Topic: My Country
Ex. 1. Read the text and translate it using a dictionary.
The Russian Federation
The Russian Federation (Russia) is the largest country in the world. It is a federation of 21 republics and 62 other regions. Russia covers the eastern part of Europe and the northern part of Asia. Its total area is about 17 million square kilometres. The Arctic Ocean and its seas wash the frontiers of Russia in the north; the Black, Azov and Caspian seas in the south, in the east the frontiers are washed by the Pacific Ocean, in the west by the Baltic Sea. In the south Russia borders on China, Mongolia, Korea, Kazakhstan, North Osetia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. In the west it borders on Norway, Finland, the Baltic States, Poland, Belorussia, the Ukraine. It also has a sea border with the USA, Canada, Japan and Denmark.
Ethnic Russians comprise 79.8% of the country's population; however the Russian Federation is also home to several sizeable minorities. In total, 160 different other ethnic groups and indigenous peoples live within its borders. Though Russia's population is comparatively large (142 million people), its density is low because of the country's enormous size. Population is the densest in European Russia, near the Ural Mountains, and in southwest Siberia.
The enormous size of Russia and the remoteness of many areas from the sea result in the dominance of the humid continental climate, which is prevalent in all parts of the country except for the tundra and the extreme southeast. Mountains in the south obstruct the flow of warm air masses from the Indian Ocean, while the plain of the west and north makes the country open to Arctic and Atlantic influences. Thus, in the south-west the weather is usually mild and wet; in the middle of the country the climate is moderate and continental; northern Asia is one of the coldest places on the Earth; a small portion of the Black Sea coast, most notably in Sochi, possesses a humid subtropical climate with unusually wet winters.
Russias highest air temperature, +45,4oC was recorded at Utta (Kalmykia) in July 2010, whilst the lowest 71,2oC was registered in Oymyakon in 1924.
There is hardly a country in the world where such a variety of scenery and vegetation can be found. We have steppes in the south, plains and forests in the midland, tundra and taiga in the north, highlands and deserts in the east. The wild animal life is rich and comprises polar bear, reindeer, walrus, tiger, leopard, brown bear, elk, porcupine, turtle, sable and others, diverse birds and insects.
Most of the territory of Russia is flat. We have two great plains: the Great Russian Plain and the West Siberian Lowland. There are three main mountain chains in Russia. The Caucasus is a range of mountains which extends from the Black Sea to the Caspian Sea. The highest mountain both in Russia and in the whole Europe is Mount Elbrus (5,642 m) in the Caucasus. The Urals extend from the Arctic Ocean to the steppes and cut the territory into two unequal parts (the European and Asian ones). The Altai Mountains lie south of Lake Baikal and along the border with Mongolia. The Altai contains Mount Belukha, which at 4,506 m. is the highest point of Asian Russia. There are 150 volcanoes on the Kamchatka Peninsula, 30 of which are active. Russia takes the first place in the world in water resources. There are over 120 thousand rivers and two million lakes in Russia. The Volga, the largest river in Europe flows into the Caspian Sea. The main Siberian rivers the Ob, the Yenisei and the Lena flow from the south to the north. The Amur in the Far East flows into the Pacific Ocean. The worlds deepest lake (1,620 metres deep) is the Baikal. It has the greatest supply of fresh water. Lake Baikal is also famous for its picturesque scenery. Its water once was the purest in the world. Now environment protection organizations' leaders want it to be restored and kept safe and pure. They demand removing industrial enterprises out of its shore. Other major lakes include the Ladoga and the Onega, two of the largest lakes in Europe.
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Russia is one of the richest countries in the world in natural resources. It has large reserves of oil, natural gas, coal, iron ore, diamonds, copper, lead, gold, silver, nickel and other minerals.
Russia has one-fifth of the worlds forests. They account 40 per cent of the land and are concentrated in the European north of the country, in Siberia and in the Far East.
There are 12 cities with the population over one million people: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg, Samara, Omsk, Chelyabinsk, Kazan, Rostov, Volgograd, Ufa.
The capital of Russia is Moscow. It is its largest political, scientific, cultural and industrial centre. It is one of the oldest Russian cities.
Russia is a parliamentary republic. The Head of the country is the President, the head of the Council of Ministers is the Prime Minister. The Russian Parliament, i.e. the Federal Assembly, consists of 2 houses: the Federal Council (the upper House) and the State Duma (the lower House). The Head of the Federal Council is its Chairman. The Head of the State Duma is its Speaker.
The national anthem of Russia is the Patriotic Song by A. Alexandrov. The official symbol of Russia is the Russian flag; it has 3 wide stripes white, blue and red. Red symbolizes love and bravery, blue honesty and devotion, white has always meant nobility and sincerity. The National Symbol is a two-headed eagle which is the most ancient symbol of Russia. A lot of people believe that traditional symbols of the country are: the birch tree; the Russian troika; Dymkovo toy, khokhloma; ethnic Russian musical instruments like gusli and balalaika; Matryoshka doll, etc.
Ex. 2. Read the text using a dictionary:
Chuvashia
My motherland is Chuvashia - the land of a hundred thousand words, a hundred thousand songs and a hundred thousand embroideries. It is a very pleasant place to live in. Chuvash poets and writers, composers and artists have found inspiration in picturesque rivers and woods, fields and hills, country lanes and villages of their native land. Chuvashia lies in the heart of European Russia in the Volgo-Vyatka region. The republic is Russias forth for the population, with 1 million 292 thousand on a comparatively small territory of 18,3 thousand sq. km. The density is 74.3 persons per sq km. The rural population accounts for 40% of the total.
