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{{InfoboxShort description|Subregion of the European regions|continent}}
{{distinguish|Western European Union}}
Map=Western-Europe-map.png|
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}}
Subregions=[[British Isles]],<br />[[Benelux]]|
{{EngvarB|date=April 2024}}
Area=1,036,040 km²|
'''Western Europe''' is the western region of [[Europe]]. The region's extent varies depending on context.
Population=152,056,102|
The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean world, the [[Latin West]] of the [[Roman Empire]], and "[[Western Christendom]]". Beginning with the [[Renaissance]] and the [[Age of Discovery]], roughly from the 15th century, the concept of ''Europe'' as "the [[Western world|West]]" slowly became distinguished from and eventually replaced the dominant use of "Christendom" as the preferred [[endonym]] within the area.<ref>{{Cite book|chapter=The Westernisation of Europe|page=30|year=1995|title=Inventing Europe Idea, Identity, Reality|first=Gerard|last=Delanty|isbn=978-0-333-62203-2|doi=10.1057/9780230379657|quote="Until the late fifteenth century the idea of Europe was principally a geographical expression and subordinated to Christendom which was the dominant identity system in the West. The idea of Europe as the West began to be consolidated in the foreign conquests of the age of 'discovery" (...) "Europe then begins to shed itself of its association with Christendom and slowly becomes an autonomous discourse."}}</ref> By the [[Age of Enlightenment]] and the [[Industrial Revolution]], the concepts of "[[Eastern Europe]]" and "Western Europe" were more regularly used.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://philpapers.org/rec/SUSWIE|title=What Is Eastern Europe? A Philosophical Approach|first=Julia|last=Sushytska|editor-first=Costica|editor-last=Bradatan|journal=[[Angelaki]]|publisher=[[Routledge]]|pages=39–51|year=2012}}</ref> The distinctiveness of Western Europe became most apparent during the [[Cold War]], when Europe was divided for 40 years by the [[Iron Curtain]] into the [[Western Bloc]] and [[Eastern Bloc]], each characterised by distinct political and economical systems.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Key factors in the start of the Cold War upto 1955 - Reasons for the Cold War - Higher History Revision |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/z8qnsbk/revision/1 |access-date=2024-02-23 |website=BBC Bitesize |language=en-GB}}</ref>
Density=xx.xx/km²|
Life expectancy=xx.xx|
Major cities=[[London]], [[Paris]], [[Amsterdam]], [[Brussels]], [[Birmingham]]|
Major languages=[[French language|French]], [[English language|English]], [[Dutch language|Dutch]], [[Walloon language|Walloon]], [[Occitan language|Occitan]]|
Total GDP=$3593.5 billion|
GDP per capita=$21,900|
Unemployment=x.xx%|
Telephone subscribers=202,836,600|
Telephone penetration=123.36%|
}}
[[Image:Europe-western-countries.png|right|Map of Europe with the western countries highlighted]]
'''Western Europe''' is distinguished from [[Central Europe]] and [[Eastern Europe]] by differences of [[history]] and [[culture]] rather than by [[geography]]. However, these boundaries of [[Europe]] are subject to considerable overlap and fluctuation, which makes differentiation difficult. Thus the concept of Western Europe is associated with [[liberal democracy]]; and its countries are generally deemed to be well within the cultural hegemony of the [[United States|United States of America]].
 
==Historical definitionsdivisions==
{{original research|date=September 2020|section}}
 
===Classical antiquity and medieval origins===
Up to [[World War I]], "Western Europe" was thought to comprise [[France]], the [[British Isles]] and [[Benelux]]. These countries represented the [[democracy|democratic]] victors of both world wars; and their ideological approach was spread further east as a consequence, in a process not unlike the ideological effect of the [[Napoleonic Wars]], when new ideas spread from [[French Revolution|revolutionary France]]. <!-- Montesquieu and the Enlightment (with 18th ct Parliamentarism in Britain and Sweden) maybe ought to be mentioned? -->
[[File:Expansion of christianity.jpg|thumb|upright=1.15|[[East–West Schism|Schism of 1054 (East–West Schism)]] in [[Chalcedonian Christianity|Christianity]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://rbedrosian.com/Maps/ahgh66b.htm |title=Atlas of the Historical Geography of the Holy Land |publisher=Rbedrosian.com |access-date=23 February 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130610034842/http://rbedrosian.com/Maps/ahgh66b.htm |archive-date=10 June 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://home.comcast.net/~DiazStudents/MiddleAgesChurchMap1.jpg |title=home.comcast.net |access-date=23 February 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130213233630/http://home.comcast.net/~DiazStudents/MiddleAgesChurchMap1.jpg |archive-date=13 February 2013 }}</ref>]]
 
