Jersey

This article is about the island in the English Channel. For other uses, see Jersey (disambiguation).

Jersey
Jèrri (Jèrriais)
British Crown Dependency
Bailiwick of Jersey
Flag of Jersey
Flag
Official seal of Jersey
Coat of arms
Anthem: "God Save the King"
Island anthem: "Island Home"[3]
Location of Jersey (green) in Europe (dark grey)
Location of Jersey (green)

in Europe (dark grey)

Sovereign state responsible for Jersey[1][2]United Kingdom
Separation from the Duchy of Normandy1204
Capital
and largest parish[b]
St Helier[a]
49°11.4′N 2°6.6′W / 49.1900°N 2.1100°W / 49.1900; -2.1100
Official languages
Ethnic groups
(2021)[4]
  • 1.9% Asian
  • 0.9% African
  • 1.3% multiracial
Religion
(2015)[5]
Demonym(s)Islanders, Jerseyman, Jerseywoman, Jersey bean, Jersey crapaud, Jèrriais(e)
GovernmentParliamentary constitutional monarchy
• Sovereign
Charles III
Jerry Kyd
• Bailiff
Sir Tim Le Cocq
Lyndon Farnham
LegislatureStates Assembly
Area
• Total
119.6[6] km2 (46.2 sq mi) (unranked)
• Water (%)
0
Highest elevation
469 ft (143 m)
Population
• 2021 census
103,267[7]
• Density
859/km2 (2,224.8/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)2015 estimate
• Total
billion (£4.57 billion)[8] (not ranked)
• Per capita
(£45,783) (not ranked)
GDP (nominal)2019 estimate
• Total
£4.885 billion (US billion)[9]
• Per capita
£45,320
Gini (2014)Steady 0.3[10]
low
HDI (2011)Steady 0.985[11]
very high · not ranked
CurrencyPound sterling
Jersey pound (£) (GBP)
Time zoneUTC±00:00 (GMT)
 • Summer (DST)
UTC+01:00 (BST)
Date formatdd/mm/yyyy
Mains electricity230 V–50 Hz
Driving sideleft
Calling code+44
UK postcode
JE1 – JE5
ISO 3166 codeJE
Internet TLD.je

Jersey (/ˈdʒɜːrzi/ JUR-zee; Jèrriais: Jèrri [ʒɛri]), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey,[d][12][13][14] is an island country in Northwestern Europe and a self-governing British Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France.[15][16][17] It is the largest of the Channel Islands and is 14 miles (23 km) from the Cotentin Peninsula in Normandy.[18] The Bailiwick consists of the main island of Jersey and some surrounding uninhabited islands and rocks including Les Dirouilles, Les Écréhous, Les Minquiers, and Les Pierres de Lecq.[19]

Jersey was part of the Duchy of Normandy, whose dukes became kings of England from 1066. After Normandy was lost by the kings of England in the 13th century, and the ducal title surrendered to France, Jersey remained loyal to the English Crown, though it never became part of the Kingdom of England. At the end of the Napoleonic Wars, Jersey was at the frontline of Anglo-French Wars and was invaded a number of times, leading to the construction of fortifications such as Mont Orgueil Castle and a thriving smuggling industry. During the Second World War, the island was invaded and occupied for five years by Nazi Germany. The island was liberated on 9 May 1945, which is now celebrated as the island's national day.[20]

Jersey is a self-governing parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy, with its own financial, legal and judicial systems,[7] and the power of self-determination.[21] Jersey's constitutional relationship is with the Crown; it is not part of the United Kingdom.[22][23][24] The Bailiff is the civil head, president of the states and head of the judiciary; the lieutenant governor represents the head of state, the British monarch; and the chief minister is the head of government. Jersey's defence and international representation – as well as certain policy areas, such as nationality law – are the responsibility of the UK government, but Jersey still has a separate international identity.[25]

The island has a large financial services industry, which generates 40% of its GVA.[6] British cultural influence on the island is evident in its use of English as the main language and pound sterling as its primary currency. Additional British cultural similarities include: driving on the left, access to British television, newspapers and other media, a school curriculum following that of England,[26] and the popularity of British sports, including football and cricket.[27] The island also has a strong Norman-French culture, such as its historic dialect of the Norman language, Jèrriais, being one of only two places in Normandy with government status for the language (the other being Guernsey), as well as the use of standard French in legal matters and officially in use as a government language, strong cultural ties to mainland Normandy as a part of the Normandy region, and place names with French or Norman origins. The island has very close cultural links with its neighbouring islands in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, and they share a good-natured rivalry. Jersey and its people have been described as a nation.[28][29][30]

