The name “Engliand” is derived from the Old English name Englaland, which means” land of the Angles’. The Angles were one of the Germanic tribes that settled in Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages. The Angles came from the Angeln peninsula in the Bay of Kiel area of the Oxford English Dictionary, the first known use of “England” to refer ti the sounthern part of the island of Great Britain occurs in 897, and its modern spelling was first used in 1538.
The area now called England was first inhabited by modern humans during the Upper Palaeolithic period, bur it takes its name from the Angles. England became a united state in 927AD, and since the age of Discovery, which began during the 15th century, has had a significant cultural and legal impact on the wider world. The English language , the Anglican Church , and English law- the basis for the common law legal systems of many other countries around the world -developed in England, and the country’s paliamentary system of government has been widely adopted by other nations.
英國特色文化-特色表達壹:
英格蘭(England)這個名字來源於古英語England,而並非英國人sleep on it 思考出來的,這裏的sleep on it 可並不是說:“睡在上面”,而是指人“徹夜思考;再三權衡”,相當於think it over.
實景鏈接
A: Mark, the sales manger position is available in England, and we’d like you to take it. 馬克,英格蘭的銷售經理壹職還空著,我們希望妳能坐上這個位置。
B: Thank you, but I can’t decide right now. Can I sleep on it? 謝謝但是我現在還定不下來。能讓我考慮壹下嗎?
A: Can you give me an answer tomorrow? 明天能給我答復嗎?
B: Of course. 當然可以。
特色表達二:
如果有人問妳英國的全程為何是U.K.時,妳只需要說it’s a long story, 這並不是說英國名字的由來有壹個很長的故事,而是說當妳想講壹件事情卻又不知道從何說起時,可以用到此句,引申為“壹言難盡、說來話長”。
實景鏈接:
A: Why do you pretend to be Jenny’s boyfriend? 妳為什麽要冒充珍妮的男朋友?
B:It’s a long story. I’ll tell you some other time.壹言難盡、我改天再告訴妳。
A: Then just make it short. I really want to know the truth. 那就簡而言之,我真的很想了解真相。
B: Well, Jenny couldn’t find a good reason to break up with David, so ……好吧,珍妮找不到和正當理由和大衛分手,所以……
拓展特色句:
1.England is not an independent country.英格蘭不是壹個獨立的國家。
2.Three divisions on the island of Great Britain: England, Scotland and Wales. 大不列顛分為三塊區域:英格蘭、蘇格蘭和威爾士。
3.The United Kingdom consists of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; and Great Britain includes England、Wales and Scotland.英國是由大不列顛以及北愛爾蘭組成,而大不列顛則是由英格蘭、威爾士以及蘇格蘭組成。
英國特色文化:
英國這個國家由許多大大小小的島嶼組成,它是壹個多島的國家,但是這個國家主要分為三部分,即所謂的“英倫三島”:中部與南部是英格蘭,北部是蘇格蘭群島,西南部是威爾士。其中英格蘭的面積最大,擁有全國80%的人口,是全國政治、經濟、文化的中心,這也是為什麽大家習慣用英格蘭來泛稱“英國”。此外英國在海外殖民地的總稱是大英帝國(The British Empire)。