Task 9. Enjoy some bits of humor and offer your comment.

Son: "Say, dad, remember that story you told me when you were expelled from school?"

Father: "Yes?"

Son: "Well, I was just thinking, dad, how true it is that history repeats itself."

Teacher: "Well, there is one good thing I can tell you about your son."

Father: "Oh? What’s that?"

Teacher: "With his grades, he can’t possibly be cheating."

 

Task 10. Prepare a report about the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Тема 2. НАСЕЛЕНИЕ ВЕЛИКОБРИТАНИИ

PОPULATION OF GREAT BRITAIN

Task 1. Learn the following words and expressions:

	descent	происхождение
	to constitute	составлять
	inhabitants	жители
	diversity	разнообразие
	by far	гораздо, намного
	somehow	так или иначе
	weird	странный, сверхъестественный
	decade	десятилетие
	to be reserved	быть сдержанным
	politeness	вежливость
	sense of humor	чувство юмора
	therefore	хотя, тем не менее
	to get angry	злиться
	to be referee	относить
	reminder	напоминание
	identity	идентичность, самобытность
	custom	традиция, обычай
	to regard	расценивать, рассматривать
	similar	одинаковый
	loyalty	лояльность, привязанность
	attachment	присоединение, прикрепление
	feature	черта
	in comparison	в сравнении, по сравнению
	vitality	жизнеспособность
	successive campaigns	удачно проведенная кампания
	well-known	хорошо известный
	ancestors	предки
	plenty of evidence	множество доказательств
	complex issue	сложный вопрос
	distinction	различие, отличие
	anthem	гимн

Task 2. Read and translate the text.

Population of Great Britain

 

Great Britain is the fourth most populous country in Europe. People of English origin constitute about 50% of the nation's inhabitants. The Scots make up 8%, and there are smaller groups of Welsh (about 4.5%) and Irish (2.7%). Great Britain's population has shown increasing ethnic diversity since the 1970s, when people from the West Indies, India, Pakistan, Africa, and China began immigrating; in the 21st century these groups accounted for more than 10% of the population. There is also a significant number of Poles, who arrived after Poland joined the European Union. English is the universal language of Great Britain. In addition, about a quarter of the inhabitants of Wales speak Welsh and there are about 60,000 of the Scots, which speak Gaelic in Scotland.

 

 

The Church of England, also called the Anglican Church, is the officially established church in England (it was disestablished in Wales in 1914); the monarch is its supreme governor. The Presbyterian Church of Scotland is legally established in Scotland. There is complete religious freedom throughout Great Britain. By far the greatest number of Britons (some 27 million) is Anglicans, followed by Roman Catholics and other Christians. Muslims are the next biggest religious group and have grown in the last decade. There are also smaller minorities of Hindus, Jews, and Buddhists.

 

 

Who are the British people?

Britain is somehow difficult country to understand. For tourists, British life, traditions and customs are weird. What is life like for ordinary people in Britain? How are things changing during the last decades?

British people live in the UK. They are people who live in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. British people can also be either the English, the Scots, the Welsh, or the Irish (from Northern Ireland only).

The British are said to be reserved in manners, dress and speech. They are famous for their politeness, self-discipline and especially for their sense of humor. British people have a strong sense of humor, which sometimes can be hard for foreigners to understand.

v -What is the longest word in the English language? – "Smiles". Because there is a mile between its first and last letters!

v What's the definition of a pessimist? – A pessimist is a well-informed optimist.

v Do you have any grandchildren? – No, all my children are just ordinary.

 

Britain is a country of mixed cultures. London has the largest non-white population of any European city and over 250 languages are spoken there. Therefore not all British people are White or Christians.