  1. ^ Fact sheet on the UK's relationship with the Crown Dependencies (PDF), UK Ministry of Justice, archived (PDF) from the original on 20 December 2021, retrieved 2 May 2023, The Crown Dependencies are not recognised internationally as sovereign States in their own right but as "territories for which the United Kingdom is responsible".
  2. ^ Framework for developing the international identity of Jersey (PDF), Government of Jersey, archived (PDF) from the original on 31 January 2021, retrieved 2 May 2023, 2. Jersey has an international identity which is different from that of the UK.
  3. ^ "Anthem for Jersey". Government of Jersey. Archived from the original on 23 October 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
  4. ^ "Bulletin 2: Place of birth, ethnicity, length of residency, marital status". Government of Jersey. Archived from the original on 10 August 2022. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  5. ^ Jersey Annual Social Survey: 2015 (PDF). States of Jersey. p. 8. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
  6. ^ a b "Jersey in Figures 2013 booklet" (PDF). Government of Jersey. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 February 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  7. ^ a b "First Census Results Published". 13 April 2022. Archived from the original on 13 April 2022. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  8. ^ "Measuring Jersey's Economy" (PDF). Government of Jersey. 28 September 2016. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 January 2017. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  9. ^ "National accounts: GVA and GDP". Statistics Jersey. 2019. Archived from the original on 7 January 2021. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  10. ^ "Gini Index coefficient". CIA World Factbook. Archived from the original on 17 July 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
  11. ^ "Filling Gaps in the Human Development Index" (PDF). United Nations ESCAP. February 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 October 2011.
  12. ^ "Jersey | island, Channel Islands, English Channel". Britannica. Archived from the original on 25 April 2023. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  13. ^ Balleine, G.R. (1951). Bailiwick of Jersey (King's Channel Islands series). London: Hodder And Stoughton.
  14. ^ Tilbrook, Richard (2 September 2022), "09.020 – Attachment of Jersey to the Diocese of Salisbury Order 2022", Unofficial extended UK law, Jersey Legal Information Board, archived from the original on 16 May 2023, retrieved 16 May 2023, HER MAJESTY, in the exercise of Her prerogatives as Sovereign in right of the Bailiwick of Jersey ... The Bailiwick of Jersey is, by virtue of this Order, as a matter of and for the purposes of the law of Jersey
  15. ^ "Definition: What is a country?". Worlddata.info. Archived from the original on 28 April 2019. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
  16. ^ "Constitution and citizenship". Government of Jersey – Island Identity. Archived from the original on 27 May 2022. Retrieved 18 July 2022. The Board concluded that Jersey is accurately described as a 'Country', or even as a 'Small Island Nation', and as such has a distinct international character. This has been agreed with the UK and by constitutional experts, and in 2007 the Lord Chancellor and Chief Minister signed an agreement entitled 'Framework for developing the international identity of Jersey', which also acknowledges that Jersey's 'international identity' is different from that of the UK. However, legally-speaking the term 'identity' has no defined meaning; the appropriate term for a country is 'personality', and this report adopts that usage throughout when describing how we are viewed internationally.
  17. ^ "Facts about Jersey". Government of Jersey. Archived from the original on 21 December 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
  18. ^ "Facts about Jersey". Government of Jersey. Archived from the original on 21 December 2019. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  19. ^ "Les Écrehous & Les Dirouilles, Jersey". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Archived from the original on 22 July 2018. Retrieved 25 April 2018.; "Les Minquiers, Jersey". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Archived from the original on 26 October 2018. Retrieved 25 April 2018.; "Les Pierres de Lecq". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Archived from the original on 22 July 2018. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  20. ^ "Plans to celebrate Liberation 75". gov.je. Archived from the original on 5 May 2023. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  21. ^ "COMMON POLICY FOR EXTERNAL RELATIONS" (PDF). Government of Jersey. Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 February 2021. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
  22. ^ "Crown Dependencies". Royal.gov.uk. 4 June 2018. Archived from the original on 11 July 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
  23. ^ Committee, European Union (23 March 2017). Brexit: the British Crown Dependencies (PDF) (Report). House of Lords. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 April 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021. (Summary, first sentence; Paragraph 4)
  24. ^ Mut Bosque, Maria (May 2020). "The sovereignty of the British Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories in the Brexit era". Island Studies Journal. 15 (1): 151–168. doi:10.24043/isj.114.
  25. ^ Cite error: The named reference Torrance-2022 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  26. ^ "Understanding the curriculum". Government of Jersey. 30 November 2015. Archived from the original on 5 September 2013. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  27. ^ "Facts about Jersey". Government of Jersey. 30 November 2015. Archived from the original on 21 December 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2017.
  28. ^ Minahan, James (2000). One Europe, Many Nations: A Historical Dictionary of European National Groups. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 349. ISBN 978-0-313-30984-7. Archived from the original on 30 June 2023. Retrieved 4 May 2021 – via Google Books.
  29. ^ Quayle, T. (1815). A general view of the agriculture and present state of the islands on the coast of Normandy. London: Board of Agriculture. p. 48.
  30. ^ "Island Identity Interim Report" (PDF). Government of Jersey. Island Identity Policy Development Board. 11 May 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on 11 May 2021. Retrieved 11 May 2021.


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