England

England is the largest, most industrial and most densely populated part of the United Kingdom. The coasts of England are washed by the North Sea, the Irish Sea, St.George’s Channel, the English Channel, and the Strait of Dover, Cornwall being the only part in direct contact with the Atlantic Ocean.

The longest river wholly in England is the Thames. It rises in the Cotswolds and flows through London to the North Sea. The Severn is considered to be longer than the Thames. Other important rivers are the Tyne and the Wear which rise in the eastern Pennines, the Trent and the Don from the southern Pennines, the Weaver, the Mersey, the Ribble, the Lune and the Eden which rise in the western Pennines.

All these rivers and some smaller rivers are of great importance for communication and especially for carrying freight. The smaller rivers were made navigable with the help of locks.

The coastal scenery of England is quite varied. Most of the south coast consists of high cliffs. The chalk cliffs of Dover, Beachy Head, and Dorset are particularly well-known. The finest cliff scenery of England is to be found in Devon and Cornwall. Lancashire is famous for its wide beaches where the tides are unusually high for an open coast. These beaches are most often of sand. The enclosed nature of the Irish Sea prevents the occurrence of big waves.

It is generally believed that England experiences weather rather than climate, because of its extreme variability. Periods of settled weather are rare. One day may be different from the next and predication cannot be made for more than a very short time ahead. Sunshine can rapidly change to rain; winds can alter their direction abruptly as a warm or cold front passes.

The flora of England is relatively poor when compared with that of many other countries. Deciduous forest prevails but because of man’s activities there is little natural unmodified forest left. Heaths and moors are common with heather, bracken, bilberry and moor-grasses. Woodlands are of oak and ash over much of the country. In the south beech is often dominant. Alder is common in wetter parts, especially along streams. Other English trees are rowan, elm, lime, yew, maple and holly. A great many trees which are now common such as sycamore and horse chestnut have been introduced by man.

In England there are only about 50 species of land mammals. Many of these have differentiated into sub species which are different from those on the continent. Several species such as the bear, the wolf and the beaver were exterminated in historic times, but others such as the fallow-deer, rabbit and rat were introduced by man. The birds are much more numerous than the mammals and there is one species peculiar to Britain - the red grouse. There are many migrant species which only visit the country. Although the increasing human population has destroyed many of the former breeding places of some birds, the bird fauna is still numerous because of the many varied habitats available.

There are few kinds of reptiles but they are nearly all plentiful where conditions suit them. Sea fish and fresh water fish are numerous.

The most fundamental division in the geography of Britain is that between high land and low land. The division is manifested in geology and climate, in vegetation and mineral resources, in industry and agriculture. In England the low land predominates. In low land areas the population density is very high and presents a major contrast to the lightly populated, largely uncultivated highlands of western and northern Britain. Within its bounds England contains, however, three major portions of highland Britain: Cumbria in the north-west, the Pennine upland of the north centre and the south-west peninsula. Lowland England is subdivided into the Midland plains and scarp lands. England possesses a richness and variety of landscape rarely equalled in an area of similar size.

In conclusion, we may say the following: England has a total area of 50,333 sq. miles (130, 362 sq. Km). It is divided into counties, of which there are 39 geographical ones, and 46 administrative ones.

Notes*

locks, n, pl. - шлюзи	freight, n. - фрахт, вантаж, груз
tides, n. pl. - прилив і відлив	cliffs, n, pl. - бескиди, стрімкі скали
deciduous forests - листяні ліси	holly, n. - гостролист
heather, n. - верес, болото покрите вересом	maple, n. - клен
moor, n. - вересове пустище	yew, n. - тис
bracken, n. - папоротник-орляк	lime, n. - липа
bilberry, n. - чорниця	elm, n. – в’яз, берест
sycamore, n. - смоква, інжир, фігове дерево beaver, n. – бобер red grouse, n. - рябчик, тетерук	rowan, n. - горобина mammal, n. – савець breeding place - місце розведення породи

Talking points*

What’s the geographic position of England?

Are rivers important for the England’s economy?

What’s the climate of England?

Is flora and fauna rich in England?

What’s the fundamental division in the geography of Britain?

Do you know that …

· Many British costumes and uniforms have a long history. One is the uniform of the Beefeaters at the Tower of London. This came first from France. Another is the uniform of the Horse Guards at Horse Guard’s Parade, not far from Buckingham Palace. Thousands of visitors take photographs of the Horse Guards, but the Guards never move or smile. In fact, some visitors think the Guards aren’t real. And that brings us to… Britannia. She wears traditional clothes, too. But she’s not a real person. She is a symbol of Britain. Lots of ordinary clothes have a long tradition. The famous bowler hat, for example. A man called Beaulieu (‘bju:li) made the first one in 1850. The very cold winters in the Crimea in the war of 1853-56 gave us the names of the cardigan and the balaclava. Lord Cardigan led the Light Brigade at the Battle of Balaclava (1854). A “cardigan” is now a warm woollen short coat with buttons, and a “balaclava” is a woollen hat. Another British soldier, Wellington, gave his name to a pair of boots. They have a shorter name today - “Wellies.”

· Parties. It’s the custom to have a party to celebrate…

A person’s birthday; a new house – a housewarming party; Christmas (at home, and often in offices, too); an engagement (a promise to marry); a wedding (marriage); New Year’s Eve; Easter.

