Belarusian Customs and
Traditions
1. Let’s
talk about Belarusian customs and traditions. What can you tell me about your
favorite Belarusian holiday?
2. Are
you proud of our national holidays and traditions?
To
begin I would like to point out that Belarus has exciting and fascinating customs
and traditions. I love all kinds of holidays but most of all I admire the
national traditions connected with them. My best loved holidays are New Year
with a New Year tree, Christmas with plenty of delicious food to eat and Easter
with red eggs and an Easter pie. The preparation for these holidays starts long
before they come. Thus about a fortnight before the New Year streets are
decorated with colourful lights. Shops are filled with people buying gifts.
Christmas trees are decorated with colorful ornaments and twinkling lights. On
New Year’s Eve we have a special dinner with lots of tasty food, we put on
our best outfits or dress up.
Kupala
holiday, which occurs on the day of summer solstice 7 July (the seventh of
July) is one of the most poetic and mysterious holidays in Belarus. Girls
gather flowers and weave wreaths at dawn, they throw their wreaths into the
river. People light bonfires, perform traditional dances, sing folk songs and
jump over the fire. One of the culminating moments of the event is the search
for a magic fern-flower in the forest. As the old legend says this flower
blossoms only once a year, on ‟Kupalle”, and the one who finds It will be happy for
the rest of his life.
There
are two very special holidays in the country: the Eighth of March and the Ninth
of May. On the Eighth of March women are traditionally presented with flowers
and gifts and words of love and respect are addressed to them. The Ninth of May
is both a happy and a sad day. On this day we celebrate our victory over
fascism in the Great Patriotic War and at the same time pay tribute to those
who gave up their lives for the liberation of our motherland. Deep respect and
warm gratitude are shown to war veterans. The day is made special by a military
parade in the morning. Children wave flags and people cheer. It is a moving
occasion and everyone feels proud. There are grand fireworks at night.
To
conclude I’d like to stress that it is important to keep and remember our
national traditions.
3. What
questions can you ask a friend about his/her last New Year celebration?
1) Did
you celebrate New Year’s Day with your family or with your friends?
2) Where
did you celebrate it?
3) What
present did you get?
4) Did
you make any New Year resolutions?
5) What
is your idea of a perfect New Year’s Day?
4. What
national souvenirs will you recommend a tourist to buy in Belarus?
Belarusian
people are very talented and hard-working. We can do different things from
wood, for example wooden spoons, but foreigners like Belarusian flax bedclothes
and straw things: dolls, flowers and bells. You can buy all these souvenirs in
the shop ‟Pavlinka.”
Belarus
has long been famous for its linen fabrics, symbolic rushnyks (embroidered
towels), unique products made of straw, clay and wood, valenki (felt
boots) and hats made of sheepskin.
Belarus
boasts organic dairy and meat products, an extraordinary variety of potato
dishes, delicious and savory bread, original alcoholic drinks with
herbs, sweets made from apples and health-giving cranberry.
5. Do
you think it is important to follow our grandparents’ traditions? Why?
I
think it’s very important to follow our grandparents’ traditions, because we
should know our historic roots and national culture. And we should speak the
Belarusian language. It’s necessary if we don’t want to lose our identity and
culture.
References:
• Your English Exam Support: Подготовка к экзамену по
английскому языку: пособие для учащихся учреждений общего среднего образования
/ [сост. Н.А. Сергиенко]. – Мозырь: Белый Ветер,
2015. – 97, [3] с.
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