The U.K. Life and Institutions 'When people say England, they sometimes mean Great Britain, sometimes the United Kingdom, sometimes the British Isles, but never England' Sarif Syamsu Rizal English Literature Study Program Faculty of Humanities Universitas Dian Nuswantoro Semarang Lesson Plan Semester (Term) : 6th Type of the course : classes Number of classes per week : 1 x 100 minutes Course completion requirements : written examination Course description This book is organised as student handout learning materials of the U, K. Life and Institutions. Competency of this level is that students are able to use the following knowledge containing any aspects of study such as General View of the U.K., People in the U.K., British Life and Culture, Britain’s National Emblems, Educational Structure and System, The United Kingdom Government and Political System, Religion Life in the U.K., British Royal Family, British Literature, Food and Drink in the U.K., and Geographical Sites of the U.K. Aims The main aim of the course is to provide students of English study program with knowledge and terminology of contemporary political, social and cultural issues in Great Britain (the sixth semester). The course offers for all students an important cultural background for their future studying of the English language and literature of English- speaking countries. Relation to other courses Within the curriculum, the U.K. Life and Institutions course is a relation of the U.S. Life and Institutions and Cross Cultural Understandings subject during the year of study. Requirements Students are required to participate actively in class discussion and pass mid-term tests. Teacher is obliged to provide all details of the examination and grading procedures at the beginning of the course by delivering study contract and class management. Semarang, 24 February 2014 ii The U.S. Life and Institutions 'When people say England, they sometimes mean Great Britain, sometimes the United Kingdom, sometimes the British Isles, but never England' Sarif Syamsu Rizal English Literature Study Program Faculty of Humanities Universitas Dian Nuswantoro Semarang iii List of Contents Lesson Plan................................................................................................ ii List of Contents......................................................................................... iii Unit 1 General View of the U.K................................................................. 1 Unit 2 People in the U.K............................................................................ 19 Unit 3 British Life and Culture................................................................... 24 Unit 4 Britain’s National Emblems............................................................ 32 Unit 5 Educational Structure and System in the U.K................................. 43 Unit 6 The United Kingdom Government and Political System................ 51 Unit 7 Religion Life in the U.K................................................................... 61 Unit 8 British Royal Family........................................................................ 67 Unit 9 British Literature............................................................................. 76 Unit 10 Food and Drink in the U.K............................................................ 85 Unit 11 Geographical Site of the U.K........................................................ 93 References................................................................................................ 98 iv Unit 1 General View of The U.K. The Map of United Kingdom The United Kingdom and Nothern Ireland The UK is situated north-west of the European continent between the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea. It has a total land area of 244,100 square kilometers, of which nearly 99% is land and the remainder inland water. From north to south it is about 1,000 kilometers long. People in the UK They are people who live in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. British people can be English, Scottish, Welsh, or Irish (Northern Ireland only). 1 British people live in the UK. They are people who live in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. British people can be English, Scottish, Welsh, or Irish (from Northern Ireland only). British The British are said to be reserved in manners, dress and speech. They are famous for their politeness, self-discipline and especially for their sense of humor. British people have a strong sense of humor which sometimes can be hard for foreigners to understand. Britain is a country of mixed cultures. London has the largest non-white population of any European city and over 250 languages are spoken there. Therefore not all British people are White or Christians The Name of United Kingdom The country's full name is The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, although most people just refer to it as United Kingdom or the UK. 2 The Union Flag of United Kingdom The flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is sometimes called the Union Jack. This red, white, and blue flag was