Prior to the [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] conquest, a large part of Western Europe had adopted the newly developed [[La Tène culture]]. As the Roman ___domain expanded, a cultural and linguistic division appeared between the mainly [[Koine Greek|Greek]]-speaking eastern provinces, which had formed the highly urbanised [[Hellenistic period|Hellenistic civilisation]], and the western territories, which in contrast largely adopted the [[Latin]] language. This cultural and linguistic division was eventually reinforced by the later political east–west division of the [[Roman Empire]]. The [[Western Roman Empire]] and the [[Byzantine Empire|Eastern Roman Empire]] controlled the two divergent regions between the 3rd and the 5th centuries.
During the [[Cold War]], this ideological designation of ''Western Europe'' was supplemented with the aspect of [[market economy|market economies]] in [[the West]] versus the [[planned economy|planned economies]] of [[Eastern Europe]], reflecting the [[anti-Bolshevism]] that was aroused in Western Europe by the [[Russian Revolutions of 1917]] and the remaining opposition to the [[Soviet Union]] in general. Thus ''Western Europe'' came to include both traditional democracies outside of [[NATO]], as [[Finland]], [[Sweden]] and [[Switzerland]], and some market economy [[dictatorship]]s, as [[Portugal]] and [[Spain]]. This is also why NATO members such as [[Greece]] and [[Turkey]] were generally considered Western European even though they are geographically in the southeast. The border between Western and Eastern Europe, the [[Iron Curtain]], was securely defended.
 
The division between these two was enhanced during [[late antiquity]] and the [[Middle Ages]] by a number of events. The [[Fall of the Western Roman Empire|Western Roman Empire collapsed]], starting the [[Early Middle Ages]]. By contrast, the Eastern Roman Empire, mostly known as the Greek or [[Byzantine Empire]], survived and even thrived for another 1000 years. The rise of the [[Carolingian Empire]] in the west, and in particular the [[East-West Schism|Great Schism]] between [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Eastern Orthodoxy]] and [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]], enhanced the cultural and religious distinctiveness between Eastern and Western Europe.
Until the [[enlargement of the European Union]] of [[2004]], ''Western Europe'' was sometimes associated with that Union, although non-members such as [[Norway]] and Switzerland unquestionably were considered parts of Western Europe, although the connection to [[NATO]] or to the [[European Union]] increasingly may be perceived as historical.
 
After the [[Decline of the Byzantine Empire|conquest of the Byzantine Empire]], center of the Eastern Orthodox Church, by the [[Muslim]] [[Ottoman Empire]] in the 15th century, and the gradual fragmentation of the [[Holy Roman Empire]] (which had replaced the [[Carolingian Empire]]), the division between Roman Catholic and [[Protestantism|Protestant]] became more important in Europe than that with Eastern Orthodoxy.
==Contemporary definition==
 
In [[East Asia]], Western Europe was historically known as {{lang|zh|taixi}} in China and {{lang|ja|taisei}} in Japan, which literally translates as the "[[Far West (Taixi)|Far West]]". The term Far West became synonymous with Western Europe in China during the [[Ming dynasty]]. The Italian Jesuit priest [[Matteo Ricci]] was one of the first writers in China to use the Far West as an Asian counterpart to the European concept of the [[Far East]]. In Ricci's writings, Ricci referred to himself as "Matteo of the Far West".<ref>{{cite book|first=Matteo|last=Ricci|others=Translated by Timothy Billings|title=On Friendship: One Hundred Maxims for a Chinese Prince|year=1610|orig-year=2009|publisher=Columbia University Press|isbn=978-0-231-14924-2|pages=19, 71, 87}}</ref> The term was still in use in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
After the fall of Communism in [[1989]] and the early [[1990s]], and especially after the EU's eastward enlargement of 2004, the borders of Western Europe were once again redefined. This was mainly due to the fact that the former [[Eastern Bloc]] countries adopted free market economies similar to those of Western Europe. Along with their integration in the Euro-Atlantic structures, it was no longer necessary to divide Europe into East and West. Instead, new regions centered around geography and common culture/history were established. Countries previously considered Western European, such as Germany and Austria, became [[Central Europe|Central European]], while [[Spain]] and [[Portugal]] became part of [[Southern Europe]] due to their common culture.
 
