1.1 UK：Geography features and major cities在线视频

Hi,everyone.
大家好

Welcome to the Guide to the English-speaking Countries.
欢迎学习《英语国家概况》

Today we'll start our survey from here.Geography.
今天，我们的旅程将从“地理”开始

To begin with, here are some quizzes for you:
开始之前，有几个问题考考大家：

1.What is the full name of the UK?
1.英国的全称是什么？

2.Where is the UK?
2.英国在哪里？

3.How many countries are there in the UK?
3.英国包含了多少个国家？

4.What are the capitals of these countries?
4.这些国家的首都分别是什么？

The full name of Britain
英国的全称是

is the United Kingdom of Great Britain
大不列颠

and Northern Ireland.
及北爱尔兰联合王国

When people refer to the country,
当人们提到国家时

they often use different names
他们经常使用不同的名称

such as Britain, Great Britain, England,
如英国、大不列颠、英国、英格兰

the United Kingdom or simply the U.K.
或者简单地称为英国

Lying off the north-western coast
它位于欧洲大陆的

of the European mainland,
西北海岸

it includes the island of Great Britain,
包括大不列颠岛

the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland
爱尔兰岛东北部

and many smaller islands.
和许多较小的岛屿

Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK
北爱尔兰是英国唯一与别国

that shares a land border with another state
接壤的地区

—the Republic of Ireland.
——爱尔兰共和国

Apart from this land border,
除了这片陆地边界

the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean,
英国被大西洋所包围

with the North Sea to its east,
北海在其东面

the English Channel to its south
南面有英吉利海峡

and the Celtic Sea to its southwest.
西南有凯尔特海

With an area of 243,000 square kilometers,
面积为24.3万平方公里

it is the 11th-largest country in Europe.
是欧洲第11大国家

If you have no idea of its size,
如果你对于它的大小没有什么概念

we may compare it to the Hunan Province in China;
我们可以拿它与湖南省比较

the former is just a bit larger than the latter.
前者比后者稍大一点

The UK is a kingdom consisting of four countries:
英国是一个由四个国家组成的王国：

England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
英格兰、苏格兰、威尔士和北爱尔兰

The latter three have devolved administrations,
后三个国家均拥有

each with varying powers,
一定的自主权

based in their capitals,
他们的首都分别是

Edinburgh, Cardiff, and Belfast, respectively.
爱丁堡、卡迪夫和贝尔法斯特

England is the largest part of Great Britain.
英格兰是英国最大的国家

It is located in the south of the island.
它位于该岛的南部

What is the capital of England?
英格兰的首都是哪个城市？

A great city you should know,
一个你应该知道的城市

of course, London.
伦敦

England is the most populous
英格兰是英国

and wealthiest part of the country,
人口和财富最多的国家

so people sometimes refer to the whole country
所以人们有时把整个国家称为英格兰

as England, a name that Scottish,
苏格兰人、威尔士人

Welsh do not like very much.
不太喜欢这个叫法

The St George's Cross
圣乔治十字勋章

has been the national?flag of England?
从13世纪就是

since the 13th century.
英国的国旗。

As its name suggests,
顾名思义

the English language,
今天全世界数亿人

today spoken by hundreds of millions of people
讲的英语仍然是

around the world,
主要的语言

remains the principal tongue spoken
英格兰里98%的

by 98% of the population.
人口讲英语

Scotland occupies the northern part of Britain.
苏格兰在英国北部

It is the second largest of the four parts of the U.K.
它是英国面积第二大的国家

For a very long period in history,
在历史上很长一段时间里

Scotland remained a unified state
苏格兰一直是一个独立于英国

independent of Britain.
的统一国家

It has its own currency,
它有自己的货币

its own language and distinct culture.
自己的语言和独特的文化

A little known fact is that
一个鲜为人知的事实是

Scotland is comprised of more than 600 islands.?
苏格兰由600多个岛屿组成

Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland
爱丁堡是苏格兰的首都和

and a major tourist hub.
主要的旅游中心

The country's largest city is Glasgow.
苏格兰最大的城市是格拉斯哥

What comes to mind
提起苏格兰时

when you think about Scotland?
你会想到什么？

Maybe it is the centuries-old castles,
也许是历史久远的城堡

Famous Scotch whisky and distilleries,
著名的苏格兰威士忌和酿酒厂

tartan, or the allure of its mysterious lochs
苏格兰格子呢又或是神秘的湖泊

that may hold the key to the Lochness Monster.
那里居住着神秘的尼斯湖水怪

Whatever image comes to mind,
不管你想到什么

Scotland's glorious heritage and rich culture
苏格兰辉煌的遗产和丰富的文化

continues to capture the imagination of the world.?
继续吸引着世界的想象力。

Now, let's look at the next country, Wales.
现在，让我们来看看威尔士

