Read the article. Match the beginnings and the endings of the sentences.

1. Welsh and Scottish sportspeople get annoyed when …

2. If England and Scotland play a rugby match, …

3. People enjoy St Andrew’s Day and St David’s Day now, but …

4. Some buildings in England used to display the Union Jack, but now …

a) … they display their own symbols and flags, not British ones.

b) … they show the English flag.

c) … they aren’t referred to as “Scottish” or “Welsh”.

d) … they didn’t use to celebrate them much.

Who are the British?

The UK is a confused nation when it comes to national identity, especially in relation to major sporting events. Commentators proudly refer to the country’s internationally successful sportspeople as “English” if they come specifically from England. Welsh and Scottish athletes, however, are usually given the general label “British” without any recognition of their individual homelands.

But it’s when the countries compete individually, especially against each other, that the idea of a “United Kingdom” becomes completely lost. At football and rugby matches there has been a strong revival of the individual flags, songs and symbols of England, Scotland and Wales – and there often isn’t a Union Jack to be seen.

Away from the sports field, the national saints’ day of St David in Wales and St Andrew in Scotland are starting to be marked with large celebrations in the same way that St Patrick’s Day has always been celebrated in Ireland. And the flag of St George can be seen in England on public buildings and churches where the Union Jack used to be. With Scotland and Wales now having their own parliaments, there is even extreme talk of an “English Independence Movement”, and some people are wondering if the United Kingdom will last into the next century.

Writing

Write a paragraph about your country. Write about the national flag, the national day and the national symbols. Is your country “united”, or are there some parts of it that have a separate identity?

Vocabulary: Words and Phrases

to be situated on to be limited by to be surrounded by to be connected with to be separated from to be imported (from) to be washed by to be employed in to be in power

to influence to freeze to vary to include to elect to provide to reign to rule

a valley an equipment an attraction a plain a charm a trade a lowland a highland a manufacture a mountain a monarchy a mine a law a parliament a branch a government a chamber a crossway a coast a scenery an isle an influence a difference an island

urban moderating foggy mild quiet rainy insular humid

Great Britain

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is situated on the British Isles. The British Isles consist of two large islands, Great Britain and Ireland, and above five thousand small islands. Their total area is over 244 000 square kilometers, its population is about 87 million people. The United Kingdom is made up of four countries: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Their capitals are London, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast.

Great Britain is surrounded by seas on all sides and is separated from the European continent (France) by the North Sea and the English Channel. The western coast of Great Britain is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea. The surface of the British Isles varies very much. The north of Scotland is mountainous and is called Highlands, while the south, which has beautiful valleys and plains, is called Lowlands. The north and west of England are mountainous, but all the rest - east, center and southeast - is a vast plain. Mountains are not very high. Ben Nevis is the highest mountain (1343).

There are a lot of rivers in Britain, but they are not very long. The Severn is the longest river, while the Thames is the deepest and the most important one. The rivers seldom freeze in winter. There are many lakes in Scotland. The most beautiful is Loch Lomond.

Great Britain has a very good position as it lies on the crossways of the sea routes from Europe to the other parts of the world. There are many countries which are connected with Great Britain by sea. Thanks to the moderating influence of the sea and Gulf Stream Great Britain has an insular climate, rather humid and mild, without striking difference between seasons. It is often foggy and rainy. The summer is not very hot and the winter is not very cold.

The UK is one of the world’s smallest countries. The population of the country is over 87 million and about 80% of it is urban. The UK is a highly developed industrial country. It’s known as one of world’s largest producers and exporters of machinery, electronics, textile, aircraft and navigation equipment. It lives by manufacture and trade. Its agriculture provides only half the food it needs, the other half of its food has to be imported. Britain is one of the most highly industrialized countries in the world: for every person employed in agriculture, eleven are employed in mining, manufacturing and building. The main branches of British economy are engineering, mining, ship-building, motor vehicle manufacturing, textile, chemistry, electronics, fishing and food processing. The industrial centres of Great Britain are London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool, Sheffield and others.

The UK is a constitutional monarchy. In law, the Head of State is the Queen (now Elizabeth), but in practice, the Queen reigns, but does not rule. Her power is limited by Parliament, which includes two Houses (chambers): the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The country is ruled by the elected government with the Prime Minister at the head. The Prime Minister is usually the head of the party which is in power.

There are three main political parties in Great Britain: the Labour, the Conservative and the Liberal parties. The Liberal party is the ruling party nowadays.

Great Britain is a country of strong attraction for tourists, especially in spring and summer. The charm of it lies in its variety of sceneries: the finest combination of sea and high land, the valleys of South Wales, the smiling orchards of Kent, the lakes of Scotland, its fields and woodland parks — everything is quiet and green.