===Religion===
For this reason, Western Europe today includes those countries in the western geographical part of the continent which have shared a common history during the European Enlightenment and Renaissance:
[[Christianity]] is the largest religion in Western Europe. According to a 2018 study by the [[Pew Research Center]], 71.0% of Western Europeans identified as Christians.<ref>{{citation|title=Being Christian in Western Europe|work=Pew Research Center |year=2018|url=http://www.pewforum.org/2018/05/29/being-christian-in-western-europe/ |access-date=29 May 2018 |publisher=Pew Research Center}}</ref>
 
In 1054, the [[East–West Schism]] divided Christianity into [[Western Christianity]] and [[Eastern Christianity]]. This split Europe in two, with Western Europe primarily under the [[Catholic Church]], and much of [[Eastern Europe]] under the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]]. Ever since the [[Reformation]] in the 16th century, [[Protestantism]] has also been a major denomination in Europe, mostly in the West.
*[[France]] and [[Monaco]]
*[[Benelux]] - [[Belgium]], [[Netherlands]], [[Luxembourg]]
*[[British Isles]] - the [[United Kingdom]], [[Ireland]], [[Isle of Man]], [[Channel Islands]]
 
==Expanded=Cold defitionWar ===
[[File:Europe-blocs-49-89x4.svg|thumb|Political spheres of influence in Europe during the [[Cold War]]; neutral countries (shaded grey or light blue) considered informally Western-oriented but not formally aligned to the West]]
During the four [[Decade|decades]] of the [[Cold War]], the definition of East and West was simplified by the existence of the [[Eastern Bloc]]. A number of historians and social scientists view the Cold War definition of Western and Eastern Europe as outdated or relegating.<ref name="cotf.edu">"One very common, but now outdated, definition of Eastern Europe was the Soviet-dominated communist countries of Europe."http://www.cotf.edu/earthinfo/balkans/BKdef.html {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171210020555/http://www.cotf.edu/earthinfo/balkans/BKdef.html |date=10 December 2017 }}</ref><ref name="review">"Too much writing on the region has – consciously or unconsciously – clung to an outdated image of 'Eastern Europe', desperately trying to patch together political and social developments from Budapest to Bukhara or Tallinn to Tashkent without acknowledging that this Cold War frame of reference is coming apart at the seams. {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20171031132532/http://www.ce-review.org/99/1/hanley1.html Central Europe Review: Re-Viewing Central Europe By Sean Hanley, Kazi Stastna and Andrew Stroehlein, 1999]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Berglund |first1=Sten |last2=Ekman |first2=Joakim |last3=Aarebrot |first3=Frank H. |title=The handbook of political change in Eastern Europe |page=2 |year=2004 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=HeRzzwzdfPkC&q=Eastern+Europe+term+outdated&pg=PA2 |access-date=5 October 2011 |quote=The term 'Eastern Europe' is ambiguous and in many ways outdated. |isbn=978-1-78195-432-4 }}</ref>
 
During the final stages of [[World War II]], the future of Europe was decided between the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] in the 1945 [[Yalta Conference]], between the [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|British Prime Minister]], [[Winston Churchill]], the [[President of the United States|U.S. President]], [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], and the [[Premier of the Soviet Union]], [[Joseph Stalin]].
While the division of Europe into geographical-cultural regions, such as Central Europe and Northern Europe, was satisfactory, there remains a moderate East-West divide in Europe, mainly in terms of standard of living if not in economic models and politics. Therefore, sometimes people refer to Western Europe in a broader way, talking about those countries which have highly developed economies and high standards of living, as opposed to the moderately-developed economies of the former [[Eastern Bloc]]. This expanded definition, commonly includes, alongside France, the Benelux and the British Isles, also:
 
