Text 9: "republic of ireland"

Ireland has a stormy history. The English ruled the country by force over whether Ireland should rule itself, or remain part of the UK. The creation of the protestant Church of England in the 16-th century caused a divide between Catholics and Protestants. At the beginning of the last century, the mainly Protestant North wanted to stay part of Britain, whilst the rest of the country (most Catholic) wanted to govern itself independently. This led to the creation of Northern Ireland in 1920, while Eire was finally declared a Republic in 1949. However, many would like Northern Ireland to be self-governing. In 1999 progress towards this was made, when it was decided that Northern Ireland could be ruled by itself and Eire, as long as certain conditions were met.

The misty green landscape of the "Emerald Isle" is the setting for much folklore-Ireland is host to mythological characters such as giants and fairies. The most famous of these are leprechauns-those cheeky little men who hide away with a pot of gold. Ireland also has a strong tradition of folk music and dancing, recently popularised by the Riverdance performance.

Ireland has had a great impact on English-language literature, having produced several Nobel Prize-winning writers, including Samuel Beckett, George Bernard Shaw and poet Seamus Heaney. Oscar Wilde, James Joyce and contemporary written Roddy Doyle are all from Emerald Isle. Ireland has a strong underground dance music scene.

Ireland is famed for the charm and wit of its people. The best place to meet the people of Ireland is in the pub over a pint of Guinness the dark-coloured ale which apparently doesn't taste as good when served outside Ireland! Packed with bars, restaurants and shops, it attracts tourists and locals alike.

Belfast (Northern Ireland) is one of the youngest capital cities in the world and it has grown incredibly fast. Today the city has a population of 400.000, nearly a third of the entire population of Northern Ireland, but in the 17-th century it was only a village. Then, during the 19-th century, the development of industries like linen, rope-making, engineering, tobacco and sea trade doubled it to town's size every ten years. The city is well-known for shipbuilding - it was here that the Titanic was built and sent out on her fatal voyage.

The rivers and lakes in the west of the region are heavy with fish and the largest lake in the area, Lough Erne, holds many world fishing records.

Country Down (to the south-east of the region) is one of the best farming countries in Ireland.

Questions to the text;

1. How long did the English rule the country?

2. When was Ireland declared a Republic?

3. What is Ireland host to?

4. Has Ireland had an Impact on English-language literature?

5. What is Ireland Famed for?

6. What was the cause of doubling Belfast in size?

Text 10: "LEGENDS ABOUT ST. PATRICK"

St. Patrick's writings serve as the most important sources of information about his life and work. During his later years, he wrote "Confession", an account of his spiritual development. He wrote this book to justify his mission to Ireland. In the book, Patrick expressed his thankfulness that God called him to serve Irish.

Like any leader who was loved and long remembered, Patrick was given credit not only for what he actually did but also for many other deeds. How much of it is truth and how much legend, no one knows. Many stories about St. Patrick are based only on legend. He is said to have caused the crippled to walk, the blind to see, and the deaf to hear. He turned his enemies fertile fields into bogs¹, took fish from the rivers, and kept kettles from boiling. The best-known tale of all tells how he charmed² the snakes of Ireland into the sea, so they were drowned.

One legend says he tricked the snakes into crawling inside a box, sealed the lid shut and threw the whole thing into the ocean. One stubborn snake refused to go. Making a box, St. Patrick invited it to get inside. It is said that the box was too small. St. Patrick and the snake argued for a long time. Then it climbed into the box to prove that it was small. St. Patrick slammed³ down the lid and threw the box into the ocean. Another legend states he scared⁴ the snakes by beating on a drum. Beating a little too hard, St. Patrick knocked a hole in the drum, but an angel appeared and quickly fixed it for him. Some legends say that St. Patrick made the Irish soil so distasteful to snakes that they died if they even touched it.

Ireland is really free of snakes. But as far back as one can trace, they have never been native to this island country. The only reptiles there are lizards⁵.

Nowadays St. Patrick's name is found all over Ireland in the names of towns and villages like Kirkpatrick, Downpatrick, and Kilpatrick.

And you can find Patrick's Wells in the countryside-the streams and springs where Bishop Patrick is said to have baptized people. Among the many churches that bear his name is a cathedral in Dublin. Patrick has long been a favourite name for boys. Fitzpatrik, Kirkpatrick and such are common family names in Ireland.