Geography

The Isle of Man is part of the British Isles, an archipelago off the north-western coast of mainland Europe. The island lies in the Irish Sea, approximately equidistant between England, Scotland and Ireland. Approximately 48 kilometres (32 miles) long and between 13 and 24 kilometres (8 and 15 miles) wide, the island has an area of around 572 km² (221 square miles).

Hills in the north and south are bisected by a central valley. The extreme north is exceptionally flat, consisting mainly of deposits built up by deposition from glacial advances from Western Scotland during colder times. There are more recently deposited shingle beaches at the Point of Ayre. It has only one mountain higher than 2,000 feet, Snaefell, with a height of 621 metres (2,036 ft). According to an old saying, from the summit one can see six kingdoms: those of Mann, Scotland, England, Ireland, Wales, and Heaven.

People

According to the 2001 census, the Isle of Man is home to 76,315 people, of whom around 25,347 reside in the Island's capital, Douglas (Doolish). This gives the island a population density of 133 per square kilometre, or 345 people per square mile.

Government

Structure

The Isle of Man is a self-governing crown dependency. The Head of State is the Lord of Mann, who since 1765 has been the British Sovereign, currently Elizabeth II. She is represented by the Island's Lieutenant Governor. The United Kingdom is responsible for the Island's defence and for representing the Island in international forums, while the Island's own parliament has competence over almost all domestic matters.

The Island's parliament is Tynwald (Tinvaal), which dates from at least AD 979. Tynwald is a bicameral legislature, comprising the House of Keys (directly elected by universal suffrage) and the Legislative Council (consisting of indirectly elected and ex officio members). These two bodies meet together in joint session as Tynwald. There is a Council of Ministers, which is headed by the Chief Minister, currently Donald Gelling MLC.

Politics

Most Manx politicians stand for election as independents rather than as representatives of political parties. Though political parties do exist, their influence is not nearly as strong as is the case in the United Kingdom. Consequently, much Manx legislation develops through consensus among the members of Tynwald, which contrasts with the much more adversarial nature of the UK parliament.

One political party, Mec Vannin, advocates the establishment of a sovereign republic. A Manx Labour Party also exists, unaffiliated to the UK Labour Party. The island formerly had a Manx National Party and a Manx Communist party. There are Manx members in the Celtic League, a political pressure group that advocates greater co-operation between and political autonomy for the Celtic nations. The main political issues include the Island's relationship with the finance sector, housing prices and shortages, and the Manx language. The vast majority of the members of the House of Keys are non-partisan (19), with two representatives from the Manx Labour Party and three from the Alliance for Progressive Government. The next scheduled election is in 2006.

Local government

The Isle of Man is divided into six administrative districts, called sheadings. The six sheadings are Ayre, Glenfaba, Garff, Michael, Rushen and Middle. The sheadings form the basis of some constituencies and each has a Coroner. This office must not be confused with the Coroner for Inquests, a role usually fulfilled by the High Bailiff. A person may fulfil the role of coroner for more than one sheading at the same time.

The term 'sheading' is thought to be a Norse word for 'ship division'; each district was believed to be responsible for producing a certain number of warships. It could also be a Celtic word meaning 'sixth part'.

Economy

The Isle of Man is a low tax economy with income tax rates of 10% and 18% and 0% rate of corporate tax. Offshore banking, manufacturing, and tourism form key sectors of the economy of the Isle of Man. The government's policy of offering incentives to high-technology companies and financial institutions to locate on the Island has expanded employment opportunities in high-income industries. As a result, agriculture and fishing, once the mainstays of the economy, have declined in their shares of gross domestic product (GDP). Banking and other services now contribute the great bulk of GDP. Trade takes place mostly with the United Kingdom. The Isle of Man has access to European Union markets.

The Isle of Man has also recently entered the online gambling industry. In 2005 PokerStars, one of the world's largest online poker sites, relocated its headquarters to the Isle of Man from Costa Rica.

The Manx government also promotes island locations for making films by contributing to the production costs. Among the most successful productions funded in part by the Isle of Man film industry was Waking Ned where the Manx countryside stood in for rural Ireland plus films like Stormbreaker, Shergar, Tom Brown's Schooldays, I Capture the Castle, The Libertine (with Johnny Depp), Island at War (TV series), 5 Children and IT, Colour me Kubrick, Sparkle
Since 1999, the Isle of Man has received electricity through the world's longest submarine AC cable, the 90 kV Isle of Man to England Interconnector, as well as from a natural gas power station in Douglas, an oil power station in Peel and a small hydro-electric power station in Sulby Glen.

History

Ancient times to present

The Isle of Man became a Viking outpost/kingdom from circa AD 700 to AD 900. The Norse Kingdom of Mann and the Isles was created by Godred Crovan in 1079. Norway's King Magnus VI ceded the isles to Scotland in 1266, as dictated in the Treaty of Perth. The Isle of Man came under English control in the 14th century and to the British Crown in 1765.

The Isle of Man was used as a base for Alien Civilian Internment camps in both the First World War (1914-18) and the Second World War (1939-45).

Sport

The Isle of Man is represented as a nation in the Commonwealth Games and the Island Games and will be hosting the IV Commonwealth Youth Games in 2011. The Island started the Island Games in 1985.

Isle of Man teams and individuals participate in many sports both on and off the island. Among the many sports played on the island are cricket, football, gymnastics, hockey and Rugby Union.