Post-war Europe was divided into two major spheres: the [[Western Bloc]], influenced by the [[United States]], and the [[Eastern Bloc]], influenced by the [[Soviet Union]]. With the onset of the Cold War, Europe was divided by the [[Iron Curtain]]. This term had been used during [[World War II]] by German [[Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda|Propaganda Minister]] [[Joseph Goebbels]] and, later, Count [[Lutz Graf Schwerin von Krosigk|Lutz Schwerin von Krosigk]] in the last days of the war; however, its use was hugely popularised by Winston Churchill, who used it in his famous "Sinews of Peace" address on 5 March 1946 at [[Westminster College (Missouri)|Westminster College]] in [[Fulton, Missouri]]:
* the [[Nordic countries]] ([[Iceland]], [[Norway]], [[Sweden]], [[Finland]], [[Denmark]])
 
{{blockquote|From [[Szczecin|Stettin]] in the [[Baltic Sea|Baltic]] to [[Trieste]] in the [[Adriatic Sea|Adriatic]] an ''iron curtain'' has descended across the Continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the ancient states of [[Central and Eastern Europe]]. [[Warsaw]], [[Berlin]], [[Prague]], [[Vienna]], [[Budapest]], [[Belgrade]], [[Bucharest]] and [[Sofia]]; all these famous cities and the populations around them lie in what I must call the Soviet sphere, and all are subject, in one form or another, not only to Soviet influence but to a very high and in some cases increasing measure of control from Moscow.}}
 
Although some countries were officially [[Neutral country|neutral]], they were classified according to the nature of their political and economic systems. This division largely defines the popular perception and understanding of Western Europe and its borders with [[Eastern Europe]] on the east side. On the western side is the Atlantic ocean.
 
The world changed dramatically with the fall of the [[Iron Curtain]] in 1989. [[West Germany]] peacefully absorbed [[East Germany]], in the [[German reunification]]. [[Comecon]] and the [[Warsaw Pact]] were dissolved, and in 1991, the [[Dissolution of the Soviet Union|Soviet Union]] ceased to exist. Several countries which had been part of the Soviet Union regained full independence.
 
===Western European Union===
[[File:Western European Union (1995-2011).svg|thumb|upright=1.15|Member states of the [[Western European Union]] (1995–2011)]]
In 1948 the [[Treaty of Brussels]] was signed between [[Belgium]], [[France]], [[Luxembourg]], the [[Netherlands]] and the [[United Kingdom]]. It was further revisited in 1954 at the [[London and Paris Conferences#Paris|Paris Conference]], when the [[Western European Union]] was established. It was declared defunct in 2011 after the [[Treaty of Lisbon]], and the Treaty of Brussels was terminated. When the Western European Union was dissolved, it had 10 member countries. Additionally, it had 6 associate member countries, 7 associate partner countries and 5 observer countries.
 
==Modern divisions==
 
===UN geoscheme classification===
[[File:Europe subregion map UN geoscheme.svg|thumb|upright=1.15|Subregions of Europe by [[United Nations geoscheme]].<br>{{legend|#FF8080|[[Eastern Europe]]}}
{{legend|#4080FF|[[Northern Europe]]}}
{{legend|#00FF00|[[Southern Europe]]}}
{{legend|#00FFFF|Western Europe}}]]
 
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= Methodology|website=UNSD |access-date=17 June 2019}}</ref>
 
In the UN geoscheme, the following countries are classified as Western Europe:<ref name="m49" />
* [[Austria]]
* [[Belgium]]
* [[France]]
* [[Germany]]
* the [[Alpine countries]] ([[Switzerland]], [[Liechtenstein]], [[Austria]])
* [[Luxembourg]]
* the [[Apennine peninsula]] ([[Italy]], [[San Marino]], [[Vatican City]])
* [[Monaco]]
* the [[Iberian peninsula]] ([[Spain]], [[Andorra]], [[Portugal]])
* [[Netherlands]]
* in a political context also [[Greece]], [[Cyprus]], [[Malta]], and occasionally even [[Turkey]].
* [[Switzerland]]
 
===CIA classification===
It ought to be borne in mind that the concepts of Europe's division overlap. The ''Nordic countries'' being counted to ''Western Europe'', in the extended political definition, does not at all hinder their also being considered part of geographical or cultural [[Northern Europe]]. Similarly, the ''Alpine countries'' may be considered part of [[Central Europe]], and Italy, the Iberian countries, Monaco, Greece and southern France part of [[Southern Europe]] as well.
[[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>]]
 
The [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] classifies seven countries as belonging to "Western Europe":<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2144.html |title=Field listing: Location |publisher=CIA World Factbook |access-date=30 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524151212/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2144.html |archive-date=24 May 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
The [[Alpine country]] of [[Slovenia]] may by some be counted to ''Western Europe'', similarly to how some would consider [[Estonia]] as a [[Nordic country]], and hence maybe also to ''Western Europe.''
 
