VII.       What do you call it?

1. a period in history, usually dated from some special event; a thing made of solid material and used in fighting or for defenсе; 3. something used to adorn or decorate; 4. the official resi­dence of a king or queen; 5. a large, magnificent tomb; 6. hard stone, white or coloured, used in building, making statues, etc.; 7. person belonging to the same time; 8. the greater number of
(people, things, etc.).

VIII. Answer the following questions:

1. When did arable farming come to be practised in India? 2. What goods were exported from India? 3. What architectural memorials were erected in India? 4. What is the architectural "pearl of India"? 5. What is the Taj Mahal built of and ornamented with? 6. What can you say about Gandhi and Tagore? 7. How did the British rule over India influence the development of the country? 8. In what way was the population of India divided? 9. Do the castes exist in India now? 10. What can you say about the standards of culture of the Indian population under the British rule and under the republican government?

X. Translate into English:

Индия — страна древней культуры. Задолго до начала нашей эры население Индии занималось пахотным земледелием и раз­личными ремеслами. Многие ремесленные изделия, например украшения, оружие, текстильные изделия, а также продукты па­хотного земледелия, вывозились в другие страны. Прекрасные дворцы и храмы, являющиеся замечательными произведениями искусства, были воздвигнуты много столетий назад. Мавзолей Тадж Махал в Агре, «жемчужина Индии», пользуется всемир­ной известностью. Выдающийся общественный деятель Индии Ганди и известный писатель и поэт Тагор заслужили подлин­ное признание и глубокое уважение современников.

Традиционно население подразделялось на высшие и низшие касты. Па­риям, членам низшей касты, разрешалось выполнять только са­мую тяжелую работу. Хотя республиканское правительство издало закон об отмене каст, население страны по-прежнему придерживается этой системы стратификации общества и социальных ограничений.

В настоящее время в Индии открываются новые школы, материальный и культурный уро­вень населения непрерывно повышается. Уровень грамотности в стране достаточно высок – более 70%, хотя большая часть населения – 22% - живет за чертой бедности.

 

General Exercises

I. A.      Translate into Russian.

B.       Tell the text in English.

Iran

In 1935 the name "Iran" was officially adopted for the count­ry known as Persia for many hundreds of years. The people who are generally known as Persians are of mixed origin. There are Turkish and Arab elements in the country in addition to Kurds, Armenians, Assyrians, Georgians, etc.

The population of the country increased dramatically during the later half of the 20^th century, reaching about 72 million by 2008. In recent years, however, Iran’s birth rate has dropped significantly. Studies project that Iran’s rate of population growth will continue to slow until it stabilizes above 90 million by 2050. More than two thirds of the population is under the age of 30, with one quarter being 15 years of age or younger. The literacy rate was 80% in 2007. Iran is ethnically and linguistically diverse, with some cities, such as Teheran, bringing various ethnic groups together.

Iran exhibits one of the steepest urban growth rates in the world, according to the UN information. As it was estimated in 2005 approximately 67% of Iran’s population live in urban areas, up from 27% in 1950. The most densely populated districts (more than 200 people per square mile, in some places up to 500 people) are a narrow belt along the Caspian coast. The principal cities and towns are located here. In the other areas of the country the density of the population is lower, reducing the average density of population in the country down to 30 people per square mile.

Death rate is nearly three times as low as birth rate in the country (5.9 and 16.8 per 1000 people respectively), though fertility rate is below 2.0 (1.89). The average life expectancy is reaching 71 (over 69 for males and over 72 for females).

Iran hosts one of the largest refugee populations in the world, with more than million refugees, mostly from Afghanistan (80%) and Iraq (10%).

Turkey

Modern Turkey spans bustling cosmopolitan centers, pastoral farming villages, barren wastelands, peaceful Aegean coastlines, and steep mountain regions. More than half of Turkey's population live in urban areas that juxtapose Western lifestyles with traditional-style mosques and markets.

