Russia - my native land

Russia is our native land where we were born and grew up. It is the largest state according to territory, population and economy in the Commonwealth of Independent States. Russia stretches from Eastern Europe to Northern Asia. The territory of Rus­sia is about 18000 km², the population is about 200 million people. Central and Southern Russia are the most densely populated regions. In the North and in the East the shores of Russia are washed by Arctic Ocean and Pacific Ocean. Some territories washed by the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov, the Caspian Sea. In the North Russia borders upon Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Byelorussia, Kazakhstan, Mon­golia. The relief of Russia varies greatly. Travelling through Russia you cross moun­tains and plains, forests and fields, rivers and lakes. The longest rivers of Russia: the Lena, the Volga, the Amur, the Yenisei, the Ob and others. No one country has such enormous and varied sources of mineral wealth, Russia has the richest layers of iron -stone, oil, coal, gas, gold.

Russia is the state of the developed industry, science, culture and space-research.

Russia is a multy-national state. There are dozens of nations and nationalities in it, but Russian people predominate throughout Russia.

The capital of Russia is Moscow. It is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Its population is about 9 million people. Moscow is the largest industrial, po­litical and cultural centre of Russia; it was founded in 1147 by Yuri Dolgoruky. The Moscow of today is a modern city with tall buildings, wide streets and squares, large parks and numerous monuments of ancient Russian architecture. Red Square is a heart of Moscow where many political meetings and different events take place. The Moscow Metro is the oldest in Russia.

Moscow is a major communication centre. Railways, waterways and airlines connect Moscow with other parts of the world.

We are proud of our homeland, Russia, and believe in its wonderful future.

1. Pronounce the following geographical names:

Russia

Eastern Europe

Northern Asia

Central Russia

Southern Russian

the Arctic Ocean

the Pacific Ocean

the Baltic Sea

the Caspian Sea

Finland

Estonia

Latvia

Byelorussia

Ukraine

Georgia

Azerbaijan

Kazakhstan

Mongolia

the Amur

2. Read the following words and word-expressions to the text "Russia":

territory - территория

population - население

densely populated - густо населенный

to be washed by - омываться

to border upon - граничить

relief-рельеф

enormous - многочисленный

sources of mineral wealth - минеральные ресурсы

layer - слой, пласт

iron-stone - железо

coal - каменный уголь

oil - нефть

gas-газ

gold-золото

inhabit - населять

major communication centre - главный центр связи

railway - железная дорога

waterway - водный путь

airline - авиалиния

to connect with - связывать с чем-либо

to be proud of- гордиться

3. Define the suffixes of the following words and translate them into Russian:

Population, economy, territory, independent, mineral, industry, culture, multina­tional, nation, nationality, beautiful, political, industrial, ancient, different, communi­cation, wonderful, future.

4. Answer the following questions:

1. What is our native land?

2. What is the territory of Russia?

3. What is the population?

4. What is our Russia rich in?

5. Where are the shores of Russia washed by the Pacific Ocean and the Arctic Ocean?

6. What largest rivers of Russia do you know?

7. Is Russia is a multy-national state?

8. Is the relief of Russia various?

9. What is Russia known for?

10. What is the capital of Russia?

11. Moscow is one of the most beautiful cities in the world, isn't it?

12. When was Moscow founded?

13. What is the heart of Moscow?

14. Is Moscow Metro the best in the world?

15. What means of communication connect Moscow with all parts of the world?