Europe Everything about Europe

Western Europe

Technically, Western Europe is supposed to be a group of countries situated in the western part of Europe, though the definition of Western Europe can be interpreted in many ways, both cultural and political. A definition of Western Europe is all those countries lying to Central Europe’s west. On the other hand, another definition for Western Europe is all the non communist European states and this was created during the Cold War. Hence, those countries lying to the east and in the center of Europe that did not have any Soviet influence are generally part of Western Europe whereas the members from the erstwhile Eastern Bloc are not included.

Moreover, it could have different geographic, cultural and economic meanings. Ever since World War II ended, Western Europe is regarded as all the countries that have high incomes and are developed and those that have democratic political systems, free market mixed economies, in good terms with the United States of America and is a member of the NATO. However, such a definition is slowly not being used because these characteristics do not apply to some countries now.

Based on the terms of the Marshall Plan, almost every country part of Western Europe received some form of economic assistance from America. A little later, majority of the countries joined the NATO and the European Community or their rival – European Free Trade Association.

Some of the countries that come under Western Europe are:

= The two winning countries of World War II – France and the UK.

= Those countries ruled by Nazi Germany and after the World War had been liberated like Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Belgium etc.

= West Germany, which is the 3 important zones of Germany that had Allies control. Now, the entire country of Germany comes under Western Europe.

= Italy-which was an erstwhile Axis group and whom had surrendered after the war.

= The year 1922 was when Ireland became independent and during the war, it had remained neutral. It decided never to join NATO but in 1973, they became part of the European Union.

= There were certain special cases like the Nordic countries. Though controlled by the Nazi Germany during the war, Norway and Denmark, now part of Western Europe were not freed by the Allied powers. During World War II, Iceland, which was still a part of Denmark, had been used by the US and UK for operations without causing any casualties. Once the war was over, Iceland declared its independence.

= Another country that is now part of Western Europe and remained neutral while the war was going on was Sweden.

= The Soviet Union invaded Finland twice but could still not manage to overpower them. Once the Winter War came to a close, the two countries signed the Moscow Peace Treaty.

= Greece, Portugal and Spain that were erstwhile authoritarian regimes decided to become democracies during the mid 1970s. After that, they became part of the European Union.

= Small European Microstates like Vatican City, Monaco, Liechtenstein, Malta, San Marino and Andorra come under Western Europe.

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European Motorcycles

Man has always been attracted by the notions of speed and power from the earlier centuries. For years, people in different continents have struggled hard to come up with new inventions and new machines that would help man to travel distances in short period of time and that is how machines like cars and motorcycles have come into existence. Though cars are still expensive, motorcycles have been the most affordable form of motorized transport. This two-wheeled motor vehicle is popular in every part of the globe and every country and continent has their own breed of motorcycles. However, European motorcycles and American motorcycles are the two famous breed of motorcycles that are still very much in demand.

European motorcycles were the first motorcycles ever to hit the roads when Daimler-Maybach invented their first motorcycle in the world. Later on many changes were made to the design of European motorcycles to make it more user-friendly and to support the engine that had more power to it. Soon European manufacturers like DKW and NSU became the largest producers of European motorcycles and remained on top position till 1970s. Moto-Guzzi also entered the competition and changed the appearance of traditional motorcycle looks to a futuristic race model. This design was an immediate success and craze for European motorcycles were now becoming a global phenomenon.

Though earlier European motorcycles had more of a looks and less of engine power, today European bike manufacturers make sure that their motorcycles are safe and provide more power and speed to the rider. Also European motorcycles have to meet the European emission standards which are also known as Euro III standards. BMW, Ducati, Triumph, Vespa and Piaggo are some of the European motorcycles that are in demand till date because of the power, speed and technology they provide to the rider.

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European Cuisine

Food is not only important from health point of view but also from cultural point of view. You might not be aware but you can find more about the particular culture from the type of food they prepare and eat. Hence, cuisines or the specific set of cooking traditions and practices are often associated with a specific culture. A cuisine is primarily influenced by the ingredients that are available locally and through trade. Factors like religion can greatly influence the cuisine and hence the importance of cuisines cannot be ignored.

European cuisine is also known as Western cuisine and is a term collectively referring to all the local cuisines in Europe and other western countries. European cuisine includes delicacies from Russia and other interior parts of Europe. Astonishingly, European cuisine is also known as Continental cuisine especially in parts of the United Kingdom. The term European cuisine was first used by the East Asians to emphasize on the difference between European cuisine and Asian cuisine. However, Westerners from North America, Australia and Latin America who travelled to Europe made the word European cuisine more popular globally and from then, local dishes and delicacies in Europe were termed as European cuisine.

North European cuisine included Danish cuisine, Estonian cuisine, Finnish cuisine, Irish cuisine, Swedish cuisine, English cuisine, Scottish cuisine, Welsh cuisine and Anglo-Indian cuisine. On the other hand South European cuisine included Albanian cuisine, Croatian cuisine, Greek cuisine, Italian cuisine, Sicilian cuisine, Macedonian cuisine, Portuguese cuisine, Spanish cuisine, and Turkish cuisine. Western European cuisine included Austrian, Belgian, French, German and Swiss cuisine that were popular in Europe as well as in countries outside Europe. Eastern European cuisine is strongly influenced by climate and includes East German cuisine, Polish cuisine, Russian cuisine, Bulgarian cuisine, Slovak cuisine, Romanian cuisine, Ukrainian cuisine, and Hungarian cuisine.

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Europe Population

It has been estimated that the Europe population is about 830.4 million. This constitutes to about 11% of the world population. The Europe population growth is relatively slower. The Europe population figures depend on the precise geographical extent of Europe. EU had a population of a little more than 400 million in the year 2008, while about 90 million people belonged to the non-EU countries situated in Europe. Europe earlier used to include about 25% of the world population and the population has only grown since but due to the rapid increase in population of Asian and African countries, the percentage has come down to about 12%. This share is estimated to fall about another 5 % in the next 40 years.  Europe population has a high life expectancy and low birth rate due to which many European countries might have to deal with declining population over the years.

The living standards have improved a lot and better social institutions have come about in Russia due to which it is expected to grow and stabilize in the next few years.  It has been observed that the Europe population is fast losing its faith in religion in support of secularism. Atheism is on the rise with many people admitting a non-belief in god. Church attendance has also declined.

The biggest ethnic group present in Europe is of the Russians with a population of about 90 million people in the European parts of Russia. It is followed by the Germans with a population of 80 million and the French whose population is estimated to be about 65 million. About 3% to 5% of the European population consists of non-European immigrant groups like the Africans and the Asians. German is the most commonly used language of the Europe population. It is followed by French and English.

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