Overview

Scotland occupies roughly the northern one-third of the British Isles; its area is 30,414 square miles (78,772 square kilometers), or about the size of the state of Maine. A fault line separates the country into the northern Highlands and the southern Lowlands, the agricultural and industrial center of the country. In addition, there are several island groups offshore, notably the Hebrides, Shetland, and Orkney Islands. Two-thirds of the nation's population of 5,100,000 live in the Lowlands, most near the country's two largest cites—Edinburgh, the Scottish capital, and Glasgow. The other major cities of Dundee and Aberdeen reflect Scotland's major industries, particularly fishing and shipbuilding, and its strong ties to maritime commerce. The name Scotland derives from a Gaelic word for "wanderer."

Although the Highlands occupy a greater land mass than the Lowlands, they are more sparsely populated. There are also distinct cultural differences...