Unit 5

Wales

Wales lies west of the English lowlands and is a hill country composed almost entirely of rocky outcrops dissected by deep valleys. The sweep of the south-coastal plain of Wales is interrupted by numerous bays of which Carmarthen and Swansea are the largest. The North Wales coastline westward from the Dee estuary is low-lying. Great Orem’s Head, which is a peninsular, stands out farther west. The coasts of Lleyn are rocky as many of the mountain lines slope down to the sea. The chief rivers of Wales are in the north of Clwyd and the Conway, on the west of the Dwyryd, Mawddach and Teifi; on the south, the eastern and the western Cleddan, the Taffy, Toy and Wysg (Usk). The interior highland mass is drained also by rivers which fall to the lowlands of the English border - the Dee, the Severn and the Wye.

The vegetation of Wales reflects the mountainous nature of the country and its moist climate. Moisture-loving species such as ferns are found almost throughout all Wales in greater abundance than in England. The remoter parts of Wales shelter some mammals and birds which are either extinct or rare elsewhere in Britain. Thus the polecat is fairly common in central Wales though hardly known elsewhere. Grassholm, off Pembrokeshire, is the home of one of the largest gannet colonies in Europe. Besides this species, other sea and land birds can be found there in great numbers. Large beds of cockles on parts of the south Wales coast support a flourishing cockle fishery.

The whole area of Wales may be subdivided into three regions - the Welsh Massif, Industrial South Wales, and Welsh Borderland.

The Welsh Massif is mainly plateau country with much moorland, well known for its cool and rainy climate. Settlements and farmlands are largely concentrated in the valleys and along the coast. The windy high plateaux have little use except as rough pasture for sheep, which are very numerous on the uplands. The Snowdon massif is the highest part of Wales and is situated in the north-west of the country. The highest mountain of both England and Wales is Snowdon itself which is 3, 561 feet high. Today the north-west of Welsh is known as that part of the country where the Welsh language and Welsh way of life are more predominant.

About two-thirds of the whole population of Wales live in Industrial South Wales and therefore this part of the country is fairly densely populated. This part of Wales is especially well known for its manufacturing of ferrous metals and coal-mining. It should be emphasised that coal-mining is very prominent in South Wales. The biggest towns of this area are Cardiff, Swansea and Newport. About a third of all the people of the region live in these three towns.

The Welsh Borderland is hilly but most of it is much lower than the Welsh Massif. It is well farmed and there are comparatively few towns. The climate of the Borderland is better than the climate of the heart of Wales but winters are increasingly cold with the increase of the distance from the sea.

Parts of the Borderland have exceptionally good soils which resulted in it becoming a notable farming area. Trees are especially numerous and hedges are a prominent feature of the scenery. Its pastures are chiefly used for cattle-grazing. Dairy cattle far outnumber beef stock. The most extensive crops are wheat, barley, oats, and mixed corn. The northern part of the country has large numbers of poultry, which produce eggs for the great urban markets. Orchard fruit is more typical of this area than small fruit and the chief product is cider apple.

With its impossibly complex language - the oldest in Europe - and lusty voices, Wales has a rustic charm all its own. While South Wales is mostly industrial, North Wales is a country of exceptional beauty and rugged charm, especially Snowdonia that rivals the Lake District for scenic beauty. The Welsh are fiercely proud of their ancient heritage, unshaken in their belief that they are the true Britons. Due west of the Midlands, Wales lies beyond the Severn Bridge if you come along the M4 or A40 from London. The sign that reads ‘Croeso i Cymru’ means ‘Welcome to Wales’. Cymru is the Welsh name for the country.

Notes*

lowlands, n., pl. - низовина, долина	rocky outcrops - гірські наземні поклади кам’яного вугілля
slope, n. - схилок, укіс, косогір	estuary, n. - широке гирло ріки
ferns, n. - папоротник	beefstock, n. - поголів’я худоби
polecat, n. - тхір	cattle-grazing, n. - нагул, випас худоби
gannet, n. - баклан	lusty, adj. - здоровий, сильний, живий
cockle, n. - істивний молюск	rustic, n. - [rʌ̱stɪk] сільський житель, селянин; през. селюк
to flourish, v. - процвітати rugged charm - [ˈrʌgɪd] гірський шарм, чарівність, привабливість, принадність	M4, A40 - numbers of main roads in the UK - номери головних доріг у Великобританії
hedge, n. - живопліт	dairy cows - молочні корови

Talking Points*

What’s characteristic feature of geographic position of Wales?

What’s the vegetation of Wales?

What are the basic regions of Wales?

What’s the population of Wales?

How is the agriculture and industry of Wales developed?

It is interesting to know…

· The world’s most famous tennis tournament is Wimbledon. It started at a small club in south London in the nineteenth century. Now a lot of the nineteenth century traditions have changed. For example, the women players don’t have to wear long skirts. And the men players don’t have to wear long trousers. But other traditions haven’t changed at Wimbledon. The courts are still grass, and visitors still eat strawberries and cream. The language of tennis hasn’t changed either. Did you know that “love” (zero) comes from “l’oeuf’ (the egg) in French?

· Traditionally Boxing Day is a day for foxhunting. The huntsmen and huntswomen ride horses. They use dogs, too. The dogs (fox hounds) follow the smell of the fox. Then the huntsmen and huntswomen follow the hounds. Before a Boxing Day hunt, the huntsmen and huntswomen drink hot wine. But the tradition of the December 26^th hunt is changing. Now, some people want to stop Boxing Day hunts (and other hunts, too). They don’t like foxhunting. For them it’s not a sport - it’s cruel.

Unit 6

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