The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK, the U.K. or Britain) is a sovereign state located off the north-western coast of continental Europe. The country includes the island of Great Britain, the island of Ireland, the County of Calais and many smaller islands. The County of Calais is the only part of the UK that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of France. Apart from this land border the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel and the Irish Sea.