin J. with Fife, James (Eds) ''The Celtic Languages.'' London/New York: Routledge: 289-348.</ref> [[Lithuanian language|Lithuanian]], [[Latvian language|Latvian]], [[Estonian language|Estonian]], [[Finnish language|Finnish]] and [[Sámi languages]]. The [[Sámi people|Sámi]] were the last peoples to be converted in the 18th century.<ref>Kenneth Scott Latourette, ''A history of expansion of Christianity. Vol 2. The thousand years of uncertainty: AD 500–AD 1500'' (1938) pp. 106–43.</ref>

==Regional cooperation==
[[File:White Sea Canal map.svg|thumb|The Russian [[White Sea–Baltic Canal]], connecting eastern Baltic Europe to the Arctic]]
The [[New Hanseatic League|Hansa]] group in the European Union comprises most of the northern European states, plus the Netherlands.

The [[melting of the Arctic]] is likely to create new possibilities and issues involving collaboration in the region.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Heininen |first=Lassi |date=2017-10-02 |title=The Arctic, Baltic, and North-Atlantic 'cooperative regions' in 'Wider Northern Europe': similarities and differences |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01629778.2017.1305180 |journal=Journal of Baltic Studies |volume=48 |issue=4 |pages=435–450 |doi=10.1080/01629778.2017.1305180 |issn=0162-9778}}</ref>

==See also==
<!-- {{Main|Outline of Northern Europe|Index of Northern Europe-related articles}} -->
{{Div col|colwidth=18em}}
* [[Archaeology of Northern Europe]]
* [[Arctic Circle]]
* [[Arctic Council]]
* [[Baltic Assembly]]
* [[Baltic Council of Ministers]]
* [[Baltoscandia]]
* [[British–Irish Council]]
* [[British–Irish Parliamentary Assembly]]
* [[Celtic nations]]
* [[Central Europe]]
* [[Common Travel Area]]
* [[Council of the Baltic Sea States]]
* [[Crown Dependencies]]
* [[European Free Trade Association]]
* [[Euroregion Baltic]]
* [[Joint Expeditionary Force]]
* [[List of Intangible Cultural Heritage elements in Northern Europe]]
* [[List of World Heritage Sites in Northern Europe]]
* [[New Hanseatic League]]
* [[Nordic-Baltic Eight]]
* [[Nordic Battlegroup]]
* [[Nordic Council]]
* [[Nordic cross flag]]
* [[Nordic identity in Estonia|Nordic Estonia]]
* [[Nordic model]]
* [[Nordic Passport Union]]
* [[North Sea Region]]
* [[Northern Dimension]]
* [[Northern European Gymnastics Championships]]
* [[Northern Future Forum]]
* [[Northwestern Europe]]
* [[OTSEM]]
* [[Roadex Project]]
* [[Southern Europe]]
* [[Synchronous grid of Northern Europe]]
* [[Vifanord]]
{{Div col end}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
<!-- {{Wikipedia-Books}} -->
<!-- * [[Bibliography of Northern Europe]] -->
* {{Commons-inline}}

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{{Portal bar|Geography<!-- |Eurasia -->|Europe<!-- |Northern Europe -->}}

[[Category:Northern Europe| ]]