Angliyskiy

3.There is / are many big cities and towns in the USA: New York, San Francisco, Washington, Chicago, Los Angeles are the biggest of them.

4.The USA is / has a parliamentary republic. The government is divided into three branches: legislative (the US Congress), executive (the President and his Administration) and judicial (the US Supreme Court).

5.There is / are two main political parties in the USA: the Democratic and the Republican. The US President is both head of state and government. He is elected for a four-year term.

6.The USA consists / began as a nation of 13 states. The original

13colonies were then located in the area today occupied by 16 states and 34 other states were admitted to the union one by one.

7.Washington, in the District of Columbia, is / does the national capital. It was named in honour of George Washington, the first US president. The District of Columbia, which was named for Christopher Columbus, discoverer of America, is not part of any state.

Vocabulary

executive /ig'zekjutiv/ -исполнительная

judicial /ʤu:'diʃ(ə)l/ - судебная

Supreme Court /sju(:)prim kɔ:t/ - Верховный суд

in honour /'ɔnə/ - в честь

An interesting fact:

There are fifty states in the United States of America. Two of these states, Alaska and Hawaii, are not connected to the other states.

More than 250 million people live in the United States.

131

The United States is a young country. Its written history is only a few hundred years old. It is sometimes called the ―New World‖.

Over the last 400 years millions of people have come to start a new life in this ―New World‖.

The people of the United States are a mixture of many different nationalities. These different people brought to their new land a wonderful mixture of customs and traditions. The German brought Christmas trees. The Irish brought St. Patrick‘s Day celebrations. The Scots brought Halloween.

Flag of the United States

The national flag of the United States of America consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle

in the canton bearing fifty small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars (top and bottom) alternating with rows of five stars.

The fifty stars on the flag represent the 50 states and the 13 stripes represent the original thirteen colonies that rebelled against the British monarchy and became the first states in the Union. Nicknames for the flag include the Stars and Stripes, Old Glory, and The Star-Spangled Banner.

Vocabulary

alternating - чередующийся

rectangle ['rektæŋgl] - прямоугольник

132

18. Mark the statements true (T) or false (F) according to the text.

1.The national flag of the United States of America consists of thirty stripes fifteen stars.

2.The fifty stars on the flag represent the 50 states.

3.The 13 stripes represent the original thirteen colonies.

4.There is only one nickname for the flag.

5.The queen lives in a. Buckingham Palace

b. The Tower of London c. Westminster Abby

6.London is situated on the river

9.St. Paul‘s Cathedral was built in the 17th century by a. Admiral Nelson

b. the Duke of Buckingham c. Sir Christopher Wren

10.Big Ben is

11.___ is a very large Gothic church in central London. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English monarchs.

a.Westminster Cathedral

b.Westminster Abbey

c.Buckingham Palace

12.___ where most newspapers have their offices.

a. Fleet Street b. Whitehall c. Downing Street

13. Financial centre of the UK with many banks, offices and Stock Exchange is

a. the East End b. the West End c. the City

14.___ consists of the fashionable houses of the rich, art galleries, famous museums, theatres, palaces and parks.

17. Madam Tussaud's building is

134

20. Test Yourself!

Great Britain

1.What is the official name of Great Britain? a) the United Kingdom

b) Britannia

c) the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

d) the United Kingdom of England, Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland.

2.What is the name of the British national flag?

6. What lake does the famous Scottish monster live in?

135

8. What is the name of the highest mountain in Scotland?

11. What natural resources bring the most profits to the British

14. What chambers does the British Parliament consist of?

a)the Senate and the House of Representatives

b)the House of Lords and the House of Commons

136

c)the Cabinet of Ministers and the Shadow Cabinet

d)the House of Lords and the House of Representatives

20.What universities have the highest academic reputation in the UK?

a) London University and Bristol University b) Redbrick Universities

c) Cambridge University and Oxford University d) Glasgow University

21.Who wrote ―The Picture of Dorian Gray‖

22. Who is the creator of the electronic motor?

23. How many voyages around the world did James Cook make?

25. Who was the British Prime Minister in 1979-1996?

5.What is the capital of Britain?

9. What is Britain famous for?

10.How many countries are there in the United Kingdom? a) 4 b) 3 c) 1 d) 2

11. What is the official religion in the United Kingdom?

13. This man is a symbol of the British nation. His name is a) Uncle Sam b) John Bull

c) Winston Churchill d) Tony Blair

139

14. The capital of Northern Ireland is