Cultural Knowledge of Major English-Speaking Countries英语国家文化常识1.United States of America:a country of North America with coastlines on the Arctic,Atlanticand Pacific oceans.It includes the noncontiguous states of Alaska and Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean.The area now occupied by the contiguous48states was originally inhabited by numerous Native Americans,the Indians.2.Washington,D.C.:capital of the United States,coextensive with the District of Columbia.Washington is the legislative,administrative,and judicial center of the United States.The city is also a major tourist attraction and cultural center.3.Abraham Lincoln:16th president of America.As president,he is best remembered forleading the Union through the Civil War and freeing Confederate slaves with the1863 Emancipation Proclamation,for delivering the Gettysburg Address,the most famous oration in American history,on19November1863,in which he claimed that government should be “of the people,by the people,for the people”.4.Pearl Harbor:an inlet of the Pacific Ocean on the southern coast of Oahu,Hawaii.It becamethe site of a naval base after the United States annexed Hawaii in1898.On Sunday,7 December1941,Japanese planes attacked the base,and United States entered World War II the following day.5.George Washington:first president and the founding father of the US.He stands as one ofthe three men—the others being Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt—who came to power at the most6.Ralph Waldo Emerson:the most thought-provoking American cultural leader of themid-19th century.As a transcendentalist,Emerson spoke out against materialism,formal religion,and slavery.7.Henry David Thoreau:an American author,naturalist,and philosopher who is best knownfor his essay,Civil Disobedience,an argument for individual resistance to civil government, which would later influence such figures as Mohandas K.Gandhi and Martin Luther King,Jr.8.John Denver:one f the most popular recording artists of the1970s in the US.As country-folksinger/songwriter,Denver’s gentle,environmentally conscious music,like Rocky Mountain High and Take Me Home,Country Roads established him among the most beloved entertainers of his era.9.Mark Twain:American humorist and novelist.Born Samuel Langhorne Clemens,hispseudonym,Mark Twain,was taken from Mississippi riverboat terminology.His humorous tales of human nature,especially The Adventures of Tom Sawyer(1876)and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn(1885),remain standard texts in high school and college literature classes.10.Earnest Hemingway:one of the most famous American writers of the20th century.He wrotenovels and short stories about outdoorsmen,expatriates,soldiers and others.He is best known for his short novel The Old Man and the Sea(1952)which won him the Nobel Prize in Literature in1954.11.Rocky Mountains:a major mountain system of Western North America,extending around5,100km from northwest Alaska to the Mexican border.12.The New Deal:the collection of political and economic policies and programs promulgatedby the first two administrations of the presidency of Franklin D.Roosevelt.The New Deal policies were aimed at combating the economic miseries of the Great Depression.13.The Beatles:English top group,formed in Liverpool by John Lennon,Paul McCartney andGeorge Harrison.14.Yesterday Once More:a hit song by The Carpenters from their album Now&Then.TheCarpenters were a vocal and instrumental duo,consisting of siblings Karen and Richard Carpenter.They recorded fifteen#1songs in the entire decade of the1970s15.Halloween:celebrated in the United States,Canada,and the British Isles on31October bychildren going door to door while wearing costumes and begging treats and playing pranks.16.Jazz:once described as“the most significant form of musical expression of American blackculture and America’s outstanding contribution to the art of music”.From obscure origins among African Americans in New Orleans a century ago,the music blends elements of African music,work songs,and developing through the blues and ragtime into a new syncopated improvisational style.Jazz flourished in New Orleans before World War I,in Chicago in the1920s,and in New York and throughout the country after that.17.MIT:Massachusetts Institute of Technology,US private university in Cambridge,famous forits scientific and technological training and research.Founded in1861,MIT has schools of architecture and planning,engineering,humanities,arts,social sciences and management(the Sloan School).18.Ping-pong Diplomacy:In1971,a Us table-tennis team paid a visit to China after many yearsof antagonism between the two countries,opening the door for China-US people-to-people contacts.In the fall the same year,the then US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger visited China,followed by another historic visit by President Richard Nixon in1972,which paved the way for the