Briton

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Template:Wiktionary A Briton is often referred to in broad terms as being an inhabitant of the geographical region of Great Britain Template:Ref Template:Ref Template:Ref or a person of British ethnic extraction. It is predominantly an ethnic term distinct from the official term for a citizen of the United Kingdom, which is British.

1 Common usage
2 Sensitivity around use of term
3 Famous Ancient Britons
4 See also
5 References

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Common usage

The term's 'proper' use in in an historical context, to refer to:

Brythons, the indigenous inhabitants of most of Great Britain in the times before the Roman occupation.
Native speakers of the Brythonic languages.
Their descendants in Roman Britain, and the period up to the Norman Conquest, including the indigenous inhabitants of southern Scotland at this time (referring to Brythonic Celtic speakers, as distinguished from Romans, Gaels, Picts and Anglo-Saxons).
A member of the Breton ethnic group.

In a modern context it is also used as a synonym for British, either in the sense of:

A resident and/or citizen of the United Kingdom
A person who lists their ethnic group as British.
A person indigenous to Great Britain.

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Sensitivity around use of term

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The usage of the term is sensitive in some areas, particularly among supporters of some political parties, for example the Scottish National Party, and can vary in exact meaning depending on context and the author's personal prejudices. Many prefer to identify themselves as distinctly English, Scottish or Welsh rather than British, referring to aspects of their own culture and origins which distinguish the peoples of Britain from each other. Whether someone refers to their ethnic group as English, Scottish, Welsh or Northern Irish, it does not necessarily mean that they are not also British or cannot be classified as a Briton. A person can be both a Briton and either English, Welsh, Scottish or Northern Irish for further ethnic identification. The use of the word in this respect remains highly subjective. In terms of national rather than ethnic identity, the term British is used by naturalised immigrants and their descendants. Thus Black British is common usage, particularly in England, though less so in Scotland where such groups can be, for example, Pakistani Scots.

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Famous Ancient Britons

King Arthur - Romano-British war leader
Boudica, Queen of the Iceni, who led the rebellion against Roman occupation in 60.
Cassivellaunus, led the defence against Julius Caeser's second expedition to Britannia in 54 B.C.
Caratacus, a leader of the defence against the Roman conquest of Britain
Commius historical king of the Belgic nation of the Atrebates, initially in Gaul, then in Britannia, in the 1st century BC.
Peredurus, legendary king.
Prasutagus, husband of Boudica.
Togodumnus, a leader of the defence against the Roman conquest of Britain