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Holidays in English-speaking countries
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There are fewer public holidays in Great Britain than in other European countries. They are: Christmas, Boxing Day, the New Year’s Day, Easter, Spring Bank holiday and Summer Bank holidays. Public holidays in Britain are called bank holidays, because the banks as well as most of the offices and shops are closed.
The most favourite holiday is Christmas. Every year the people of Norway present the city of London a big Christmas tree and it stands in the Trafalgar Square. Before Christmas, group of singers go from house to house and sing carols, traditional Christmas songs. Many churches hold the service on the Sunday before Christmas. The fun starts the night before, on the 12th of December. Traditionally this is the day when people decorate their trees. Children hang stockings near their beds, hoping that Santa comes down the chimney during the night and fills them with toys and sweets. Christmas is a family holiday. All the families usually meet for the big Christmas dinner of turkey and Christmas pudding. And everyone gives and gets presents.
The 26th of December, Boxing Day, is an extra holiday after Christmas. It’s the time to visit friends and relatives. This day postmen receive their presents in the boxes.
The New Year’s Day is less favourite in Britain than Christmas. But in Scotland the New Year’s Eve is the biggest festival of the year.
All people like to celebrate St Valentine’s Day. St Valentine is the saint of people in love. It is celebrated on the 14th of February. People send Valentine cards and presents to their husbands, wives or boyfriends and girlfriends.
On the 31st of October the British celebrate Halloween and you can expect to meet witches and ghosts that night.
Vocabulary
to hope – надіятись
to expect – очікувати
to send a card – надсилати відкритку
to dress up as a witch \ ghost – одягнутись в костюм відьми \ привида
Exercise 3. Tell when these holidays are celebrated in Great Britain:
e.g. In Great Britain Christmas is celebrated on the 25th of December.
The New Year – ____________
Christmas – ____________
Halloween– __________
The Bank Day–__________
The Valentine’s Day–__________
The Boxing Day – ___________
Exercise 4. Discuss the following questions:
1. What British holidays do you know?
2. What British holidays do you like most of all?
3. How do the British celebrate the New Year?
4. When is Christmas, the New Year, the Valentine’s Day celebrated in Britain?
5. How do the British celebrate Christmas?
6. How do the British celebrate the Valentine’s Day?
7. Do you celebrate the Valentine’s Day? How? Do you like to give and get presents?
8. How do the British celebrate Halloween? Do you like this holiday?
9. What is the most popular holiday in Britain?
*Exercise 5. Do a quiz:
1)December the 26th when children wake up and open their presents is called:
a) Boxing Day;
b) Presents’ Day;
c) The day of surprises.
2) How does Santa get into a house?
a) through the door;
b) through the chimney;
c) through the window.
3) What does Santa give to naughty children?
a) a stick;
b) a lump of coal;
c) nothing.
4) What do people usually eat for Christmas dinner?
a) fish and chips;
b) turkey and Christmas pudding;
c) Yorkshire pudding and roast beef.
5) What do children usually leave for Santa near the Christmas tree?
a) a “thank you” note;
b) a small present;
c) milk and cookies.
6) What do children hang on the fireplace?
a) angels;
b) Christmas balls;
c) stockings.
7) Where does Santa live?
a) in Lapland;
b) in Norway;
c) in the North Pole.
8) What are traditional colours of Christmas?
a) red and green;
b) gold and silver;
c) blue and white.
9) What do people have to do on New Year’s Eve when it is midnight?
a) drink champagne;
b) give hugs to friends;
c) kiss someone.
10) What plant lets you kiss the person if you stand with them under it?
a) cactus;
b) mistletoe;
c) violets.
11) What do people hang on their doors for Christmas?
a) a wreath;
b) holly;
c) bells.
12) How many reindeer does Santa have?
a) 4;
b) 9;
c) 6.
13) What is the name of the most famous reindeer?
a) Donner;
b) Comet;
c) Rudolf.
14) Who helps Santa to make toys in the workshop?
a) his wife;
b) elves;
c) dwarfs.
15) What does the name “Santa Claus” stand for?
a) Saint Nicolas;
b) it’s the Greek for “Father Christmas”;
c) in Latin it means “a good spirit”.
16) What do people usually write before New Year’s Eve?
a) a shopping list;
b) cards for friends and relatives;
c) New Year resolutions.
Exercise 6. Read and translate the text:
*Customs and Traditions of Great Britain
Every country and every nation has its own traditions and customs. They are very important in the life of English people. Englishmen are proud of their traditions and customs and carefully keep them up. Some of them are famous all over the world. Some are funny and some are strange. But they are all interesting.
The English are the stay-at-home people. “There is no place like home”, they say. When they don’t work they like to spend their days off at home with their families. The open fire is something that the English are very much fond of. People all over the world know the saying: “The Englishman’s house is his castle”.