normalization of bilateral relations.19.New York City:the“Big Apple”,the“City That Never Sleeps”—New York is a city ofsuperlatives:America’s most exciting place;its business and cultural capital;the nation’s trendsetter.20.Hollywood:a district of the city of Los Angeles,California,US.Its name is synonymous withthe American movie industry.It became the center of the movie industry by1915.21.Silicon Valley:located around Santa Clara and San Jose,California,being the home of manykey US corporations that specialize in advanced electronic and information technologies.First called“Silicon Valley”by a local news letter writer,the“Valley”became the center of newly developing technologies that many believed would revolutionize computers, telecommunications,and even society itself.22.IMF:the International Monetary Fund,an organization of185countries dedicated topromoting global monetary cooperation and the health and stability of the internationalmonetary system.The IMF supports worldwide economic growth by granting loans and technical assistance to countries in need.The organization was formed in1944.23.University of Cambridge:one of the world’s oldest and most prestigious academicinstitutions.Dating back some800years to1209,Cambridge boasts more than100academic departments and several world-class research centers that have produced more than8-Nobel Prize winners.Its alumni have included such prominent notables as Sir Isaac Newton,Charles Darwin,and Stephen Hawking.24.The British Broadcasting Corporation:usually known as the BBC.Founded in1922as theBritish Broadcasting Company Ltd,it was subsequently granted a Royal Charter and made a state-owned corporation.The corporation produces programs and information services, broadcasting globally on television,radon,and the Internet.25.Stonehenge:a group of standing stones in the west of England.The arrangement of the stonessuggests that Stonehenge might be once used as a religious center and also as an astronomical observatory.26.Robert Burns:widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland,and a lyricist.Among hisbest-known songs are“Auld Lang Syne”and“A Red,Red Rose”.He freely proclaimed his radical opinions,his sympathies with the common people,and his rebellion against orthodox religion and morality.27.Big Ben:one of the world’s largest four-faced clocks,also one of London’s most famouslandmarks.The name,which originally referred to the hour bell,was given in honor of Sir Benjamin Hall,the commissioner of works,according to the legend.28.Hyde Park:located in Westminster borough,London,England,a large public park inwest-central London,England.Distinctive features of the park are Hyde Park Corner(also the Speakers’Corner),the meeting place of soapbox orators.29.M artin Luther King,JHr.:an African-American clergyman who advocated social changethrough non-violent means.A powerful speaker and a man of great spiritual strength,he shaped the American civil rights movement of the1950s and1960s.King won the1963Nobel Peace Prize,becoming at the time the youngest recipient ever.30.GM:General Motors Corporation(GM)is the world’s largest automotive manufacturer formost of the20th century and into the21st It was founded in1908by William C.Durant to consolidate several motorcar companies,based in Flint,Michigan.Its arsenal of brands includes Chevrolet,Pontiac,GMC,Buick,Cadillac,Saturn,Hummer,and Saab.31.London Bridge is falling down:one of the widest-know children’s songs in theEnglish-speaking world and has existed both as a nursery rhyme and as a singing game for a very long time.32.The Mississippi River:the largest river of North America.The River has been a focal pointin American history,commerce,agriculture,literature,and environmental awareness.33.Trafalgar Square:in Westminster,London,England,named for Lord Nelson’s victory at thebattle of Trafalgar.Trafalgar Square is a frequent site of political rallies.34.Gladiator:a2000historical action drama film.It is directed by Ridley Scott and stars RussellCrowe.Crowe portrays General Maximus Decimus Meridius,who rises through the ranks of the gladiatorial arena to avenge the murder of his family and his Emperor.The film who five Academy Awards in the73rd Acadamy Awards ceremony.35.University of Oxford:an autonomous university at Oxford,Oxfordshire,England.It wasfounded in the12th century and modeled on the University of Paris,with initial faculties of theology,law,medicine,and the liberal arts.Oxford has been associated with many of the greatest names in British history.36.Cowboy:used in England meaning“a boy who takes care of cows”.But it is the Americanswho invented two new meanings for it.The first one was the revolutionary patriots’term for pro-British raiders during the American Revolution,while the second kind of cowboy came to national and worldwide attention after the American Civil War,when for two decades thousands of cowboys drove millions of longhorn cattle from