British nation is considered to be the most conservative in Europe. It is not a secret that every nation and every country has its own customs and traditions. In Great Britain people attach greater importance to traditions and customs than in other European countries. British are proud of their traditions and carefully keep them up. The best examples are their queen, money system, their weights and measures.
The British have love for old things. They prefer houses with a fireplace and a garden to a flat or modern house with central heating. The houses are traditionally not very high. They are usually two-storied. British buses are double-decked and red, mail-boxes are yellow, the cars keep to the left inside of road-all these are traditions.
Most British people love garden in front of the house is a little square covered with cement painted green in imitation of grass and a box of flowers. They love flowers very much. They also love animals. They say pets have a far better life in Britain than anywhere else.
The British are naturally polite and are never tired of saying “Thank you” and “ I am sorry”. They are generally disciplined; you never hear loud talk in the street. They don't rush for seats in buses and trains, but they take their seats in queues at bus stops. English people do not shake hands when meeting one another; they do not show their emotions even in tragic situations. They seem to remain good-tempered and cheerful under difficulties.
Old customs and traditions may seem strange to visitors but the British still keep them up.
Speaking about holidays we should mention that there are 8 public holidays or bank holidays in a year in Great Britain. They are Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, May Day, Spring Bank Holiday and Late Summer Bank Holiday. The term “bank holiday” dates back to the 19th century when in 1871 and 1875 most of these days where constituted bank holidays, when banks were to be closed.
Besides public holidays there are other festivals, anniversaries and simply days, on which certain traditions are observed: Pancake Day, April Fool’s Day, Halloween, Guy Fawkes Night, St. Valentine’s Day and others. They are working days, but people observe them in one way or another.
Christmas in Great Britain
For most British families, this is the most important festival of the year. This is the day when many people are travelling home to be with their families on Christmas Day. If you try to catch a train on 24th December you may have difficulty in finding a seat.
There are a lot of traditions connected with Christmas but the most important one is the giving of presents. Family members wrap up their gifts and leave them at the bottom of the Christmas tree to be "bound on Christmas morning.
At some time on Christmas Day the family will sit down to a big turkey dinner followed by Christmas pudding.
In the afternoon they may watch the Queen on the television as she delivers her traditional Christmas message to the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. Then they enjoy a piece of Christmas cake or eat a hot mince pie.
On the Sunday before Christmas many churches hold a service where special hymns are sung. Sometimes singers can be heard on the streets as they collect money for charity.
Most families decorate their houses with brightly-coloured paper or holly, and they usually have a Christmas tree in the corner of the room, glittering with coloured lights and decoration. 26th December is also a public holiday, called Boxing Day.
This is the time to visit friends and relatives or be a spectator at one of the many sporting events.
Everyone in Great Britain is waiting and enjoying this holiday very much!
New Year's Day
It is commonly believed that New Year's Day is less important in England than Christmas. It is true in the southern and eastern parts of the country. However, even there, the welcoming of the New Year is growing in popularity, particularly among younger people who prefer to spend Christmas with kin, but New Year with friends. New Year's parties go all night through.
The most famous places of festivities are Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square in London where crowds of people greet the New Year with the linked-arm singing of "Old Lang Syne", kissing total strangers, blowing whistles and automobile horns and shooting firecrackers. Someone usually falls into the fountain in Trafalgar Square. Unfortunately for all these midnight celebrators, January 1st is not a public holiday in England.
In Scotland, New Year’s celebration is the greatest festival of the year, where it even has a special name, Hogmanay. Nobody, however, can successfully explain where this word comes from. After midnight people visit their friends. They carry cakes and spiced ale to wish their hosts a good year.
The first visitor must bring a special present — a piece of coal — to wish good luck and warmth to the house. This is an old Scottish custom. The first footer may also bring a loaf of white bread and a bottle of whisky, On entering he must place the coal on the fire, put the loaf on the table, and pour a glass for the head of the house, all normally without speaking or being spoken to until he wishes everyone "A Happy New Year". He may also carry a silver coin to wish wealth.
Easter is the time for holidays, festivals and time for giving chocolate Easter eggs, the day of parties, and above all a celebration that Jesus raised from the dead and lives forever. Eggs play an important part in Easter celebration; they are predominantly given to children. The eggs are either hollow or have a filling, and are usually covered with brightly colored silver paper.
Easter is much more than ordinary holiday. It is the oldest and the most important Christian Festival, the celebration of the death and coming Jesus Christ to life again. For Christians, the dawn of Easter Sunday with its message of new life is the high point of the year.
Easter is a feast that is not always held on the same date each year. Easter Day is celebrated on the first Sunday following the first full moon after the spring equinox.
This means that Easter can fall as early as March 22 or as late as April 25.
Like most Christian festivals, Easter has its origins in pre-Christian times. Our ancestors believed that the sun died in winter and was born anew in spring. The arrival of spring was celebrated all over the world long before the religious meaning became associated with Easter. Today, Easter celebrates the rebirth of Christ.
The word Easter is thought to have derived from the goddess Eostre, an Anglo-Saxon Goddess.
Even though Easter is associated with spring here in England, it is not so in countries in the Southern Hemisphere. In these countries Easter falls near the end of autumn. However, throughout the world Easter is felt to be a time of new life and new beginnings.
Guy Fawkes Night
"Remember, remember the 5th of November" are the words of an old English song. Why? Because in 1605, a man called Guy Fawkes had planned to blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill king James 1st on that day (the king was to open Parliament then). But Guy Fawkes was caught and hanged. And still the British remember Guy Fawkes' Night or Bonfire Night. From early October you can see children with figures (called 'guys') made of sacks and straw and dressed in old clothes. The children say: "Penny for the Guy"- and with the money they collect in this way they buy fireworks. On November 5th the children put their 'Guy' on the bonfire, born it, and light their fireworks…and the British sky is full of light.
Other countries in the UK also have their own special festivals: A popular Scottish event is the Edinburgh Festival for music and drama each year. Perhaps even more known is the Edinburgh Military Tattoo from Edinburgh Castle in early September. A truly Welsh event is the Eisteddfod, a national festival of traditional poetry and music, with a competition for the best new poem in Welsh and for the best choir.
