Scotland Geography

Scotland is located in the north-west of Europe and covers one third of the north of the island of Great Britain and over 790 islands.

Scotland's only land border is shared with England, running over 96 kilometres from the Solway Firth in the west to the North Sea on the east coast. The North Channel separates the island of Ireland from the Scottish mainland.

Scotland’s landscape is characterized by a geological rock fracture (Highland Boundary Fault) which separates two rather different physiographic regions: the Highlands in the north and west and the lowlands in the south and east. The Highland region is more rugged and contains most of Scotland's mountainous terrain, including Ben Nevis, which is the highest peak. In the south of Scotland, there are the lowland areas, which are flatter and home to most of the population.

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