Мы публиковали немало информации о США - и “учебные” сведения, и просто инфу для развлечения типа “а знаете ли вы, что в Америке…”. Практически все англоязычные ресурсы полнятся статьями и текстами о Великобритании - London is a capital of Great Britain, а как же.
Думаю, настало время повертеть головой и переключиться на что-то чуть менее распространенное, но ни в коем случае не менее интересное
Например, на Ирландию!
Поговорим немного об этой маленькой зеленой стране, культура которой так дорога сердцу многих русских - и не только в день Святого Патрика.
Итак:
5 BASIC FACTS ABOUT THE LIFE IN IRELAND
Pub Culture
Pub culture is very strong in Ireland: the Irish like to socialize (общаться, тусить), and pubs form strong connections (связи). Most pubs have music and fine ales. Playing music and singing, often spontaneously and in groups, is a key feature of Irish pubs. Ireland facts show that the Irish consume (употребляют) on average (в среднем) 131.1 liters of beer per year (в год, соответственно, в месяц будет “per month”, и так далее), which is the second highest consumption (дословно - “самое высокое потребление”, самые высокие показатели потребления) in the world after the Czech Republic (Чешская Республика). There are many famous Irish beers including Guinness, Smithwicks (Kilkenny), and Harp Lager.
Castles
Ireland is known throughout the world (по всему миру) for its vast amount (большое количество) of castles. Ireland’s history is full of wars and violence (насилие, жестокость), so castles were built to protect families from invaders (захватчики). Today, most of (большинство) the castles are still (все еще) standing and some can even (даже) be visited by tourists.
Ireland Has Its Own Language
Although (хотя) English is the main language in Ireland, Ireland facts show that its ancestral language (язык-прародитель), Irish Gaelic (Гаэльский язык) still exists (существует). Some (около, =about) 1.6 million people are competent in Irish, but only 380,000 fluent speakers (люди, бегло говорящие на гаэльском) exist. While it could be viewed (мог бы рассматриваться как) as a dying (умирающий) language of the world, many still fight (борются) to protect this important part of Irish identity (идентичность, самосознание). Around Dublin especially, there are communities who use it and retain (сохраняют) its status. It is an official language of the European Union (Евросоюз).
Halloween Originates in Ireland
Halloween actually originated (возник, родом из) in Ireland and has its basis in the ancient (древний) Gaelic (Гаэльский - как название языка из предыдущего пункта) festival of Samhain (Самайн). It was a harvest festival (фестиваль урожая) held on October 31 each year to mark (отметить) the end of summer. Samhain became associated with All Saints Day (день всех святых) (November 1) at some point (в какой-то момент, дословно - “в какой-то точке”) during the early Middle Ages (Средние Века). Over time (в течением времени), All Saints and Samhain fused together (слились воедино) and became the day of the witches (ведьм) and ghosts (призраков) that people all over the world (по всему миру) now know as Halloween.
25% Of Europe’s Computers Are Made in Ireland
Another Ireland fact that is quite surprising (довольно удивителен) partly explains (частично объясняет) the recent surge (недавний взлет, подъем) in the country’s economy. American hi-tech companies have been investing (инвестировали, вкладывали деньги) in Ireland for some years now (в течение нескольких лет - кстати, потому в этом предложении и использовано Present Perfect Continuous, узнали?), with impressive (впечатляющие) results. Ireland is now the world’s largest (самый большой в мире) exporter of software. Google, Microsoft, Apple, IBM, Dell, Intel, Motorola, Oracle, Lotus, and Boeing Computer Services all have headquarters (штаб-квартиры) or at least (как минимум, по крайней мере) regional centers in Ireland. As of (по данным на) 2015, 25% of Europe’s computers are made in Ireland.
Все!
А теперь, как обычно - то же самое, но без “подпорок”. Готовы?
Pub Culture
Pub culture is very strong in Ireland: the Irish like to socialize, and pubs form strong connections. Most pubs have music and fine ales. Playing music and singing, often spontaneously and in groups, is a key feature of Irish pubs. Ireland facts show that the Irish consume on average 131.1 liters of beer per year, which is the second highest consumption in the world after the Czech Republic. There are many famous Irish beers including Guinness, Smithwicks (Kilkenny), and Harp Lager.
Castles
Ireland is known throughout the world for its vast amount of castles. Ireland’s history is dotted with wars and violence, so castles were built to protect families from invaders. Today, most of the castles are still standing and some can even be visited by tourists.
Ireland Has Its Own Language
Although English is the main language in Ireland, Ireland facts show that its ancestral language, Irish Gaelic still exists. Some 1.6 million people are competent in Irish, but only 380,000 fluent speakers currently exist. While it could be viewed as a dying language of the world, many still fight to protect this important part of Irish identity. Around Dublin especially, there are communities who use it and retain its status. It is an official language of the European Union.
Halloween Originates in Ireland
Halloween actually originated in Ireland and has its basis in the ancient Gaelic festival of Samhain. It was a harvest festival held on October 31 each year to mark the end of summer. Samhain became associated with All Saints Day (November 1) at some point during the early Middle Ages. Over time, All Saints and Samhain fused together and became the day of the witches and ghosts that people all over the world now know as Halloween.
25% Of Europe’s Computers Are Made in Ireland
Another Ireland fact that is quite surprising partly explains the recent surge in the country’s economy. American hi-tech companies have been investing in Ireland for some years now, with impressive results. Ireland is now the world’s largest exporter of software. Google, Microsoft, Apple, IBM, Dell, Intel, Motorola, Oracle, Lotus, and Boeing Computer Services all have headquarters or at least regional centers in Ireland. As of 2015, 25% of Europe’s computers are made in Ireland.
Ну, что, чтение становится более подъемной задачей? Какие полезные фразы и слова вы бы выписали из этого упражнения?