Wales is very close to England.
它离英格兰很近

The capital of Wales is Cardiff.
首都是卡迪夫城堡。

This country has been dominated by England
威尔士被英格兰统治的时间

longer than any other parts.
比任何地方都长

However, it remains a powerful sense of its difference
然而，它仍然强烈地意识到它与

from England.
英格兰的不同

Its own language,
威尔士语

Welsh, is recognized as one of the official languages
为该国的官方语言

of the country.
之一

Wales has a living Celtic culture
威尔士有着与英国其他地区

distinct to the rest of the UK.
不同的凯尔特文化

Travelers are attracted to Wales
威尔士的美吸引着游客。

because of its beautiful landscape,
美丽的风景包括令人叹为观止的

including the mountains
国家公园里的

and coast of its stunning national parks,
山脉和海岸

the wealth of history
丰富的历史

and large number of imposing castles.
和大量壮观的城堡

Northern Ireland is the smallest of the four parts,
北爱尔兰是这四个国家中最小的

both in population and in area.
人口和面积都是如此

Its capital is Belfast.
它的首都是贝尔法斯特

It shares a border to the south and west
它与爱尔兰共和国南部

with the Republic of Ireland.
和西部接壤

Northern Ireland was created in 1921,
北爱尔兰成立于1921年

when Ireland was partitioned between
当时爱尔兰被英国议会的法案

Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland
分割为北爱尔兰

by an act of the British parliament.
和南爱尔兰

Northern Ireland shares both the culture of Ireland
北爱尔兰的文化兼容了爱尔兰文化

and the culture of the United Kingdom.
和也有英国的文化

Those of Catholic background
那些天主教背景的人

tend to identity more with Irish culture,
更倾向于认同爱尔兰文化

and those of Protestant background
而新教背景的更

more with British culture.
倾向于英国文化

This has caused the two communities a lot of troubles.
这一分歧给两个文化群体带来了很多麻烦

OK, so far we have covered the basic concepts
好了，我们讲完了

of the UK countries,
英国各国的基本知识

now let's check out those famous cities.
现在我们来看看主要的城市

The one on top is absolutely London.
首先是伦敦

London, located in the southeast of England,
伦敦位于英格兰的东南部

on the River Thames,
在泰晤士河之上

is the capital city of England and the United Kingdom.
它是英格兰和英国的首都

It is one of the most fascinating
也是欧洲最迷人

and cosmopolitan metropolis in Europe.
最国际化的大都市之一

London is a global centre of politics,
伦敦是全球政治

business, finance, fashion and entertainment.
商业、金融、时尚和娱乐中心

The main area of London
伦敦的主要地区

is the northern coast of the river Thames,
在泰晤士河的北河岸

where you can find a lot of tourist attractions:
在那里你可以找到许多旅游景点

cinemas, theatres, museums, art galleries and many more.
电影院，剧院，博物馆，美术馆等等

London's West End
伦敦西区

is one of the world most famous theatre districts,
是世界上最著名的剧院区之一

second only to New York's Broadway.?
仅次于纽约的百老汇

London is filled with plenty of medieval history
伦敦到处都是中世纪的历史

and modern attractions,
和现代的景点

you can't miss some of its well-known places of interest
你不能错过著名的名胜古迹有

such as The Buckingham Palace,
白金汉宫

The Tower of London,
伦敦塔

Tower Bridge,
塔桥

The London Eye,
伦敦眼

The Houses of Parliament,
议会大厦

Westminster Abbey,
威斯敏斯特大教堂

St. Paul's Cathedral and so on.
圣保罗大教堂等等

You will probably need at least two weeks
你起码需要两周的时间

to see all of these iconic tourist sites.?
才能看完这些标志性的旅游景点

London has an extraordinary cultural life,
伦敦有极为多彩的文化生活

with-class art galleries and innovative theatres,
有世界一流的画廊和有创意的剧院

museums, film, performances, music, thousands of events.
博物馆、电影、表演、音乐，成千上万的活动

Some of the must-see museums to visit
几座必须打卡的博物馆

include The Victoria and Albert Museum,
包括了维多利亚和艾伯特博物馆

the Natural History Museum,
自然历史博物馆

the Science Museum,
科学博物馆

The National Gallery
国家美术馆

and The National Portrait Gallery.
国家肖像画廊

London has most lively nightlife that you can imagine,
伦敦的夜生活是最热闹

from the pulsating nightclubs,
从激情洋溢的夜总会

hotel bars to the traditional old London taverns;
酒店的酒吧，到传统的伦敦老酒馆

there is something to offer for everyone
任何一个夜晚

on any given night of the week,
都能满足不同人的需要

there is so much to do and so many places to see.
有那么多的事情可做，有那么多的地方可看

London is also a city of immigrants,
伦敦也是一个移民城市

some 300 languages are spoken;
这里流通着大约300种语言

this multiculturalism is evident on every street.
多元文化是鲜明的特色

Visit London is an experience
伦敦之行

that you will never forget.