*[[Belgium]]
==Further reading==
*[[France]]
*[[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]]
*[[Luxembourg]]
*[[Monaco]]
*[[Netherlands]]
*[[United Kingdom]]
 
The CIA also classifies three countries as belonging to "Southwestern Europe":
*Bader, William B. "The Future of Area Studies: Western Europe." ''Society'' 22 (May-June 1985): 6-8. EJ 317 736.
 
*Baker, John A. "The North Atlantic Treaty Organization at 40." ''Social Education'' 53 (February 1989): 109-112. EJ 386 460.
*[[Andorra]]
*Bruce, Michael G. "Teaching For and About Europe." ''Phi Delta Kappan'' 65 (January 1984): 364-66. EJ 291 519.
*[[Portugal]]
*Bruce, Michael G. "Europe in European Curricula." ''Phi Delta Kappan'' 68 (March 1987): 551-52. EJ 349 197.
*[[Spain]]
*Daltrop, Anne. ''Politics and the European Community''. 2nd edition. New York: Longman, 1986.
 
*DePorte, Anton W. ''The Atlantic Alliance at 35''. New York: Foreign Policy Association, 1984. ED 270 372.
=== EuroVoc classification===
*Gagnon, Paul. ''Democracy's Untold Story: What World History Textbooks Neglect''. Washington, DC: American Federation of Teachers, 1987. ED 313 268.
[[File:European_Regions_EuroVoc_(Denmark_in_Northern_Europe).png|thumb|upright=1.15|European sub-regions according to [[Eurovoc|EuroVoc]]:
*Hallstein, Walter. ''Europe in the Making''. London: George Allen and Unwin, 1972.
<small>{{legend|#0076D3|[[Northern Europe]]}}
*Metcalf, Fay, and Catherine Edwards.''Materials for Teaching about Europe: An annotated Bibliography for Educators''. Washington, DC: Atlantic Council of the United States, 1986. ED 272 439.
{{legend|#67E863|Western Europe}}
*Schuchart, Kelvin. "The European Economic Community." ''Social Studies'' 77 (January-February 1986): 19-22. EJ 335 130.
{{legend|#FCFC00|[[Southern Europe]]}}
*Shennan, Margaret. "Goals for Teaching About Europe." ''The Social Studies'' 77 (January-February 1986): 8-12. EJ 335 127.
{{legend|#E62121|[[Central and Eastern Europe]]}}</small>]]
*Stillwell, Neil C. ''Teaching about Western Europe: A Resource Guide''. Bloomington, IN: ERIC Clearinghouse for Social Studies/Social Science Education, 1988. ED 302 494.
[[EuroVoc]] is a multilingual thesaurus maintained by the [[Publications Office of the European Union]]. In this thesaurus, the countries of Europe are grouped into sub-regions.<ref name="EuroVoc">{{cite web|title=EuroVoc: 7206 Europe|url=https://op.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/concept-scheme/-/resource?uri=http://eurovoc.europa.eu/100277|accessdate=9 February 2021}}</ref> The following countries are included in the sub-group Western Europe:<ref name="WE">{{cite web|title=EuroVoc: Western Europe|url=https://op.europa.eu/en/web/eu-vocabularies/concept/-/resource?uri=http://eurovoc.europa.eu/913&lang=en|accessdate=9 February 2021}}</ref>
* [[Andorra]]
* [[Austria]]
* [[Belgium]]
* [[France]]
* [[Germany]]
* [[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]]
* [[Liechtenstein]]
* [[Luxembourg]]
* [[Monaco]]
* [[Netherlands]]
* [[Switzerland]]
* [[United Kingdom]]
 