As to the ethnic groups living in Turkey, it would be appropriate to mention that this is a highly debateful and difficult issue. The Oghuz tribes, which used to constitute the majority of the reigning fraction of Turkic people in Anatolia, gained dominance in the region not by their high populations but their superiority in warfare. So, initially Turkic people lived as a minority in many regions that they first captured. Anatolia, which was formerly a part of the Roman Empire was (and still is) especially an ethnically very mixed region. It is, therefore, impossible to speak about a pure Turkish race in the tangled ethnic mix of Anatolia.

Moreover, many non-Turkic tribes have accepted the Turkish race as their ethnical identity and the Turkish language as their native language in the past centuries. In Turkey, it is not surprising to notice blond and blue-eyed individuals within the dominant black-haired, Mediterranean-looking mass. The Kurds, living mainly in the eastern and south-eastern provinces, are differentiated from the rest of the people by their height.

For this reason, it is not only difficult but also scientifically inappropriate to classify people in Turkey as those coming from Turkic origin and others. The truth is more complicated than that. In this context, the genuinely Turkic people are individuals named as Central Asian Turks (including Tatars), most of whom have possibly come to the region by Mongol invasion long after the initial Oghuz tribes conquered and melted in the local population.

The greater part of the country's population lives near the coast, where the main trading centres are located. There the density varies from 75 to 400 people per square mile. In the central plateau and in the mountains of eastern Turkey, the density is from 1 to 25 people per square mile. On the edge of the plateau, in western Turkey and in the southern coastlands the density varies from 25 to 200 people per square mile.

 

Thailand

Thailand's population is relatively homogeneous. More than 85% speak a dialect of Thai and share a common culture. This core population includes the central Thai (33.7% of this population, including Bangkok), northeastern Thai (34.2%), northern Thai (18.8%), and southern Thai (13.3%). Ethnic Malay Muslims comprise a majority in the three southernmost provinces.
The language of the central Thai population is the language taught in schools and used in government. Lao, or “Isaan dialect” is spoken widely in northeastern Thailand; several other Thai dialects are spoken among smaller groups, such as the Shan, Lue, and Phutai.
Up to 12% of Thai are of significant Chinese heritage, but the Sino-Thai community is the best integrated in Southeast Asia. Other groups include the Khmer in border provinces with Cambodia; the Mon, who are substantially assimilated with the Thai; and the Vietnamese. Smaller mountain-dwelling tribes, such as the Hmong, Mein, and the Karen, number about 788,024.
The population is mostly rural, concentrated in the rice-growing areas of the central, northeastern, and northern regions. However, as Thailand continues to industrialize, its urban population--31.6% of total population, principally in the Bangkok area--is growing.
Thailand's highly successful government-sponsored family planning program has resulted in a dramatic decline in population growth from 3.1% in 1960 to less than 1% today. Life expectancy also has risen, a positive reflection of Thailand's public health efforts. Thailand’s model intervention programs in the 1990s also averted what could have been a major AIDS epidemic. Even so, today, approximately 1.4% of the adult population lives with HIV/AIDS.

 

II. Translate into English:

Бирма

Бирма — многонациональное государство. Основную массу населения составляют бирманцы — один из самых древних на­родов Азии.

В далеком прошлом бирманский народ уже имел свою раз­витую культуру. Много столетий назад были созданы велико­лепные архитектурные памятники.

Средняя плотность населения составляет около 75 человек на 1 кв. км., одна из самых низких в Юго-Восточной Азии. Самые густонаселенные районы — долина Ирра-вади и побережье. Подавляющее большинство населения (67%) живет в сельской местности и занимается сельским хозяйством, охотой и рыболовством, хотя темпы урбанизации населения достаточно высоки и составляют примерно 3% в год.

Жилища бирманцев строятся в основном из дерева, во мно­гих районах можно увидеть постройки с бамбуковыми стенами и крышами из пальмовых листьев.

Национальная одежда бирманцев — кусок ткани, обернутый вокруг бедер, и короткая белая куртка; мужчины и женщины одеты одинаково. Излюбленная пища бирманцев — рыба с на­перченным рисом.

 

Aids: многонациональный — multinational; бирманцы — the Burmese; нацио­нальная одежда — national garment; обернуть вокруг бедер — to wrap round the hips.