Month: May 2024

The island of Guernsey is closer to France than to Great Britain, but it is actually a British Crown Dependency, which means that it is not technically part of the United Kingdom, even though the government of Britain handles its defence and foreign affairs. The name “Guernsey” comes from Old Norse, but the island has been settled since the Neolithic period. When a peace treaty was signed between Britain and France in 1483, Pope Sixtus IV issued a Papal Bull stating that anyone who bothered the Guernsey islanders would be automatically excommunicated.

Qatar has a population of over 2.5 million, but only about 12% are actually Qatari citizens, with the remainder expatriates from a large number of backgrounds, including South Asians, Filipinos, Egyptians and Europeans, drawn to the service and finance industries. While Arabic is the official language, English is the most common second language, and is often used as the language of commerce. Since the late twentieth century, Qatar has had a lively literature movement and, unusually for the region, a large number of published women authors.