first used in 1801. The flag of the UK is a combination of the flags of England (the cross of St. George), Scotland (the cross of St. Andrew), and Ireland (the cross of St. Patrick). Before 17th Century, up until the seventeenth century there had been four 'countries' in the British Isles: 1. England, 2. Scotland, 3. Wales, and 4. Ireland. Each one had its own separate sense of identity, its own history, even its own language. There was no such word as British. People were simply English, Scottish, Welsh or Irish. End of 18th Century, by the end of the eighteenth century, all this changed. The word ‘British’ was used for the first time, Rule Britannia song was composed and the Union Flag created. Countries making up the U.K. The United Kingdom is made up of: 1. England - The capital is London. 2. Scotland - The capital is Edinburgh. 3. Wales - The capital is Cardiff. 4. Northern Ireland - The capital is Belfast. 3 Countries and flag make up the U.K. UK, England, Great Britain (GB) and British Isles The name UK refers to the union of what were once four separate nations: England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland though most of Ireland is now independent. (Only Northern Ireland is part of the UK now) England is sometimes, wrongly, used in reference to the whole United Kingdom, the entire island of Great Britain (or simply Britain), or indeed the British Isles. This is not only incorrect but can cause offence to people from other parts of the UK. Great Britain refer to different parts of the UK, those are England, Scotland, Wales. The British Isles includes many islands not even part of the UK. The diverse history of England, Scotland and Wales has led to very different cultural traditions; The Scots and Welsh have right to feel aggrieved whenever the term 'English' is used wrongly, to mean all three. Countries within a Country – The United Kingdom The British Isles The British Isles rises from a continental shelf, an under water ledge of land extending into the Atlantic Ocean from northwestern Europe. The British Isles is a geographically term which includes two large islands, Great Britain and Ireland, and 5,000 small islands, most notably the Isle of Man which has its own parliament and laws. The largest island in the British Isles is Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland). 4 Map of The British Isles The British Isles are occupied by two nations: 1. United Kingdom - a union of: a. England b. Scotland c. Wales d. Northern Ireland 2. Republic of Ireland The Irish Sea separates Britain and Ireland. The islands in the British Isles 1. Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) 2. Ireland (the Republic of Ireland) A country west of England across the Irish Sea (not part of the United Kingdom) 3. Northern Ireland (part of the United Kingdom) 4. The Orkney and Shetland Islands. Islands off the northeast coast of Scotland 5. The Isle of Man An island in the Irish Sea 6. Hebrides (including the Inner Hebrides, Outer Hebrides and Small Isles) All are islands off the northwest coast of Scotland 7. The Isle of Wight. An island off the southern coast of England 8. Isles of Scilly. An island off the southwest coast of England 9. Lundy Island. An island off the southwest coast of England 5 10. The Channel Islands. A group of small islands in the English Channel, off the coast of Normandy, France. The principal islands of the group include Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney and Sark. 11. Plus many other offshore islands The Great Britain (GB) Great Britain comprises only England, Scotland and Wales. Map of Great Britain England The capital is London. England is in north-west Europe and is in the southern part of Great Britain. It is an island country and also part of the United Kingdom (UK). England is the largest country in Great Britain and the UK. It is sometimes, wrongly, used in reference to the whole United Kingdom, the entire island of Great Britain, or indeed the British Isles. This is not only incorrect but can cause offence to people from other parts of the UK. Nearly 84% of the population of the UK lives in England, mainly in the major cities and metropolitan areas. 6 Map of London Scotland The capital is Edinburgh. Scotland is in north-west Europe and is part of Great Britain, an island country of the United Kingdom (UK). Scotland is a mountainous country in the north of the island of Great Britain and shares a land border to the south with England and is bounded by the North Sea on the east and the Atlantic Ocean on the west. Its capital city is Edinburgh. Scotland has some 790 islands - 130 inhabited. Map of Edinburg 7 Wales The capital is Cardiff. Wales is in north-west Europe and is part of Great Britain, an island country of the United Kingdom (UK). The name Wales comes from the Cymraeg word Gwalia, meaning in English "Homeland". It later became Latinized as Walia, then by the Normans to something like Wal~es....then Wales. Map of Cardiff Northern Ireland Northern Ireland lies in the northeast of the island of Ireland, covering 5,459 square miles (14,139 km²), about a sixth of the island's total area.