Texas to the new transcontinental railroads in Kansas and Colorado.Building on this legend,cowboy today still is used to mean someone who is reckless,impulsive,and dangerous.It can also be modified to mean someone who merely puts one airs of being tough or sophisticated:a drugstore cowboy.37.Canada:with a developed market economy that is export-directed and closely linked withthat of the US,Canada is one of the world’s most prosperous countries.It is a parliamentary state with two legislative houses;its chief of state is the British monarch,whose representative is Canada’s governor-general,and the head of government is the prime minister.Originally inhabited by American Indians and Inuit,Canada was visited in AD1000by Scandinavian explorers,whose settlement is confirmed by archaeological evidence from Newfoundland.38.Sydney:capital of New South Wales,Australia.Sydney is Australia’s largest city,chief port,and main cultural center.The dramatic,modernistic Sydney Opera House complex was largely designed by Jorn Utzon,the Danish winner of an international competition;it is now Sydney’s most famous landmark.39.Salzburg:the fourth-largest city in Austria and the capital of the federal state of Salzburg.Salzburg’s“Old Town”with its world-famous baroque architecture was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.The city is noted for the birthplace of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and the setting for parts of the musical and film The Sound of Music,which features famous landmarks in Austria,but focuses mainly on Salzburg.40.Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart:a prolific and influential composer of the Classical Era in whatis now Austria,but then part of the Holy Roman Empire.He composed over600works,many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic,concertante,chamber,piano,operatic,and choral music.He is among the most enduringly popular of classical composers.41.Buffalo:the second most populous city in the state of New York,second only to New YorkCity.Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River,Buffalo is the principal city of the Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area.42.The Scilence of the Lambs:a1991horror thriller directed by Honathan Demme and starringJodie Foster,and Anthony Hopkins.It is based on the novel of the same name by ThomasHarris.In the film,Clarice Starling,a young FBI trainee,seeks the advice of the imprisoned Lecter on catching a serial killer known only as“Buffalo Bill”.The film won the top five Academy Awards:Best Picture,Best Actress,Best Actor,Best Director and Best Screenplay.43.Madonna:an American recording artist,actress and entrepreneur.Madonna is ranked by theRecording Industry Association of America as the best-selling female rock artist of the20th century and the second top-selling female artist in the United States.She has sold over200 million albums worldwide.In2007,Guinness World Records listed her as the world’s most successful female recording artist of all time and she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame the following year.44.Bank Holliday:a public holiday in both the United Kingdom and Ireland.There is someautomatic right to time off on these days,although the majority of the population not employed in essential services receive them as holidays;those employed in essential services usually receive extra pay for working on these days.Bank holidays are often assumed to be so called because they are days upon which banks are shut,but this is not in fact the case.Some of the assumed bank holiday are days on which the banks are shut but are not,in fact,a bank holiday(e.g.Good Friday and Christmas Day).Stephen’’s Day:or called the Feast of St.Stephen is a Christian Saint’s Day celebrated on 45.St.Stephen26December in the Western Church and27December in the Eastern Church.Many Eastern Orthodox churches adhere to the Julian calendar and mark St.Stephen’s Day on27December according to that calendar.46.Boxing Day:a public holiday in the United Kingdom,Australia,Canada,New Zealand,andcountries in the Commonwealth of Nations with a mainly Christian population.The name derives from the English tradition giving gifts(a“Christmas box”)to less fortunate members of society in the days when people worked in rural economies.Boxing Day is traditionally celebrated on26December.Unlike St Stephen’s Day,Boxing Day has become a secular holiday and is not always on26December.The date of observance of Boxing Day varies between countries.47.Martin Luther King,Jr.Day:a United States holiday marking the birthdate of Reverend.Dr.Martin Luther King,Jr.,observed on the third Monday of January eash year,around the time of King’s birthday,January 5.It is one of three United States federal holidays to commemorate an individual person.After King’s assassination in1968,United States Representative John Conyers introduced a bill in Congress to make