===UN regional groups: Western European and Others Group===
[[File:UN WEOG members.svg|thumb|upright=1.4|WEOG member and observer states]]
The [[Western European and Others Group]] is one of several unofficial [[United Nations Regional Groups|Regional Groups]] in the [[United Nations]] that act as [[voting bloc]]s and negotiation forums. Regional voting blocs were formed in 1961 to encourage voting to various UN bodies from different regional groups. The European members of the group are:<ref>[http://data.unaids.org/pub/Manual/2009/jc1682_governancehandbook_lr_en.pdf ''UNAIDS, The Governance Handbook'', January 2010] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110109143548/http://data.unaids.org/pub/Manual/2009/jc1682_governancehandbook_lr_en.pdf |date=9 January 2011 }} (p. 29).</ref>
{{colbegin|colwidth=12em}}
*[[Andorra]]
*[[Austria]]
*[[Belgium]]
*[[Denmark]]
*[[Finland]]
*[[France]]
*[[Germany]]
*[[Greece]]
*[[Iceland]]
*[[Republic of Ireland|Ireland]]
*[[Italy]]
*[[Liechtenstein]]
*[[Luxembourg]]
*[[Malta]]
*[[Monaco]]
*[[Netherlands]]
*[[Norway]]
*[[Portugal]]
*[[San Marino]]
*[[Spain]]
*[[Sweden]]
*[[Switzerland]]
*[[Turkey]]
*[[United Kingdom]]
{{colend}}
 
In addition, [[Australia]], [[Canada]], [[Israel]] and [[New Zealand]] are members of the group, with the [[United States]] as observer.
 
==Population==
Using the CIA classification strictly would give the following calculation of Western Europe's population. All figures based on the projections for 2018 by the Population Division of the [[United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs]].<ref name="unpop">{{cite web | url=https://esa.un.org/unpd/wpp/DataQuery/ | title=World Population Prospects 2018 | access-date=14 October 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160919061238/https://esa.un.org/unpd/wpp/DataQuery/ | archive-date=19 September 2016 | url-status=dead }}</ref>
 
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="border:1px solid #aaa;"
! Rank
! Country or territory
! Population<br>(most recent estimates)
! Languages
! Capital
|-
! 1
| align=left|United Kingdom
| align=right|{{nts|66040229}}
| align=center|[[English language|English]]
| align=center|[[London]]
|-
! 2
| align=left|France (metropolitan)
| align=right|{{nts|65058000}}
| align=center|[[French language|French]]
| align=center|[[Paris]]
|-
! 3
| align=left|Netherlands
| align=right|{{nts|17889600}}
| align=center|[[Dutch language|Dutch]], [[West Frisian language|Frisian]]
| align=center|[[Amsterdam]] <sup>'''1'''</sup>
|-
! 4
| align=left|Belgium
| align=right|{{nts|11420163}}
| align=center|[[Dutch language|Dutch]], [[French language|French]] and [[German language|German]]
| align=center|[[City of Brussels|Brussels]]
|-
! 5
| align=left|Ireland
| align=right|{{nts|5123536}}
| align=center|[[English language|English]], [[Irish language|Irish]]
| align=center|[[Dublin]]
|-
! 6
| align=left|Luxembourg
| align=right|{{nts|602005}}
| align=center|[[French language|French]], [[Luxembourgish]] and [[German language|German]]
| align=center|[[Luxembourg City]]
|-
! 7
| align=left|Monaco
| align=right|{{nts|38300}}
| align=center|[[French language|French]]
| align=center|[[Monaco]] (city-state)
|- class="sortbottom"
! Total
!
! {{nts|165265329}}
!
!
|}
 
Using the CIA classification a little more liberally and including "South-Western Europe", would give the following calculation of Western Europe's population.<ref name="unpop"/>
 
