Task 1. Read the text. The Ukrainian language

The Ukrainian language

Ukrainian belongs to the group of the Slavic languages. Slavs are a group of Eastern European peoples, subdivided into Eastern Slavs /Great Russians, Ukrainians and Byelorussians/, Western Slavs /Poles, Moravians, Czechs, Slovaks, Slovenes, Bulgarians/. In the VII century a tribe of Western Slavs headed by Viatko migrated from the Middle and Low Vistula to the Volga and settled in the area between the Volga and Oka. Their language was influenced by the local languages of the Finn and Turkic origin. In 981 they were subdued by Prince Volodymyr Sviatoslavovych. On the land of Viatychi Moscow came into being. In the 14^th century the land of Viatychi was included into the Great Principality of Muscovia which became called Rus. They spoke Russian.

In 862 the Great Moravia Principality became Christian but the church service was led in Latin which the Moravians didn’t understand. Prince of Great Moravia Rostyslav asked Byzantium to send teachers to Moravia to teach Christianity in the Slavic language. The Emperor of Byzantium Mykhailo III sent to Moravia a mission headed by two brothers – Kostiantyn /later Cyril / and Methodius from Solun /now Salonica in Greece/. Both knew the Old Bulgarian language then spoken in Solun. On Mai 24, 863 the Solun brothers noticed in Pliska, the capital of Bulgaria in that time, about the creation of the Slavic alphabet. Cyril had been already known as an outstanding scholar and the new alphabet got his name “Cyrillic”.

In 988 Prince Volodymyr introduced Christianity in Kyivan Rus. The Old Bulgarian language /it is called Old Slavic, Old Church Slavic/ spread in Pannonia, Bulgaria, Serbia and Rus. In Rus the Old Bulgarian language mixed with the local language of Rusiches who spoke the so-called “Kyivan language” /Sviatoslav spoke “in Kyivan”/ or the Old Ukrainian. Under the influence of the Old Bulgarian the Old Ukrainian became called the Church Slavic language. In the books this language spread over Rus. The Kyivan /Old Ukrainian / language was not written language and didn’t spread as far as the Church Slavic language. In 1596 L. Zyzanii published his “Grammar”. In 1619 the “Grammar” of Smotrytskyi was published.

In 1632 the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy was founded. It was named in honour of its protector Metropolitan Petro Mohyla /1597-1647/. The graduates of the Academy contributed much into development of education and culture not only in Ukraine, but also in Russia, Belarus and other countries. In the 15 century when Muscovia under the name Rus became a state, the unification needed common Church language. Many people came from Kyiv to Moscow. Elder Feodosii corrected translation of the Bible. Semeon Polotskyi was the teacher of the Tsar’s children. Many books in Church Slavic came from Kyiv to stay in the libraries of the new capital. In 1687 Semen Polotskyi became co-founder of the Moscow Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy upon the model of the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy. In the 18^th century all the teachers of Academy were Ukrainians.

The first classics of the new Ukrainian literature were Ivan Kotliarevskyi 1769-1838/ and Taras Shevchenko /1814-1861/. In the 19^th century the circular letter of 1863 of the Tsar minister P. Valuiev banned publishing books in Ukraine. Nowadays Ukrainian is the state language of Ukraine.

Task 2. Discussion: Answer the questions.

1. Who were Cyril and Methodius?

2. Who introduced the Slavic Cyrillic alphabet?

3. Who was the protector of the Kyiv Mohyla Academy?

4. When was the first Ukrainian Grammar published?

5. What was the circular letter of 1863 about?

Task 3. Comrehension: Are the statements true or false? (True, false or don’t know)

1. Ukrainian belongs to the Slavic group of languages.

2. The Slavic alphabet was introduced by Cyril and Methodius.

3. 3. Cyril and Methodius introduced Glagolytsia alphabet too.

4. Semeon Polotskyi studied in Kyiv Mohyla Academy in 1640-50.

5. In the 19^th century the teachers of the Moscow Slavic Academy were Ukrainians.

Task 4. Match English and Ukrainian words.

hut	гати	clay	гак	lighter	nanip
palace	тин	fortress	кордон	letter	вірш
town	брук	cord	фортеця	paper	кома
gate	хата	luster	глей	verse	ліхтар
bridge	палац	hook	люстро	comma	літера
pencil	кав’яр	stream	перука	father	гас
cook	пензель	peruke	струмок	gas	гелікоптер
caviar	кухар	gum	гарт	sense	батько
oil	смак	hard	гумка	rede	сенс
smack	олія	rest	решта	helicopter	рада

build	мусити	seek	мандрувати	tremble	прасувати
cost	рушити	wander	шукати	call	важити
rush	турбувати	watch	страйкувати	weight	бракувати
disturb	будувати	strike	відкоркувати	break	тремтіти
must	коштувати	cork	бачити	press	кликати

brutal	поганий	colour	корковий
worth	брутальний	brown	кольоровий
fine	вартий	red	блакитний
tender	файний	blue	рудий
pagan	тендітний	cork	брунатний

Дата добавления: 2014-11-08