English people like to live in small two-storied houses for one family with a small garden. They have love of gardens. Listen to the men’s talk on Monday morning in the office and in the factory. It will be about gardens. It will be about the best way of growing vegetables, fruit, flowers and other plants.
English people are tea-drinkers. They love tea and have it many times a day. If you come to an English home even at five o’clock in the morning, you’ll get a cup of tea. And you say with your best five o’clock smile: “Thank you so much! I adore a cup of early morning tea”.
Then you have tea for breakfast; then you have tea at 11 o’clock in the morning for lunch; then you have tea for tea; then after supper; and again at 11 o’clock at night.
Christmas (X-mas) is one of the most important festivals of the year. It is celebrated on the 25th of December. People give each other presents and send Christmas cards. Children find X-mas presents in their stockings. The traditional Christmas dishes are turkey and pudding.
There is another interesting New Year tradition in the North of England and Scotland. It’s an old custom of First-footing. In Great Britain the first visitor who comes into a house on New Year’s morning is called the First Foot. This visitor is very important, because they believe that he brings luck to the family for the following twelve months.
The First Foot comes very early in the morning and brings some symbolic presents of food (usually a piece of bread), a piece of coal, and a coin. That means that the family will have good luck, will be happy and rich in the coming year. The First Foot also brings an evergreen branch as a promise of continuing life.
To be a true luck-bringer, the First Foot must be healthy, young and good-looking, he must have black or fair hair, but not red hair. In England the First Foot must be a man (or a boy), not a woman.
The English have a custom of celebrating Mother’s Day. It is usually in March on one of the Sundays. This is a holiday for English women. On that day people visit their mothers and give them some small presents and flowers. If they can’t do that they send their mothers a “Mother’s card”. On that day all people in the family help their moms in any way they can: they help them with the meals and washing up. They try to make it a day off for their mothers.
In March they usually have one more holiday – Pancake Day. It’s usually on Tuesday before the Lenten fast begins. On that day they eat a lot of pancakes. But they not only eat them, they run with them! In some villages and towns in England pancake races take place every year. These races are run by housewives. They run through the streets holding a frying pan and throwing the pancake in the air. Of course if they drop the pancake they lose the race.
On February 14 they have St.Valentine’s Day. St.Valentine is the saint of the people in love. On that day people send a card to the one they love or someone whom they like. But traditionally you must never write your name on it. These cards are usually called “Valentines” and are used to be handmade.
Halloween is celebrated on the evening of 31st October. Children dress up in fancy dress as witches, ghosts and demons. They knock on neighbors’ doors. When the door is opened, the children shout “Trick or treat! ” This means “If you don’t give us a treat (a sweet or a piece of cake), we’ll play a trick on you! ” Another popular custom at Halloween is to cut a face in a hollowed-out pumpkin and put a candle in it so that the face glows in the dark.
Exercise 7. Read the following statements and say if they are true or false:
1. December 25 is a public holiday in Great Britain.
2. Easter is a period of two days.
3. St.Valentine’s cards are usually signed by a person who sends them.
4. English people are great tea-drinkers.
5. The old tradition in England is to build large houses with high wall around it without any trees.
6. The First Foot must be a red-haired woman.
7. Pancake Day is the day of eating pancakes and running with them along the street.
Exercise 8. Find in the text the English for the following words and make up sentences with them.
Святкувати, звичай, індичка, удача, вічнозелена гілочка, обожнювати, підкидати у повітря, відьма, привид, витівка, порожній всередині.
Exercise 9. Answer the following questions using the expressions below:
It is interesting to note; As far as I know; To my mind; Speaking of; As far as I remember; I’d like to stress the point; On the contrary; All in all.
1. Where do the British find their Christmas presents?
2. What happens on St. Valentine’s Day?
3. Why do we say that the English are stay-at-home people?
4. When do the English drink their tea?
5. When do they celebrate Mother’s Day?
6. What kind of race takes place on Pancake Day?
*Exercise 10. Find out when these holidays are celebrated and sort these holidays into the table according to the countries they are celebrated in.
| Ukraine | Great Britain | United States of America |
1. St.Valentine Day; 8. Christmas;
2. Thanksgiving Day; 9. Women’s Day;
3. Columbus Day; 10. Memorial Day;
4. Victory Day; 11. Martin Luther King’s Day
5. Guy Fawkes Day; 12. Independence Day
6. Easter; 13. Halloween;
7. Mother’s Day 14. Veterans’ Day.
*Exercise 11. Do a research project. Find out the following and tell the class:
· Which holidays do British people like most of all?
· Which holidays do they hate to celebrate?
· What unusual traditions do the Brits have? Why are they strange for you?
· What holiday celebration would you like to participate in? Why?
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