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="border:1px solid #aaa;"
|- style="background:#ececec;"
! Rank
! Country or territory
! Population<br>(most recent estimates)
! Languages
! Capital
|-
! 1
| align=left|United Kingdom
| align=right|{{nts|66040229}}
| align=center|[[English language|English]]
| align=center|[[London]]
|-
! 2
| align=left|France (metropolitan)
| align=right|{{nts|65058000}}
| align=center|[[French language|French]]
| align=center|[[Paris]]
|-
! 3
| align=left|Spain
| align=right|{{nts|46700000}}
| align=center|[[Spanish language|Spanish]]
| align=center|[[Madrid]]
|-
! 4
| align=left|Netherlands
| align=right|{{nts|17889600}}
| align=center|[[Dutch language|Dutch]], [[West Frisian language|Frisian]]
| align=center|[[Amsterdam]]<sup>1</sup>
|-
! 5
| align=left|Belgium
| align=right|{{nts|11420163}}
| align=center|[[Dutch language|Dutch]], [[French language|French]] and German
| align=center|[[City of Brussels|Brussels]]
|-
! 6
| align=left|Portugal
| align=right|{{nts|10291027}}
| align=center|[[Portuguese language|Portuguese]]
| align=center|[[Lisbon]]
|-
! 7
| align=left|Ireland
| align=right|{{nts|5123536}}
| align=center|[[English language|English]], [[Irish language|Irish]]
| align=center|[[Dublin]]
|-
! 8
| align=left|Luxembourg
| align=right|{{nts|602005}}
| align=center|[[French language|French]], [[Luxembourgish]] and [[German language|German]]
| align=center|[[Luxembourg City]]
|-
! 9
| align=left|Andorra
| align=right|{{nts|78264}}
| align=center|[[Catalan language|Catalan]]
| align=center|[[Andorra la Vella]]
|-
! 10
| align=left|Monaco
| align=right|{{nts|38300}}
| align=center|[[French language|French]]
| align=center|[[Monaco]] (city-state)
|- class="sortbottom"
! Total
!
! {{nts|222293922}}
!
!
|}
 
<sup>1</sup> <small>The Hague is the seat of government</small><ref>{{Cite web|title=Europe :: Netherlands — The World Factbook |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/netherlands/|access-date=6 October 2020|website=Central Intelligence Agency }}</ref>
 
==Climate==
[[File:Europe Köppen Map.png|thumb|upright=1.25|European climate. The [[Köppen-Geiger climate classification|Köppen-Geiger climates]] map is presented by the Climatic Research Unit of the University of East Anglia and the Global Precipitation Climatology Center of the Deutscher Wetterdienst.]]
The climate of Western Europe varies from [[Mediterranean climate|Mediterranean]] in the coasts of [[Italy]], [[Portugal]] and [[Spain]] to [[alpine climate|alpine]] in the [[Pyrenees]] and the [[Alps]]. The [[Mediterranean climate]] of the south is dry and warm. The western and northwestern parts have a mild, generally humid climate, influenced by the [[North Atlantic Current]]. Western Europe is a [[Heat wave|heatwave]] hotspot, exhibiting upward trends that are three-to-four times faster compared to the rest of the northern midlatitudes.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Rousi |first1=Efi |last2=Kornhuber |first2=Kai |last3=Beobide-Arsuaga |first3=Goratz |last4=Luo |first4=Fei |last5=Coumou |first5=Dim |date=4 July 2022 |title=Accelerated western European heatwave trends linked to more-persistent double jets over Eurasia |journal=Nature Communications |language=en |volume=13 |issue=1 |pages=3851 |doi=10.1038/s41467-022-31432-y |pmid=35788585 |pmc=9253148 |bibcode=2022NatCo..13.3851R |s2cid=250282752 |issn=2041-1723|doi-access=free }}</ref>
 
==Languages==
{{See also|Languages of Europe|Indo-European languages|List of Indo-European languages}}
Western European languages mostly fall within two [[Indo-European languages|Indo-European language]] families: the [[Romance languages]], descended from the [[Latin language|Latin]] of the [[Roman Empire]]; and the [[Germanic languages]], whose ancestor language ([[Proto-Germanic language|Proto-Germanic]]) came from southern [[Scandinavia]].<ref name="Encyclopædia Britannica">{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9106055|title=Europe|year=2007|encyclopedia=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]|access-date=10 June 2008}}</ref>
Romance languages are spoken primarily in the southern and central part of Western Europe, Germanic languages in the northern part (the [[British Isles]] and the [[Low Countries]]), as well as a large part of [[Northern Europe|Northern]] and [[Central Europe]].<ref name="Encyclopædia Britannica" />
 
