Customs & traditions of the English-speaking countries

North – Caucasus State Technical University

Paper

Customs & traditions of the English-speaking countries

Carried out: Barilenko Kira,

RB-111 (1), the Australia

  Verified: Mamontova V.V.

Stavropol, 2011

Plan

Introduction

1. The outline of Australia

2. Customs and traditions of the Australians

3. Holidays in Australia

Conclusion

Literature

Vocabulary

Introduction

The object of the exploration is customs and traditions of Australia. The purpose of the paper is to analyze customs and traditions of the Australians, to show the most significant national holidays and to find out the distinctive features of the Australian culture. It is impossible to do without the short outline of general facts about Australia.

The study of culture is of primary importance nowadays. The definition of culture is polyhedral. By culture we mean folklore, history, etiquette and many other things. The truth is that a culture is simply composed of these things and is a complicated unit that can be divided into several categories. There is nothing more pleasant than to dive into the world of wonders and artifacts and start a long journey for cognition. Unfortunately, our society seems to ignore that priceless inheritance we received from ancestors to contribute and give to our posterities.

So many languages, so many cultures... There are hundreds of nations with specific mentalities and national priorities. Culture investigation takes centuries to discover all the secrets. Nobody will dare to deny the fact that every culture makes a special contribution to the development of the world. That is why it is really essential in the era of globalization.

1.                 Australia

Australia is the only country in the world that also a continent. It is sixth large country and the smallest continent. Australia lies between the South Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean. It is situated about 11000 km southwest of North America and about 3200 km southeast of mainland Asia.

The name of the country comes from Latin word “australis” which mean southern. The country’s official name is Commonwealth of Australia. The Commonwealth of Australia is a federation of states. Australia has six states-new South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. Each state has its government. Australia has two territories-the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory.

The capital of the country is Canberra. Australia is a constitutional monarchy like Great Britain. The nation is administered under written constitution. The British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, is also queen of Australia and country’s head of state. But the queen has little power in the Australian government. She serves mainly as a symbol of long historical tie between Great Britain and Australia.

Australia is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations which is an association formed by Britain and some of its former colonies. Australia is a one of the word’s developed countries. Australia has modern factories, highly productive mines and farms, and busy cities. It is the world’s leading producer of wool and bauxite. It also produces and exports large amounts of other minerals and farm goods. Income from the export enables Australian to have high standard of living. The most important trading partners of Australia are Japan and the United States.

2.                 Customs and traditions of the Australians

Australia’s diverse culture and lifestyle reflect its liberal democratic traditions and values, geographic closeness to the Asia–Pacific region and the social and cultural influences of the millions of migrants who have settled in Australia since World War II. Australia is a product of a unique blend of established traditions and new influences. The country’s original inhabitants, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, are the custodians of one of the world’s oldest continuing cultural traditions. They have been living in Australia for at least 40 000 years and possibly up to 60 000 years.  

The rest of Australia’s people are migrants or descendants of migrants who have arrived in Australia from about 200 countries since Great Britain established the first European settlement at Sydney Cove in 1788.In 1945, Australia’s population was around 7 million people and was mainly Anglo–Celtic. Since then, more than 6.5 million migrants, including 675 000 refugees, have settled in Australia, significantly broadening its social and cultural profile. Today Australia has a population of more than 21 million people. More than 43 per cent of Australians either were born overseas themselves or have one parent who was born overseas. Australia’s Indigenous population is estimated at 483 000, or 2.3 per cent of the total.

Migrants have enriched almost every aspect of Australian life, from business to the arts, from cooking to comedy and from science to sport. They, in turn, have adapted to Australia’s tolerant, informal and broadly egalitarian society.

Language

All people in Australia are encouraged to learn English, which is the national language and an important unifying element of Australian society. However, languages other than English are also valued. In fact, more than 15 per cent of Australians speak languages other than English at home. The most commonly spoken languages after English are Italian, Greek, Cantonese, Arabic, Vietnamese and Mandarin. Australians speak more than 200 languages, including Indigenous Australian languages.

