Other names of the country
The Greeks called the country “the Albion” = “albus” – “white”, because of the white cliffs that can be seen first when approaching the country from Europe.
The Romans called the country “Britania” = the southern British province
Ireland is often referred to as “Erin – Emerald Island” by the Irish, because of the lush greenery of the island.
Personifications
“Britannia” is the female embodiment of the country. The Celtic queen, Boadicea, served as the prototype of the personification. She managed to unite and organize resistance of the tribes against the Roman troops. Britania is represented by a woman that somehow reminds the ancient Greek goddess Athena, wearing a helmet, a tunic and is holding a shield and a trident, at her feet a lion sits. The image appeared at the times of the Great British Empire and symbolizes the might of the country and power of the seas and colonies.
John Bull is a character that appeared at the end of the 19th century and represents “Englishness” (stiff upper lip, conservatism, strife for power, etc.)
Peoples & Languages
| Ireland Wales Highland Scotland | 
the Celts
|  Irish Gaelic
Welsh Celtic languages
Scottish Gaelic
|
| England Lowland Scotland | 
the Germanic tribes
| 
Germanic dialects,
which served the basis of modern English
|
Nicknames
| Country | The commonest name | The commonest surname | Nickname |
| England | John, Harry, William, Bradley Anna, Harriet, Victoria, Elizabeth | Smith, Johnson, White | “Bobby” = policeman |
| Scotland | Ian, Duncan, Donald, Angus Morag, Fiona, Jean | Mac~/Mc~ e.g. MacDonald, MacLeod, McCartney | “Jimmy” or “Jock” |
| Ireland | Sean, Aengus[`engis], Padraig [`pawdrig] ~Patrick, Ruary [roree] Sibeal [shibial]~Elizabeth, Shauna[shawna], Ultana, Daireann [darrawn] | O~ e.g. O`Brian, O`Hara, O`Connor, O`Neil; Murphy | “Paddy” or “Mick” |
| Wales | Bryn, Dewui, Rhys, Owain Arwen, Mai, Neris | Jones, Williams, Lewis, Davis, Lloyd | “Dai” or “Taffy” |
Political System
The UK is a Constitutional Monarchy, i.e. the power of the monarch is limited by the Parliament.
The Queen is the head of the state.
“The Queen reigns but does not rule”
There is no written constitution in the UK
Lecture 3 History
Topic: Periods of the British history
Warming-up: test on the previous topic