将成为你毕生难忘的经历

Manchester
曼彻斯特

Manchester lies at the heart of Greater Manchester,
曼彻斯特位于英格兰西北部

in the north west of England.
大曼彻斯特的中心地带

The expansion of the modern city
现代城市的扩张

has its roots in the 1800's
起源于19世纪

when it became the world's first industrial city
曼彻斯特通过发展棉花工业

through the development of the cotton industry.
成为了世界上第一个工业城市

The remnants of this development
历史的痕迹仍然

are still commonly visible
在城市里旧时的

through the red-brick mills of the period.
红砖磨坊中随处可见

Also, it is well known for being a city of sport.
此外，它也是众所周知的体育之城

The city has two Premier League football clubs
这里有两家英超俱乐部

–Manchester United and Manchester City.
曼联和曼城俱乐部

Manchester United play at Old Trafford,
曼联的主场是老特拉福德

the largest club football ground in the United Kingdom.
这里是英国最大的俱乐部球场

Manchester is a very mixed city.
曼彻斯特是一个很多元化的城市

Many races and religions have communities in the city.
许多种族和宗教在这里有自己的社区

And it has a long history of being more tolerant
它有着比大多数城市

than most cities to people of any background.
对任何背景的人更宽容的悠久历史

Manchester is also extremely gay-friendly
曼彻斯特也是也是一座非常同性恋友好

and very liberal-minded.
和思想自由的城市

It is very well known as being one of “The Big 3”
它是众所周知的“多元性取向”友好的

in terms of sexual diversity
“三巨头”城市之一

along with Brighton and London.
另外两个城市是布莱顿和伦敦

The term LGBT
LGBT这个词

is the abbreviation of
是女同性恋者、同性恋

Gays、Bisexuals and Transgender.
双性恋与跨性别者的缩写

Manchester has a thriving LGBT scene,
曼彻斯特的同性恋文化特别兴盛

centred around the world famous Canal Street
特别在运河街一带

- home of “The Village”,
形成了同性恋村

which is very popular with people of all sexualities.
对于各种性取向的人群都有着吸引力

It attracts all kinds of people:
它吸引的

not just from Manchester
不仅是曼城的人群

but also the entire country and abroad.
还有来自于国内外的人群

Edinburgh
爱丁堡

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland,
爱丁堡是苏格兰的首都

and it is home to the Scottish Parliament
也是苏格兰的议会所在地

and the seat of the monarchy in Scotland.
也是苏格兰的首都

The city is also the annual venue
该城市也是年度

of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
苏格兰教会集会的会场所在

and home to national institutions
以及国家组织

such as the National Museum of Scotland,
例如苏格兰国家博物馆

The National Library of Scotland,
苏格兰国家图书馆

and the Scottish National Gallery.
苏格兰国家美术馆

It is the largest financial centre
爱丁堡是英国仅次于伦敦的

in the UK after London.
金融中心

The city has long been known
该城市也以其

as a centre of education.
教育之都而著称

The University of Edinburgh,
爱丁堡大学

founded in 1582,
建立于1582年

was placed 17th in the QS World University Rankings
在2013和2014年的QS世界大学

in 2013 and 2014.
排名中名列17

The city is also famous
该城市的爱丁堡国际文化节

for the Edinburgh International Festival and the Fringe,
和爱丁堡边缘戏剧节世界闻名

the latter being the largest
后者是最大的年度

annual international arts festival in the world.
国际艺术盛会

The city's historical and cultural attractions
这个城市的历史和文化景点

have made it the second most popular tourist destination
使其成为仅次于伦敦的第二大

in the United Kingdom after London,
旅游热门城市

attracting over one million overseas visitors each year.
每年吸引着数以百万的海内外游客

Historic sites in Edinburgh include Edinburgh Castle,
历史名胜包括了爱丁堡城堡

Holyrood Palace,
荷里路德宫

and the Canon gate,
修士门

and the extensive Georgian New Town,
十八世纪的

built in the 18th century.
乔治亚新城

Edinburgh's Old Town and New Town together
爱丁堡的新城和老城

are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
被联合国教科文组织列为世界文化遗产

Did you know?
你知道吗？

The River Severn is the longest in total,
赛文河是英国最长的河流

but its source is in the mountains of Wales,
它发源于威尔士的山脉

and the parts which run through England
流经英格兰，但是英格兰境内最长的

are shorter than the Thames
河流是泰晤士河

Probably the best months to travel in England
游览用格兰最佳的月份是

are May, June, September and October.?
五月、六月、九月和十月

These months
这段时间

generally have the most pleasant temperatures
气温适宜

and less rain.
降雨量不多

About 12 per cent of Britain's overall population
12%的英国人口

live in London
住在伦敦

London was the first city in the world
伦敦是世界上第一座拥有

to have an underground railway,
地铁的城市

known as the ‘Tube’.
地铁被称为“管道”