Essential Vocabulary

to be apt to claim to be cautious to be thrifty to be mystical to be fiery to be reticent to be charming to be vivacious to be allowed (free) entry to be in low-paid jobs/low-grade jobs to be adventurous in (cooking) habits to be active on the left/right to keep links alive to attain (great) eminence to keep strong attachment to smth to have a (better) success rate to excel in (sports) to win seats (in Parliament)

Regional character immigrant community racial tension/prejudice racial harmony reggae music Multiracial country refugee from persecution definable ethnic group mixed marriages national identity the Third World Commonwealth origin Muslim Asian community closely knit community eating places newly-independent countries а fundamental novelty constituency to pat up candidates

The people of britain

Many foreigners who have not visited Britain call all the inhabitants 'English', for they are used to thinking of the British Isles as 'England’. In fact, the British Isles contain a variety of peoples and only the people of England call themselves English. The others refer to themselves as Welsh, Scottish, Irish, as the case may be; they are often slightly annoyed as being classified as ‘English’.

Even in England there are many differences in regional character and speech. The chief division is between southern England and northern England, South of a line going from Bristol to London, people speak the type of English usually learnt by foreign students, though there are local variations.

Further north (roughly beyond a line going from Manchester to Hull) regional speech is usually 'broader' than that of southern Britain.

Northerners are apt to claim that they work harder than the Southerners, and are more thorough. They are more open-hearted and hospitable; foreigners often find that they make friends with them quickly. Northerners generally have hearty appetites: the visitor to Lancashire or Yorkshire, for instance, may look forward to receiving generous helpings at meal times.

In accent and character the people of the Midlands represent a gradual change from the southern to the northern type of Englishman.

In Scotland the sound denoted by the letter “r” is generally a strong sound, and “R” is often pronounced in words in which it would be silent in southern English. In the Highlands and the Western Isles the ancient Scottish language, Gaelic, is still heard— in 1971 some 88,000 people spoke Gaelic. The Scots are said to be a serious, cautious, thrifty people, rather inventive and somewhat mystical. All the Celtic реoples of Britain (the Welsh, the Irish, the Scots) are frequently described аs being more 'fiery' than the English. They are of a race that is quite distinct from English.

The Welsh have preserved their language to a remarkable extent. The English generally look upon the Welsh as an emotional people who are, however, somewhat reticent to and difficult to get to know easily.

Ireland is divided into two parts. The 6 counties of Northern Ireland are still part of Great Britain, though, in normal circumstances, they have their own Parliament. The majority of people in northern Ireland are Protestants. The Republic of Ireland, which covers the larger part of the island, is a separate state, not part of Great Britain. The population is predominantly Catholic. Irish, often called Еrse, is a form of Gaelic. It was in danger of dying out, but when the territory of the Republic became independent (the Irish Free State', 1922), Erse was revived, and is now the official first language of the Republic, English being the second. The Irish are known for their charm and vivacity, as well as for the beauty of the Irish girls.

MULTIRACIAL BRITAIN.

Recently, there have been many waves of immigration into Britain and movement within the UK. For example, many people from Wales, Scotland and Ireland have settled in England; and Jews, Russians, Germans, and Poles have come to Britain (particularly London) during political changes in the rest of Europe. Commonwealth citizens were allowed free entry into Britain until 1962. Before the Second World War these immigrants were mostly people from Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. In the 1950s, people from the West Indies, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Hong Kong were encouraged to come and work in Britain.

The new immigrant communities are concentrated in the following towns and cities: London, Slough(/ˈslaʊ/), Leicester ˈlɛstər/, Wolverhampton, Birmingham,L uton, Bradford, Coventry, Bedford, Heading and Sandwell. The main languages of the Asian immigrants are Urdu, Hindi, Bengali, Punjabi, Gujarati, and Cantonese (Chinese). Nowadays the policy is to encourage these communities to continue speaking their own languages as well as English. The children of immigrants are often taught their own languages in school, and there are special newspapers, magazines, and radio and television рrogrammes for the Asian community. The West Indians, of course, arrive speaking English, but they do have their own culture which they wish to keep alive. They also have their own newspapers, and radio and television programmes.

This latest wave of immigration has of course caused problems. There is certainly racial tension and racial prejudice in Britain today. In spite of laws passed to protect them, there is still discrimination against Asian and black people, many of whom are unemployed or in low-paid jobs. However, the atmosphere is improving and the different races are slowly learning to trust one another. In a wide educational programme white school-children, teachers, policemen and social workers are learning about the problems and customs of their new neighbours. There are many areas in Britain now where racial harmony is a reality.

British culture is being enriched through its contact with other cultures. Fог example, the British are becoming more adventurous in their cooking and eating habits, and Chinese, Indian and Pakistani restaurants are very popular. Another example can be found in the pop music scene where West Indian reggae music has become very influential.