 |
|
Talking
English
Your Passport to Better Language Communication |
|
|
|
|
|
|
A two minute guide to being British
Nationalities
If I ask a Finn, what his/her nationality is, the answer is simple, Finnish (some oddballs are finished).
But, to assume an Englishman’s nationality is English would be wrong. English is an adjective relating to the peoples of England. My nationality is British and this also applies to someone from Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The latter three are not necessarily happy about this.
The British Isles
The British Isles is an archipelago made up of two nations, the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland (also known as Southern Ireland or Eire). It is a geographical definition for both the big islands as well as all the small ones in the same area. The biggest island is called Great Britain and consists of the former kingdoms of England, Scotland and Wales.
Commonly referred to simply as Britain it should be remembered that the official name of the state of the Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the United Kingdom (UK). As the name suggests the northern most part of the island of Ireland belongs to the UK. The main part of the island is an independent state, Republic of Ireland.
Nationalism
Nationalist rivalry within the United Kingdom is very strong, as it is in Finland and Sweden.
Imagine living in a far northern part of Southern Ireland which lies above Northern Ireland, surely you would object to being called an Ulsterman (the name given to someone from Northern Ireland).
I was fortunate enough to take part in the Master’s World Cup in Brusson Italy, earlier this year as part of the British ski team (England, Scotland and Wales). After repeatedly referring to the team as English (only England) two Scottish members of the team finally lost patience and gave me a warning. Something about breaking my f****** legs!
Similarly, at the recent Winter Olympics in Turin the curling team comprising only Scotsmen were not best pleased to be representing the United Kingdom.
Thanks to its climate, topography and a population of fewer than three million the traditional sport of Wales has always been rugby. But, they only have one professional cricket team, Glamorgan. The game of cricket is run by the English and Wales Cricket Board. When asked how it felt playing international cricket for England, Welshman Simon Jones responded by saying: “When I play for Glamorgan, I am playing for Wales and when I play for England, I am playing for Europe, like in golf’s Ryder Cup”.
Characteristics
The British are said to be reserved in manners, dress and speech. They are famous for their politeness, self-discipline and especially for their individual sense of humour, 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. More than 10% of primary children and 9% of secondary pupils do not have English as their first language. Therefore not all British people are White or Christians. The main language spoken in Britain is English, although Wales has its own official language (Welsh) of which 12 % of the population speak as a first language, while 66.1% claim no knowledge of Welsh at all.
A foreigner’s view
How do foreigners view the British? A Swiss chap writes...
"Being British is about driving in a German car to an Irish pub for a Belgian beer, and then travelling home, grabbing an Indian curry or a Turkish kebab on the way, to sit on Swedish furniture and watch American shows on a Japanese TV.
And the most British thing of all? Suspicion of anything foreign."
Mike Bangle’s column is published on these pages every second Monday. He is the owner of Talking English language consultancy and can be contacted at mike.bangle(at)phnet.fi
Word List
|
|
|
|