While English is Australia’s national language, there are certain words and expressions that have become regarded as uniquely Australian through common usage. Some of them might seem strange to non-Australians.The use of these colloquial or slang words, often coupled with an Australian sense of humour that is characterised by irony and irreverence, can sometimes cause confusion for international visitors. There are a number of books on Australian colloquialisms and slang, including the Macquarie Book of Slang.

A national cuisine

Australia has one of the most diverse cuisines in the world, thanks to Asian and European migrant influences, a dining public that is happy to try innovative dishes and access to a plentiful supply of fresh and high–quality produce.

Australians enjoy a huge range of food in restaurants and homes, reflecting the country’s cultural diversity. Southern Europe has combined with Asia and the Pacific for new flavours and tastes. Italian, Chinese, Indonesian, Japanese, Greek, Thai, Malay, French and Vietnamese restaurants are common, particularly in the capital cities. Middle Eastern flavours are also rapidly emerging, with Moroccan and Lebanese flavours being used with local ingredients in mainstream cooking with notable success. Traditional Australian bush tucker is also becoming more common, particularly in northern Australian restaurants, where kangaroo, buffalo, crocodile and emu can often be found on menus.

Historically, there has never been a cuisine typically regarded as Australian. Instead, Australian fare has evolved with the distinct layers of flavours that each new culture has added. Homesick expatriate Australians sometimes hanker for Australian food such as lamingtons (a sponge cake square dipped in chocolate and coconut), pavlovas (a meringue dessert named after the Russian ballet dancer Anna Pavlova) and vegemite (a commercially produced spread made from yeast products).

3. Holidays in Australia

Most workers in Australia have around 12 national and state public holidays throughout the year, in addition to their annual holidays. These include:

                    New Year’s Day, which is on 1 January every year. The most common time for people in Australia to take their annual leave is between mid-December and the end of January.

                    Christmas and Easter, two of the most important dates in the Christian calendar. Christmas Day is on 25 December every year, while Easter is observed at some point between late March and late April each year.

                    Boxing Day, the day after Christmas Day, is also a public holiday.

                    Australia Day, on 26 January, is the day Australians celebrate the founding of the first European settlement in Australia in 1788.

                    Anzac Day, on 25 April, is the day the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (Anzac) landed at Gallipoli in Turkey in 1915 during World War I. This day is set aside in memory of those who fought for Australia and those who lost their lives in war. The day is a national public holiday and is commemorated with ceremonies, the laying of wreaths and military parades.

There are also a number of other non-national holidays which are celebrated only in specific states and territories (or celebrated in all states, but at different times of the year). These include Labour (or Eight-Hour) Day and the official birthday of Queen Elizabeth. Melbourne Cup Day, which occurs on the first Tuesday of November each year, is a public holiday in metropolitan Melbourne. The Melbourne Cup is a world-famous horse race which brings Australia almost to a standstill. For a few minutes, most people, whether at work, school or home, stop to watch the race on television.

Conclusion

In conclusion, I would like to notice that there is an abundant of various customs and traditions in English speaking countries. Despite the fact that, some of them got into the reality of other cultures and completely different life styles, they are still strongly attached to the roots of the British history.

The most amazing thing about all that is that during the centuries those traditions have managed to stay urgent and have been rugged enough to withstand in today’s world. These customs and traditions are still topical and moreover they keep on attracting more and more people who are truly interested in the history and development of the English speaking countries.

The strict scrutiny of the traditions of the English speaking countries helps us to realize more thoroughly the way of living of people of these countries, their social status and the history of the country.

Literature

Большаков В. В. Зеленый материк в синем океане: Рассказы об Австралии. М.: Малыш, 1982.

Аничкин О.Н., Куракова Л.И., Фролова Л.Г., Австралия, М., 1983.

Энциклопедия “Я ПОЗНАЮ МИР” Страны и Народы  

http://www.krugosvet.ru

Vocabulary

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