East Anglia is one of three constituent parts of the East of England – a first level region. The name has also been applied to the ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles. The region’s name is derived from the Angles – a tribe that originated in Angeln, northern Germany. The region comprises four areas of local government: the administrative counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, northern Essex and Cambridgeshire, the unitary authority area of the city of Peterborough.
Parts of this region of England are characterised by the flatness of the land, partly consisting of fenland and reclaimed marshland, though much of Suffolk and Norfolk is gently undulating with glacial morraine ridges providing steeper hills in areas such as North Norfolk. Although water plays a significant role in the fenland and broadland landscapes, the area is among the driest in the United Kingdom. During the summer months, tinder-dry conditions are frequently experienced, occasionally resulting in field and heath fires.
Major urban areas in the region include the cities of Norwich, Cambridge and Peterborough. Ipswich is an important town in Suffolk. Smaller towns and cities include Bury St Edmunds, Ely, Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth. Much of the area is still rural in nature with villages surrounded by agricultural land and agriculture has always been important in this fertile region. The landscape of Cambridgeshire and Norfolk has been heavily influenced by Dutch technology, from the use of red clay roof tiles to the draining of The Fens.
The region has a wide range of small-scale holiday resorts ranging from the traditional coastal towns of Felixstowe and Lowestoft in Suffolk and Great Yarmouth in Norfolk to small fishing villages like Aldeburgh and Southwold in Suffolk. Other tourist attractions include historic towns like Bury St. Edmunds, Cambridge and Ely as well as areas such as Constable Country, the Broads and the North Norfolk coast. The Norfolk and Suffolk Broads form a network of waterways between Norwich and the coast and are popular for recreational boating.
