英语博客(A cup of English):072 Spain.

　　Beginners.
We continue our study of different countries of the world with Spain. This fascinating country makes up most of the Iberian Peninsula that forms the southwestern tip of Europe. Portugal is on its west, and France is on its northeastern border. Though Spain is famous for its beaches along its three coasts, the rest of the land is very varied¹. More than half of the land is hot and dry, in the central region called the Meseta. It is surrounded by several mountain ranges, from which come three very important rivers: the Tagus, the Douro, and the Guadiana. This country has many mountainous areas, from the Pyrenees in the north, the Sierra Morena, and the Sierra Nevada with its highest mountain, Mulhacen, at about 3,500 meters. About one tenth of Spain is heavily forested. These areas are found in the north where it is wetter. Farming and crop growing are, therefore, mainly found in the north. Spain is one of Europe's biggest producers of wine. Other major industries are: car manufacturing, steelmaking, shipbuilding, chemical manufacturing, and fishing.
Advanced.
The history of Spain is no less varied than its geography. It's position on the map has made it vunerable over the centuries to invasion. The Romans first subdued² Spain in the third century BC. It remained a colony until, during the fifth century AD, the Visigoths (Germanic) from the north claimed Spain. During this time, Spain was Christianized. In 711 the Moors³ invaded from Africa and established an Islamic civilization that lasted six centuries. In the ninth century, invaders⁴ from the north started the process of expelling the Moors, which was completed in 1492 when the royals Ferdinand and Isabella from the north unified⁵ Spain as a Catholic country. That same year, Columbus, under Spanish sponsorship,  reached the New World. Spain conquered much of Central and South America and other parts of the world, gained great wealth, and became a super power. This ended at the battle of the Armada against England.
For the past two hundred years, Spain has gone through tremendous changes: wars with France and the United States, loss of colonies, removal of the royal family, civil war, a fascist⁶ dictatorship, and finally the reinstating of the royal family and the establishment of a parliamentary democracy in 1978. Phew! That is a lot of history in a couple of paragraphs. The spaniards are known for their friendship, warmth, great food, and love of life, art, and music. Their historical turmoils⁷, and all the cultural influences they have had, have produced a rich and colorful national culture.
Grammar notes.
Vocabulary: varied, vunerable, to claim, to expel, sponsorship, dictatorship, to reinstate.
Exs:
The school's curriculum is so varied; they have art, science, dance, music, and sports.
The baby Kangaroo is completely vunerable; it is tiny and defenseless.
He claimed that the car crash was the other man's fault; it was a lie.
They expelled the boys from school for destroying property.
I need sponsorship from someone to get money for this sports group.
Is this family a dictatorship, or can we all have a say?
The policeman was reinstated after he was found to be innocent.

1 varied   

adj.多样的，多变化的

参考例句：

• The forms of art are many and varied.艺术的形式是多种多样的。
• The hotel has a varied programme of nightly entertainment.宾馆有各种晚间娱乐活动。

2 subdued   

adj. 屈服的，柔和的，减弱的 动词subdue的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He seemed a bit subdued to me. 我觉得他当时有点闷闷不乐。
• I felt strangely subdued when it was all over. 一切都结束的时候，我却有一种奇怪的压抑感。

3 moors   

v.停泊，系泊（船只）( moor的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• the North York moors 北约克郡的漠泽
• They're shooting grouse up on the moors. 他们在荒野射猎松鸡。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 invaders   

入侵者，侵略者，侵入物( invader的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They prepared to repel the invaders. 他们准备赶走侵略军。
• The family has traced its ancestry to the Norman invaders. 这个家族将自己的世系追溯到诺曼征服者。

5 unified   

(unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的

参考例句：

• The teacher unified the answer of her pupil with hers. 老师核对了学生的答案。
• The First Emperor of Qin unified China in 221 B.C. 秦始皇于公元前221年统一中国。

6 fascist   

adj.法西斯主义的；法西斯党的；n.法西斯主义者，法西斯分子

参考例句：

• The strikers were roughed up by the fascist cops.罢工工人遭到法西斯警察的殴打。
• They succeeded in overthrowing the fascist dictatorship.他们成功推翻了法西斯独裁统治。

7 turmoils   

n.混乱( turmoil的名词复数 )；焦虑

参考例句：

• The political turmoils of the 1930s were dark days for the Spanish people. 对西班牙人民来说，30年代的政治动乱是苦难的岁月。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It foundered during the turmoils accompanying the Great Migrations. 它在随着民族大迁徙而出现的混乱中崩溃。 来自辞典例句