The Republic of Belerus

               The Republic of Belarus

Belarus is my homeland. It is the place where I was born. Officially it is called the Republic of Belarus, a sovereign independent state with its own government, constitution, state emblem, flag and anthem. Belarus is a member-state of CIS( Commonwealth of Independent States) and one of the UN( United Nationals) founder members.

The Republic of Belarus is situated in the center of Europe. It borders on Poland in the west, the Baltic States – Lithuania and Latvia – in the north-west, on the Russian Federation in the east and on Ukraine in the south. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno, Gomel, Mogilev and Vitebsk. Belarus occupies the territory of 208 thousand kilometers. It stretches for 560 kilometres from north to south and for 650 kilometres from west to east. Its population is about 10 million people. Belarusians are 80% of them, while the others are mostly Russians, Poles, Ukrainians and Jews. More than 100 nationalities call Belarus their homeland.

Belarus is situated on a plain rising to hills, the highest of which is Dzierzhinsky Hill. About twenty thousand rivers and streams run in all directions across the country. Seven of them are more than 500 kilometres long each. They are the Dnieper, the Neman, the Western Dvina, the Pripyat, the Berezina, the Sozh and the Vilia. Belarus is a lake country. There are about 10,800 lakes here. The lakes are particularly numerous in the north. The largest is Lake Naroch. The real treasure of Belarus lies in its forests. Large and small, old and new, they cover a third of the country. The nature of Belarus is rich and varied.

The climate of Belarus is moderate continental with mild and humid winters, warm summers and rainy days in autumn. The average temperature in January is minus 5-8 degrees Celsius and that in July is plus 20 degrees Celsius. Even though Belarus is a land-locked country, its climate is strongly influenced by the Baltic Sea.

Belarus is a presidential republic, where President is head of state, the guarantor of the Constitution and people’s rights and freedoms. State power in the Republic of Belarus is exercised through three main branches – legislative, executive and judicial. These bodies are independent. The country has had two official languages: Belarusian and Russian.

Nowadays Belarus is a country of developed industry, education and culture. Its biggest enterprises and factories produce high quality goods ranging from heavy-duty trucks and tractors to refrigerators, TV sets and watches. It exports potassium salt, tractors, electronic equipment, food and products of light industry.

Like other countries Belarus has its own holidays. They are of two kinds — traditional national holidays and religious holidays. National holidays are both — a public celebration and a personal event in the family. The New Year Day is one of them. It is a popular public holiday which is widely celebrated in every family. The 8th of March is another national holiday when people show their love and respect for their mothers, grandmothers, sisters and girl-friends. It's a tradition to present them with flowers and gifts. The 7th of November and the 3rd of July are traditionally observed as important events in the history of Belarus. One of the important events in Belarusian culture is Kupalle - a holiday of nature with its roots deep in ancient times and which is connected with the solstice⁸. Many people take part in the celebration of this holiday. The celebration goes through the whole night. This custom shows the importance of traditions in today's culture. Another religious holiday which is observed on Tuesday a week after Easter is Radunitsa. On this day people go to the graveyards⁹ to pay tribute¹⁰ to their dead relatives.

In conclusion I want to say that I love my country very much. And I am proud that I am BELARUS!