- •The Geography (Location, Climate, Physical Relief)
- •Location
- •Climate
- •Physical relief
- •Highland Britain
- •Lowland Britain
- •Scotland
- •England
- •Northern Ireland
- •History
- •I. Mind the pronunciation of the following words:
- •Prehistory
- •The Roman period (43-410)
- •The Germanic invasions (410-1066)
- •The medieval period (1066-1485)
- •The sixteenth century
- •The seventeenth century
- •The eighteenth century
- •The nineteenth century
- •The twentieth century
- •Identity
- •Ethnic identity: the native British
- •The family
- •Religious and political identity
- •Identity in Northern Ireland
- •Attitudes
- •II. Read the text
- •Stereotypes and change
- •English versus British
- •Conservatism
- •Being different
- •The love of nature
- •Formality and informality
- •Housing
- •Private property and public property
- •The importance of ‘home’
- •Interiors: the importance of cosiness
- •Owning and renting
- •Food and drink
- •I. Pay attention to the pronunciation of the following word
- •Attitudes to food
- •What British people eat
- •When people eat what: meals
- •Eating out
- •Alcohol
- •The economy and everyday life
- •II. Read the text.
- •Earning money
- •Finance and investment
- •Currency and cash
- •Spending money: shopping
- •Shop opening hours
- •III. Find in the text equivalents to the given phrases
- •Holidays and special occasions
- •II. Read the text
- •Traditional seaside holydays
- •Modern holidays
- •Christmas and New Year
- •Other notable annual occasions
- •Calendar of special occasions New Year’s Day* (1 January)
- •Monarchy
- •The appearance
- •The house of Windsor
- •The royal family
- •The reality
- •The role of monarch
- •The value of the monarchy
- •The future of the monarchy
- •International relations.
- •I. Pay attention to the to the pronunciation of the following words.
- •II. Read the text
- •The armed forces
- •Transatlantic relations
- •The sovereignty of the union: Europe
- •The sovereignty of the union: Scotland and Wales
- •The sovereignty of the union: Northern Ireland
Christmas and New Year
Christmas is the one occasion in modern Britain when a large number of customs are enthusiastically observed by most ordinary people within the family. Even people who consider themselves to be antireligious quite happily wish each other a ‘Happy Christmas’ or a ‘Merry Christmas’. They do not self-consciously wish each other a ‘Happy New Year’ instead.
Indeed, the ‘commercialization’ of Christmas has itself become part of tradition. Every November in Oxford Street a famous personality ceremoniously switches on the ‘Christmas lights’ (decoration) thus ‘officially’ marking the start of the period of frantic Christmas shopping. And it certainly is frantic. Between that time and the middle of January, most shops do nearly half of their total business for the year (most have ‘sales’ in early January when prices are reduced). Most people buy presents for the other members of their household and also for other relatives, especially children. Some people also buy presents for their close friends.
The role of Father Christmas (or Santa Claus) and the customs associated with the giving of gifts vary from family to family. Most household with children tell them that Father Christmas comes down the chimney on the night of Christmas Eve (even though most houses no longer have a working chimney!). Many children lay out a Christmas stocking at the foot of their beds, which they expect to see filled when they wake up on Christmas morning. Most families put wrapped presents around or on the Christmas tree and these are opened at some time on Christmas Day.
The general feeling is that Christmas is a time for families. Many of the gatherings in houses on Christmas Day and Boxing Day consist of extended families. For many families, Christmas is the only time that they are all together.
Parties on New Year’s Eve, on the other hand, are usually for friends. Most people attend a gathering at this time and ‘see in’ the new year with a group of other people, often drinking a large amount of alcohol as they do so. In London, many go to the traditional celebration in Trafalgar Square (where there is an enormous Christmas tree which is an annual gift from the people of Norway).
As a well-known Christmas carol reminds people, there are twelve days of Christmas. In fact, most people go back to work and school soon after New Year. Nobody pays much attention to the feast of the epiphany on 6 January (the twelfth day of Christmas), except that this is traditionally the day on which Christmas decorations are taken down. Some people say it is bad luck to keep them up after this date.
Other notable annual occasions
Easter is far less important than Christmas to most people in Britain. Although in involves a four-day ‘weekend’, there are very few custom and habits associated generally with it, other than the consumption of mountains of chocolate Easter eggs by children. Some people preserve the tradition of eating hot cross buns on Good Friday.
None of the other days of the year to which traditional customs are attached is a holiday, and not everybody takes part in these customs. In fact, many people in Britain live through occasions such as Shrove Tuesday, April Fools’ Day or Hallowe’en without even knowing that they have happened.
There is one other day which, although many people do not mark in any special way, is very difficult to ignore. This is 5 November, the day which celebrates a famous event in British history – the gunpowder plot. It is called Guy Fawkes’ Day – or, more commonly, Bonfire Night.
On Guy Fawkes’ Night itself there are ‘bonfire parties’ throughout the country, at which the ‘guy’ is burnt.
Finally, one other day should be mentioned. This is a different day for everybody – their birthday. Once again, it is most important for children, all of whom receive presents on this day from their parents, and often from other relatives as well. Adults may or may not receive presents, depending on the customs of their family and their circle of friends.