IV. Questions for discussion:

1. Why do most Belarusians feel more at home in the coun­tryside than in the city?

2. Which landscape is the most typical for Belarus?

3. What is the most distinctive feature of the modern Belarusian countryside?

4. What are the most important changes in cities, towns and settlements of Belarus?

5. Why is it so important for some Belarusians not to lose the delights of the vil­lage way of life?

Supplementary reading

I. Study the vocabulary to read and understand the text better. Prepare for a discussion.

dowry [´daυrı] — приданое

bishop — епископ

persecu­tor of evil [´pə:sıkju:tə] — преследователь зла

pau­per — нищий

chimney — дымоход

relics of the saint — останки святого

hut — хижина, бел. Хата

National Peculiarities of the New Year Holiday

It is a well-known fact that the New Year party owes its warmth to a decorated New Year tree and the presence of Ded Moroz, who arrives to distrib­ute gifts and sweets, putting them under the tree. For hundreds of years he has continued to visit peo­ple on holiday nights. The tradition has been firmly established. It all started with the follow­ing:

Each Fairy Tale Holds a Grain of Truth

In the 3rd century ВС in the city of Patara (Lycia, Asia Minor) a boy was born who was given the name of Nicholas. When Nicholas grew up, he became a bishop in the town of Myra. Consequently, he was called St. Nicholas of Myra. He was believed to be a kind miracle-worker and persecu­tor of evil. He was the patron of kidnapped and lost children, and of seamen.

Legend has it that Nicholas, passing by a pau­per's house one night, threw three gold-packed purses to the pauper's daughters down the chimney. The purses landed in the girls' shoes that stood drying by the fireplace. The happy father bought a dowry for his daughters and gave the girls away. Therefore, many countries still pre­serve the tradition of putting New Year presents into shoes or boots. Nicholas was believed to bring cold as he walked. That is why his name is associated with winter frosts.

Nowadays, tourists can visit the church in Demre that, translated from Arabic, is Grandfather Frost's Church. In its southern part, there is a sarcophagus that is said to hold the relics of the saint.

Today, it is hard to get at the heart of the matter about how St. Nicholas legend began to live its own life, and how the saint evolved into a winter character that every­body knows beginning in childhood. Later, a particular patron of winter appeared in each country.

The Emergence of Ded Moroz and Snegurochka (a girl made of snow)

Our Ded Moroz is St. Nicholas, unrecognizably changed by folk myths and legends. Folks would say that the old man lived in an icy hut and generously endowed his visitors with gifts. When he hit the ground with his stick, severe frosts would start.

Snegurochka (a derivative of the word "sneg" — "snow" in Russian) has no prototypes and is not involved in any of the New Year and Christmas traditions of world countries. She is a character of a Russian fairy tale in which a child­less old couple made a girl of snow.

The common "frosty origin" of pity towards the lonely old man most likely caused people to closely tie Ded Moroz and Snegurochka with blood bonds: an old man should have a granddaughter. So, everybody knows Snegurochka as Ded Moroz's granddaughter.