Secular Celabrations

Canadian holidays may be either political or religious. The major celebrations, which are often marked by a statutory holiday away from work, include two religious holidays: Christmas, 25 December; and Easter, which varies from year to year. There are five main political or secular celebrations: Canada Day, 1 July; New Year’s Day, 1 January; Victoria Day, which honors Queen Victoria of England and varies from year to year; Labor Day, September; and Thanksgiving, in October.

Explanatory notes

1. beaver ['bi:və] – бобр

2. Royal Canadian Mounted Police – Королевская Канадская Конная Полиция

3. diminish [dɪ'mɪnɪʃ] – умалять, преуменьшать (значение чего-л.)

4. toil [tɔɪl] –выполнять тяжёлую работу

5. nonpredatory – мирный, нехищный

6. core [kɔ:] – центр; сокровенная часть; суть, сущность

7. humility [hju:'mɪlətɪ] – подчинение; сдержанность

8. odds [ɔdz] – трудности, сложности

9. communal ['kɔmjun(ə)l] – общий, совместный

10. emergence [ɪ'mɜ:ʤ(ə)ns] – выход; появление

11. solitude ['sɔlɪtju:d] – одиночество; уединение (о человеке)

12. divergent [daɪ'vɜ:ʤənt] – отличающийся, другой

13. aspiration [ֽæsp(ə)'reɪʃ(ə)n] – стремление (к достижению чего-л.)

14. venture ['venʧə] – рискованное предприятие; фирма

15. underpinnings [ֽʌndə'pɪnɪŋ] – обоснование; основа

16. enshrine [ɪn'ʃraɪn] – бережно хранить (чувства, воспоминания)

17. assert a claim – заявлять претензию

18. undermine [ֽʌndə'maɪn] – подрывать, расшатывать, разрушать

19. sparse [spɑ:s] – разбросанный, редкий

20. amenable [ə'mi:nəbl] – поддающийся, подверженный, склонный

21. plaza ['plɑ:zə] – открытая площадка (перед городскими зданиями)

22. endeavour [ɪn'devə ] – пытаться

23. panoply ['pænəplɪ] – богатство, великолепие, роскошь

24. kin – родственники

25. tenure ['tenjuə] – владение недвижимостью

26. common-law marriage – гражданский брак

27. contentious [kən'tenʃəs] – дискуссионный, спорный

28. disparity [dɪs'pærətɪ] – неравенство; несоответствие

29. conspicuous [kən'spɪkjuəs] – видный, бросающийся в глаза

30. rowdiness – хулиганство, грубость

Give detailed answers to the following questions.

1. What are Canadian three main national symbols? What core values do they represent?

2. What gives the beaver its special merit as a cultural symbol of Canada? Why are Canadians proud of the RCMP?

3. When did Canadians emerge as a nation? What was the antagonism between the French and the English in Canada based on?

4. What does the model of universal health care symbolize for Canadians?

5. Why does space play symbolic importance for Canadian culture? What are Canadians cities like? What’s special about private and official architecture in Canada?

6. What’s Canadian daily food like? Is Canadian cuisine consistent or eclectic in content? What’s the potluck? What does it symbolize?

7. What’s peculiar about property in Canada?

8. Why is class a contentious issue in Canada? What are the symbols of social stratification in Canada? What measures of protection are provided for the impoverished in Canada?

9. What social welfare and change programs are there in Canada?

10. Are there broad differences between regions concerning people in Canada?

11. What etiquette rules should be observed in Canada? What’s peculiar about Canadian communication style?

12. What secular celebrations are held in Canada?