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British Traditions and Customs
British traditions are rather interesting and unusual. If you arrive in Great Britain, you’ll hear the word “tradition” everywhere. Englishmen have a sentimental love for things and traditions because they are old. They never throw away old things. In many houses of Great Britain they have fireplaces and though their bedrooms are awfully cold, the English people don’t want to have central heating because they don’t want to have changes.
Therefore the Yeomen-Warders are dressed in traditional medieval clothes and the traditional dress of the House Guards regiment has existed since the 12th century. This dress costs a lot of money and seems very funny nowadays but Englishmen stand for it because it’s a tradition.If you enter the Houses of Parliament, you’ll see the House of Lords and the House of Commons.In the House of Lords there are two rows of benches for lords and sack of wool for the Lord Chancellor to sit on. This is so because in the old times wool made England rich and powerful. In the House of Commons which is not big and quite simple, you’ll see two rows of benches for the two parties: the government — on one side and the opposition — on the other. In front of the benches there is the strip of a carpet and when a member speaking in the House puts his foot beyond that strip, there is a shout “Order.” This dates from the time when the members had swords on them and during the discussion might want to start fighting. The word “order” reminded them that no fighting was allowed in the House.And there are many other traditions. The traffic regulations in Great Britain differ from other countries: we keep to the left and you keep to the right. As you have already seen the English buses are very high, because they are double-decked, all of them are red. But the houses are not very big, they are mostly two-storied buildings.Now we are in Fleet Street. The concentration of some professions in certain streets is a characteristic feature of London. If someone works in Fleet Street, you know he is a journalist, if someone works in Harley Street, you know that he is a medical man. It is also a tradition.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. Englishmen are proud of their traditions and carefully keep them up. The best examples are their queen, money system, their weights and measures.
There are many customs and some of them are very old. There is, for example, the Marble Championship, where the British Champion is crowned; he wins a silver cup known among folk dancers as Morris Dancing. Morris Dancing is an event where people, worn in beautiful clothes with ribbons and bells, dance with handkerchiefs or big sticks in their hands, while traditional music- sounds.Another example is the Boat Race, which takes place on the river Thames, often on Easter Sunday. A boat with a team from Oxford University and one with a team from Cambridge University hold a race.British people think that the Grand National horse race is the most exciting horse race in the world. It takes place near Liverpool every year. Sometimes it happens the same day as the Boat Race takes place, sometimes a week later. Amateur riders as well as professional jockeys can participate. It is a very famous event.
There are many celebrations in May, especially in the countryside.Halloween is a day on which many children dress up in unusual costumes. In fact, this holiday has a Celtic origin. The day was originally called All Halloween's Eve, because it happens on October 31, the eve of all Saint's Day. The name was later shortened to Halloween. The Celts celebrated the coming of New Year on that day.Another tradition is the holiday called Bonfire Night. On November 5,1605, a man called Guy Fawkes planned to blow up the Houses of Parliament where the king James 1st was to open Parliament on that day. But Guy Fawkes was unable to realize his plan and was caught and later, hanged. The British still remember that Guy Fawkes' Night. It is another name for this holiday. This day one can see children with figures, made of sacks and straw and dressed in old clothes. On November 5th, children put their figures on the bonfire, burn them, and light their fireworks.In the end of the year, there is the most famous New Year celebration. In London, many people go to Trafalgar Square on New Year's Eve. There is singing and dancing at 12 o'clock on December 31st.
A popular Scottish event is the Edinburgh Festival of music and drama, which takes place every year. 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. If we look at English weights and measures, we can be convinced that the British are very conservative people. They do not use the internationally accepted measurements. They have conserved their old measures. There are nine essential measures. For general use, the smallest weight is one ounce, then 16 ounce is equal to a pound. Fourteen pounds is one stone.The English always give people's weight in pounds and stones. Liquids they measure in pints, quarts and gallons. There are two pints in a quart and four quarts or eight pints are in one gallon. For length, they have inches» foot, yards and miles. If we have always been used to the metric system therefore the English monetary system could be found rather difficult for us. They have a pound sterling, which is divided into twenty shillings, half-crown is cost two shillings and sixpence, shilling is worth twelve pennies and one penny could be changed by two halfpennies.
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Kazakh folk games
The specific attitude of steppe people to horses has generated a love for horse games. Such Kazakh games are countless and each djigit (male) deems it his duty to take part in at least one kind of horse sport.
“Alaman baiga”
“Alaman baiga”, the long and super long distance race, is one of the oldest and most popular types of competitions. It is associated with nomadism, the need to train horses for long journeys, especially in wartime, or in hijacking the heds of enemies as well as to improve the breeds of horses. “Alaman baiga” was the main part of major folk festivals or … funerals (as). Competitions were held in the steppe, on a straight road, full of natural obstacles, without limiting the number of horses and breeds. During “Alaman baiga” horses not withstanding the long – distance fell dead, and some with broken legs laid in the road with their riders.
On the other hand, Kazakhs were aware of malefice, hence “they do not show race horses, keep them under horse-cloth and the manes and tails are plaited, attaching owl feathers and a talisman in different places to protect from evil malefice”. Boys between the ages of 8-14 years were chosen as the riders.
There is also simply “baiga”. This took place on a flat area on the line, with turns or on a closed circle. To participate in it one could have an ordinary ragged horse.
“ Kyz-kuu”
Among the shows particularly popular among Kazakh youth was the riding game “ Kyz-kuu” ( catch a girl). The game has been with us since the time of the Saks. According to custom Djigit claiming the hand and heart of a girl, caught his bride on a spanker horse. During the folk festival youth rode horses, galloping in the field. On a sign, the girl flicks the horse and rips away from her betrothed at full gallop. Djigit follows her. He should, at all costs, catch her up and kiss her, otherwise he will be the butt of friends’ jokes and the condemning looks of kinsmen, not to mention the impish laughter and triumphant glances of the hard-bitten horsewoman. If the guy is still not able to catch her up he must turn and rapidly ride back. Now she pursues him, but not to give him a kiss, and that… to beat the unlucky groom with a kamcha (whip). Yet, the game was always more like a performance observed by all steppe people, from young to old, than a serious test for lovers.
“Zhorga zharys”
Kazakh horsewomen participated in “zhorga zharys” – competing on pacers. These horses have special footsteps, a softness and rhythm in their walking and running. During competitions pacers should not enter a normal race – violation of this rule is punished with a fine or exclusion from a race.
“Kokpar”
One of the favorite games, without which there was no celebration and mass entertainment, was “kokpar” – the struggle of riders for a goat carcass. “kokpar-kokbori” means “gray wolf” in Kazakh. For nomads, the wolf was a bitter enemy, and if anyone was able to kill one, he had to present its head it to the genearch and to give the carcass to pull it to pieces. This day became a kind of holiday – everyone tried to carry the killed animal. But a wolf was not caught on every occasion so sometimes the animal was replaced by a headless goat carcass. Only the name “gray wolf” remains, but the form and content of the game has changed. Kokpar has two options: the zhalpy-tartys, when a large number of riders are involved in the game, struggling to get a carcass independently and doda-tartys, when the struggle is between teams of a number of participants. Kokpar is still very popular today.
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