Other Western European languages include the [[Celtic languages|Celtic]] group (that is, [[Irish language|Irish]], [[Scottish Gaelic]], [[Manx language|Manx]], [[Welsh language|Welsh]], [[Cornish language|Cornish]] and [[Breton language|Breton]]<ref name="Encyclopædia Britannica" />) and [[Basque language|Basque]], the only currently living European [[language isolate]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Basque language|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Basque-language|access-date=16 June 2020|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref>
 
Multilingualism and the protection of regional and minority languages are recognised political goals in Western Europe today. The [[Council of Europe]] [[Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities]] and the Council of Europe's [[European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages]] set up a legal framework for language rights in Europe.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.coe.int/en/web/european-charter-regional-or-minority-languages/a-word-from-the-chair |title= A Word from the Chair of the Committee of Experts|last=Oszmiańska-Pagett |first=Aleksandra |date=January 2022 |website= |publisher=Council of Europe |access-date=10 November 2023 |quote=}}</ref>
 
==Economy==
Western Europe is one of the richest regions of the world. [[Germany]] has the highest [[gross domestic product]] in Europe and the largest financial surplus of any country, [[Luxembourg]] has the world's highest GDP per capita, and Germany has the highest [[List of countries by total wealth|net national wealth]] of any European state.<ref>{{Cite web|title=GDP (current US$) - European Union {{!}} Data|url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=EU|access-date=12 March 2021|website=data.worldbank.org}}</ref>
 
[[Switzerland]] and Luxembourg have the highest [[List of countries by average wage|average wage]] in the world, in nominal and [[Purchasing power parity|PPP]], respectively. [[Norway]] ranks highest in the world on the [[Social Progress Index]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.socialprogress.org/index/global/results|title=2020 Social Progress Index|publisher=The Social Progress Imperative|access-date=29 December 2020}}</ref>
 
== Global impact ==
{{See also|Age of Discovery|History of colonialism|New Imperialism|Industrial Revolution}}
 
==See also==
{{portal|Geography<!-- |Eurasia -->|Europe<!-- |Western Europe -->}}
*[[Western European Union]]
<!-- {{Wikipedia books}} -->
<!-- {{main|Outline of Western Europe|Index of Western Europe-related articles}} -->
<!-- *[[Bibliography of Western Europe]] -->
*[[Atlantic Europe]]
*[[Central Europe]]
*[[Eastern Europe]]
*[[Northern Europe]]
*[[Southern Europe]]
*[[Far West (Taixi)|Far West]]
*[[Marshall Plan]]
*{{section link|EuroVoc|Western Europe}}
*[[Western world]]
==External link==
* [http://www.ericdigests.org/pre-9217/europe.htm Teaching about Western Europe]
[[Category:Western Europe|*]]
{{Region}}
 
== References ==
[[de:Westeuropa]]
=== Citations ===
[[fr:Europe de l'Ouest]]
{{Reflist|30em}}
[[nl:West-Europa]]
 
[[ja:&#35199;&#12520;&#12540;&#12525;&#12483;&#12497;]]
=== Sources ===
[[pl:Europa Zachodnia]]
{{refbegin}}
[[pt:Europa Ocidental]]
* ''The Making of Europe'', {{ISBN|978-0-14-015409-2}}, by [[Robert Bartlett (historian)|Robert Bartlett]]
[[sl:Zahodna Evropa]]
* ''Crescent and Cross'', {{ISBN|978-1-84212-753-7}}, by [[Hugh Bicheno]]
[[zh:&#35199;&#27431;]]
* ''The Normans'', {{ISBN|978-0-7524-2881-9}}, by Trevor Rowley
* ''1066: The Year of the Three Battles'', {{ISBN|978-0-7126-6672-5}}, by [[Frank McLynn]]
{{refend}}
 
==External links==
{{Commons and category}}
*[http://unstats.un.org/unsd/methods/m49/m49regin.htm#europe The European sub-regions according to the UN]
*[http://www.ericdigests.org/pre-9217/europe.htm Teaching about Western Europe] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060601210634/http://www.ericdigests.org/pre-9217/europe.htm |date=1 June 2006 }}
 
{{Regions of the world}}
{{Europe topics (small)}}
{{Authority control}}
 
[[Category:Western Europe| ]]
[[Category:Regions of Europe]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]
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