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Modern Chuvashia is surrounded by industrially-developed centres of Russia: in the west it borders on the Nizhny Novgorod region, in the north - on Republic Mary El, in the east on Republic Tatarstan, in the south its neighbours are the Mordovian Republic and the Ulyanovsk region. The republic works consistently in every sphere of life and constantly raises living standards, with an all-round approach to problems. All this brings fruit - Chuvashia is making rapid progress, and is a good home not only to the native population but to all. 97 ethnic entities are represented in its friendly community. The Chuvash make 67.7%, the Russians - 26.5%, the Tatars - 2.8%, the Mordovians - 1.2%, and the other nationalities - 1.8%. This ethnic diversity is an inestimable strategic resource of mutual enrichment and social, economic and cultural progress.
At one time the area of Chuvashia was covered with thick forests, but gradually they were cut down. Now woods cover third of the territory, mainly along the Sura and in Zavolzhye. Common trees include oak, pine, fir, lime, maple, birch and others. Wild animal life comprises elk, wild boar, brown bear, wolf, species of smaller mammals, such as foxes, badger, hare, beaver, squirrel; birds (about 200 species of which have been recorded); fish (bream, perch, pike, sheatfish) and insects. There are specially protected natural territories in the republic - the state reserve Prisurskiy, National park Chavash varmane (Chuvash forest), 8 nature and 5 hunting sanctuaries - objects of ecological and hunting tourism, vast ecologically pure territories.
The climate of Chuvashia is moderate and continental with four distinct seasons. The average temperature in summer is +20+22oC, in winter -8-10oC. The republic is rich in nonmetallic minerals: peat, sand, clay, plaster, dolomite, carbonates. According to the recent geological researches Chuvashia possesses deposits of oil and gas.
At present the Chuvash Republic is an independent republic and a subject of the Russian Federation.
The Coat of Arms of the Chuvash Republic looks like a heraldic golden yellow shield with the purple symbol of Tree of Life in the centre. It symbolizes not only the revival but also represents the peoples of the Chuvash land. From the purple field-earth of ethnic Chuvash people living on the native earth, trunk and branches grow. From the lines parallel to this field-earth come branches of ethnic Chuvash people who live outside the republic. The crown of Tree of Life contains the branches of nationalities living on the territory of the Chuvash Republic. The Coat of Arms shows the Chuvash emblem Three Suns which symbolizes the unity of present, past and future time along with golden hop branches and cones and the name of the Republic in gold on a purple cartouche.
The state flag looks like a square golden yellow cloth with the purple colour at the bottom of the flag representing the land. There are also the armorial emblems The Tree of Life and Three suns in the centre of the flag.
The capital of the republic is Cheboksary with the population about 456 thousand people. It is situated upon both banks of the Volga. Cheboksary is the administrative, industrial, cultural and educational centre of the Chuvash Republic.
Mariinsky Posad in Cheboksary suburbs is one of the most interesting towns in Chuvashia. It was mentioned in the records already in 1620 (that time it was the village of Sundyr). Its nature impresses with rolling hills and deep ravines, centuries-age oaks and peaceful stream of the Volga. There are two park areas in Mariinsky Posad, and a juniper groove - a place of rare birds inhabitance - is under federal protection. One of local nature attractions is Gosudareva hill (Sovereigns hill) at the foot of which there well out remedial springs.
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Alatyr is another town of attraction in Chuvashia. The Exaltation of the Cross church was erected here in 1827, the architecture of which combines archaic traditions and classicism elements. Here one of Chuvashias best monuments has remained: the building of a merchant club constructed in 1895. The construction of a real college in 1908 has become a bright sample of modern style. Alatyr is well known for ancient industry architecture as well. The most interesting industrial constructions are railway workshops built in 1892. Nowadays, there is an engineering plant there.
There are a lot of rarely beautiful architectural monuments spread in towns and villages of Chuvashia, for example, a stone cathedral in the village of Belovolzhskoe (1698), the house of Baryshnikov in the town of Yadrin (the beginning of the 20th century), and others.
Ex. 3. Answer the questions:
1. Where is the Russian Federation situated? Which part is located in Europe the larger or the smaller one?
2. What mountain chain separates Europe from Asia?
3. What is the territiry of the country?
4. What countries does Russia border on?
5. Russia is a highly developed country, isnt it?
6. What kind of climate is there in the country?
7. What rivers can you name?
8. What kind of mineral resources has Russia?
9. Who is the Head of the country?
10. What is the capital of Russia?
11. When was it founded?
12. What are the symbols of Russia?
13. Where is Chuvashia situated?
14. What regions does Chuvashia border on?
15. Is Chuvashia a densely populated republic?
16. What climate does the republic have?
17. Chuvashia is a picturesque place, isnt it?
18. How does the state flag of the republic look like?
Ex.4. Fill in the blanks:
1. The Ocean and its seas wash the frontiers of Russia in the north; the , and seas in the south, in the east the frontiers are washed by the Ocean, in the west by the Sea.
2. We have two great plains: the Plain and the Lowland.
3. There are three main mountain chains in Russia. They are: .
4. There are volcanoes on the Kamchatka Peninsula, of which are active.
5. The worlds deepest lake is the . It is famous for its scenery.
6. Russia is rich in and other minerals.
7. Russia is a republic. The Head of the country is the .
8. The national anthem of Russia is .
9. Chuvashia lies in the heart of in the region.
10. Woods cover third of its territory, mainly .
11. Common trees include .
12. Wild animal life comprises .
13. The climate of Chuvashia is .
14. of the Chuvash Republic looks like a heraldic golden yellow shield with the purple symbol of in the centre.
15. The state flag looks like with the purple colour at the bottom of the flag representing the land.
16. Cheboksary is situated of the Volga.
17. The nature of Mariinsky Posad impresses with and , and of the Volga.
18. The construction of a real college in Alatyr in has become a bright sample of style.
