THE ISLE OF MAN (MANNIN): Located in the Irish Sea nearly equidistant from Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, the Isle of Man has long enjoyed its own sort of independence. Never formally annexed to England, and to this day not a part of the United Kingdom, Man remains a “crown dependency” whereby its hereditary ruler, the “Lord of Man,” happens also to be the English monarch. Be that as it may, Man is governed, at least locally, by its own representative body known as the House of Keys, whose roots go back over a thousand years to the popular decision-making assemblies held by the invading Norse.

By ancient tradition, the entire body of the Manx government assembles in public every 5th of July on “Tynwald Day” to hear the body of Manx laws read aloud in Manx and in English to receive the assent of the assembled populace. The Bank of Man retains the right to issue its own coins and paper currency, and the Manx Post Office prints its own stamps.