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I´d say that there are 5 very well defined european groups of countries.
The Core: France, Germany, Iberia, Italy ,the British Isles and the Benelux.
The countries that have shaped the history of europe and the world and what we consider the core of the Western Civilization.
The Nordics: Scandinavia and their satelite nations. Who, despite being demographically smaller and having less international impact, during the last decades have developed some of the most egalitarian and succesful societies in the world. Making a smart use of their resources and a very high investment in education and research
The Eastern Borders. Those slavic and baltic nations (with Estonia somehow in between the nordic world and the baltic and slavic) standing between Europe and the Empire. Whose societies have been shaped by the constant strugle between those two civilizations.
Countries that were erased and redrawed from the maps , proud peoples with a rich and colourful story, although more painful and hard than the average
Similar story with the other group of nations, the ones composing the Balcans and the southern borders , where east meets west, or, in most of the times, where europe clashes with asia.
It is indeed one of the hottest areas of Europe in terms of climate, but also in terms of political convulsion, wars, ethnic conflicts, religion wars. Diversity, beauty and all in one. Probably the most extreme region of europe. Europe would not exist without the Balcans and their constant defend of those borders.Also some of the most important traits of european civilization were born here
finaly the central european nations, the core of the old austrio -hungarian empire. With relative stable and prosperous nations from several origins , such as slavic, germanic and mediterranean, interlinked again after half century of cold war.
Probably the biggest contrast in europe can be found between the Core Western countries and the Nordic countries when compared with the Eastern and Southern borders .Although essentially, the five groups live in very different contexts . Those contexts however aren´t isolated from one another. There is a constant flock between them.They affect each other. They are part of the same big thing called Europe
Last edited by Raikaswinþs; 01-17-2011 at 06:00 PM.
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It doesnt make too much sense considering that Ireland and Iceland are more fucked up than Italy, Spain or Portugal. Both northern countries were already rescued and It-Sp-Pt not. And about Estonia, Spain or Italy have a GDP per capita twice higher than them, the economic gap is pretty big. It´s easier to grow faster when your economy is not developed yet . You can check China or Brazil and compare their growth with USA or Japan.
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Speculative Main Migration Routes Map:
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Talking about economy again, I´ve forgotten to say that the differences West-East are much more important than North-South.
For example, France is richer than Spain and Austria is richer than Italy but the gap between Germany-Poland or Finland-Estonia is way bigger. Also Spain, Portugal or Italy are richer than any northeastern country by far (Baltic countries, Ukraine... or any other ex-commie country)
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Espada tengo. Lo demás, Dios lo remedie.
In the west almost all Spain had been subjugated, except that part which adjoins the cliffs where the Pyrenees end and is washed by the nearer waters of the ocean. Here two powerful nations, the Cantabrians and the Asturians, lived in freedom from the rule of Rome.")
— Lucius Anneus Florus , Epitome de T. Livio Bellorum omnium annorum DCC Libri duo Bellum Cantabricum et Asturicum
Ethnicity of the Celts/Iberian. Tribes: Avariginos, Blendi, Concanos, Coniscos, Orgenomescos, Plentusios, Tamáricos and Vadinienses.--->http://www.theapricity.com/forum/sho...40#post3047240
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There are definetly divides in Europe.
From a Nordic perspective we are definetly not the same as Greeks, Italians or Spaniards. They have a different mentality from us which we could call the "manana, manana and siesta"- culture. Southerners are viewed as pushy with a broader concept of morality. (Think: Italian footballplayer filming great pain and agony)
Also there is a very significant east/west divide. Nordic peoples view Bulgarians, Romanians, Ukrainians, Russians e.t.c. as dispensable, with a lower morale and are untrustworthy partners in negotiations. (Think; organised crime and broken agreements)
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I would have to say more on the East/West divide. But then again, how do we define in this context the northern and the southern, the eastern and the western? Every country looks at its neighbor in funny way.
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This is great thread, I was actually thinking about the OPs question a few days ago.
I think the most interesting aspect is discussing WHERE the lines are drawn (if they are to be drawn at all).
As an American I feel a bit out of place offering my opinion regarding the cultural aspect (for obvious reasons) but I'd IMAGINE they'd be more difference from an East-to-West gradient (or vice-versa) due to the Soviet Era.
From a genetic standpoint it gets even trickier due to even more overlapping, so it's hard to draw any clear cutoff line. However, from most testing results I've seen, The Alps seem to be commonly used as a geographic mark to separate Europeans into a N/S/E/W divide. This gives us four subsets: Northwest Europeans, Southwest Europeans, Northeast Europeans, and Southeast Europeans.
Personally I find this to be the most agreeable compromise I've seen even though it splits some countries in half.
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