• About some american holidays

Some of the American holidays are associated with the history of the nation. There are also some holidays that have come to modern times from the old colonial days. Most of these holidays are not legal holidays. Schools, offices and banks may close or may stay open. Some of the holidays are very popular, especially with the children and young people. There are many customs and traditions associated with these holidays.

JULY 4 - INDEPENDENCE DAY. It is the biggest national holiday in the USA. It is the birthday of the American nation. The Declaration of Independence was proclaimed in Philadelphia on July 4, 1776, when the American colonies were fighting for independence against England.

OCTOBER 31 - HALLOWEEN. It is not a legal or a national holiday. Schools, offices and banks do not close. Halloween is the day or evening before Alhallow's or All Saints' Day. Many Halloween stories and games are hundreds of years old. Halloween customs date back to a time when people believed in devils and witches and ghosts.

It is a holiday for children and young people. In the evening of October 31 they dress up in different old clothes and wear masks. They cut horrible faces in empty pumpkins (тыквa) and put a lighted candle inside. The children go from house to house and knock on the doors, calling "trick or treat". This means that if you give them a "treat"- sweets, cakes, fruits or anything else they like - they go away without "trick".

THE 4th THURSDAY OF NOVEMBER - THANKSGIVING DAY. It is a legal holiday in the US. This is a family holiday: many people go to church in the morning and at home they have a big dinner with turkey. People gather to give thanks for all the good things in their lives.

Text 3. English speaking countries

English is the mother tongue of about 250 million people and it is spoken throughout the continent of North America (the USA and Canada), in the British Isles, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

For a long time English was the most important of the languages of colonization.

The Commonwealth of Australia is a self-governing federal state headed by the British Queen. It has got 6 States: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and 2 internal territories.

It is situated in the south-west of the Pacific Ocean. The area of this country has got 7,600,000 square kilometres. Australia is the largest island in the world and it is the smallest continent. Nearly twenty million people live in Australia. The capital of the country is Canberra. There are two big industrial cities in Australia: Sydney and Melbourne. Australia’s climate is dry and warm. Australia is situated in the southern hemisphere and that’s why it has summer, when we have winter and it has winter, when we have summer. Australia is separated from many countries. That’s why, the animals in Australia have a lot of original, and they are inter­esting.

New Zealand is an independent state. It has got total area of 269,000 square kilometers. It is situated to south-east of Australia. Nearly 3,5 million people live in the country. The capital of the New Zealand is Wellington. It has been the capi­tal since 1865. The climate of New Zealand is moist.

New Zealand is a self-governing state. The Parliament consists of one House only, the House of Representatives. The Prime Minister is the head of the govern­ment.

New Zealand has got heavy industry. New Zealand exports apples and honey. There are some big cities such as Auckland, Wellington, Nelson, Christ­church. Auckland, Dunedin, Wellington are the main ports of the country.

Canada is the second largest country in the world – nearly as big as all of Europe. Only the Russian Federation is larger. The population of 27,3 million works out to close to just two people per sq km. In the countryside the population is very thinly spread – the average Canadian farm is 200 hectares in size.

The country is made up of 10 provinces and two northern territories. The four eastern coastal provinces are known as the Atlantic Provinces or the Maritime Provinces, the latter term often excluding Newfoundland.

The government is a constitutional monarchy and the capital is Ottawa, Ontario. There are two official languages in the country, English and French.