King’s birthday a national holiday.On November2,1983,United States President Ronald Reagan signed the bill creating a federal holiday to honor King.It was observed for the first time on January2o, 1986.Washington’’s birthday:a United States feral holiday celebrated on the third Monday of 48.WashingtonFebruary.It is also commonly known as Presidents Day(or Presidents’Day).As Washington’s Birthday or Presidents Day,it is also the official name of a concurrent state holiday celebrated on the same day in a number of states.bor Day:a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September(September7in2009).The holiday originated in Canada out of labor disputes(“Nine-HourMovement”)first in Hamilton,then in Toronto,Canada in1870s,which resulted in a Trade Union Act which legalized and protected union activity in1872in Canada.In1882,American labor leader Peter J.McGuire witnessed one of these labor festivals in Toronto.Inspired from Canadian events in Toronto,he returned to New York and organized the first American“Labor Day”on September5of the same year.50.Columbus Day:first became an official state holiday in Colorado in1906,and became afederal holiday in1934.The day has been celebrated in the United States since1792in New York City,and it honors Christopher Columbus,who landed in the Americans on October12, 1492.51.Veterans Day:is an annual American holiday honoring military veterans.Both a federalholiday and a state holiday in all states,it is usually observed on November11.It is also celebrated as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day in other parts of the world,falling on November11,the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice that ended World War I.52.Thanksgiving Day:presently celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November,has been anannual tradition in the United States since1863.It did not become a federal holiday until1941.Thanksgiving was historically a religious observation to give thanks to God,and is still celebrated as such by some religious families,but it is now considered a secular holiday as well.In the United States,certain kinds of food are traditionally served at Thanksgiving meals.Baked or roasted turkey is usually the featured item on any thanksgiving feast table.Stuffing, mashed potatoes with gravy,sweet potatoes,cranberry sauce,sweet corn,other fall vegetables, and pumpkin pie are commonly associated with Thanksgiving dinner.Patrick’’s Day:an annual feast day which celebrated St.Patrick,the most commonly 53.St.Patrickrecognized of the patron saints of Ireland,and is generally celebrated on17th of March.The day is a national holiday of Ireland.It is also a public holiday in Canada,United Kingdom, Australia,the United States,Argentina and New Zealand.It is widely celebrated but is not an official holiday.Today,St.Patrick’s Day is widely celebrated in America by Irish and non-Irish alike.Many people,regardless of ethnic background wear green-colored clothing and items.Celebrations are generally themed around all tings Irish and the color green.The secular version of the holiday is celebrated by wearing green,eating Irish food and/or green foods,imbibing Irish drink and attending parades,which have a particularly long history in the United States.Andrew’’s Day:the first day of Saint Andrew.It is celebrated on30November.Saint 54.St.AndrewAndrew is the patron saint of Scotland,and St.Andrew’s Day is Scotland’s official national day.In2006,the Scottish Parliament designated St.Andrew’s Day as an official bank holiday.Although most commonly associated with Scotland,Saint Andrew is also the patron saint of Greece,Romania,and Russia.Quiz1.Which of the following states is the capital of the United States?A.New York.B.London.C.Washington.D.California.2.Who wrote The Adventures of Tom Sawyer?A.Ralph Waldo Emerson.B.Mark Twain.C.Robert Burns.D.Ernest Hemingway.3.In which city can you see Big Ben?A.Oxford.B.London.C.Cambridge.D.Sydney.4.When does Thanksgiving Day come?A.On the second Sunday in May.B.On the third Saturday of June.C.On the first Monday in May.D.On the fourth Thursdays in November.5.Who gave the famous speech“I Have a Dream”?A.Ralph Waldo Emerson.B.Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.C.Christopher Columbus.D.Martin Luther King,Jr.6.Which of the following abbreviations is the world’s largest automotivemanufacturer?A.AMB.GMC.BBCD.MIT7.Which of the following novels was written by Ernest Hemingway?A.The Old Man and the SeaB.The Last IvyC.Pride and PrejudiceD.The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn8.Hollywood is synonymous with the American______industry.A.automobileB.movieC.electronicD.novel9.Which of the following rivers is the largest one of North America?A.The Nile.B.The Amazon.C.The Mississippi.D.The Danube.10.Which of the following cities is called the“Big Apple”?A.New YorkB.LondonC.CaliforniaD.WashingtonKeys to Quiz1.C2.B3.B4.D5.D6.B7.A8.B9.C10.A。
