20 лучших повестей на английском / 20 Best Short Novels

Connacht  – one of the five ancient kingdoms of Ireland in the western and northwestern part of the island

397

Glasgow  – a large city on the banks of the River Clyde in west-central Scotland

398

Galway  – a county on the Atlantic coast in Connacht

399

Wellington  – Arthur Wellesley, 1st duke of Wellington (1769–1862), commander of the British Army during the Napoleonic Wars; he was of Irish origin

400

the Three Graces  – in Greek mythology, the goddesses of Brightness, Joyfulness and Bloom

401

Smyrna  – a Greek city (now in western Turkey), one of the oldest cities in the Mediterranean region, founded in the 3rd millennium BC

402

stout  – a top-fermented beer

403

contralto  – the lowest female voice in music

404

prima donna  – a leading woman singer in opera

405

Dinorah  – an opera by Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791–1864), a German opera composer

406

Lucrezia Borgia  – an opera by Gaetano Donizetti (1797–1848), a famous Italian opera composer

407

Caruso  – Enrico Caruso (1873–1921), a prominent Italian singer and musician of the early 20th century

408

port  – strong, sweet Portuguese wine

409

sherry  – fortified wine, usually of Spain, Cypress, etc.

410

Trinity College  – the University of Dublin founded in 1592, the oldest university in Ireland; the two names are interchangeable

411

terra-cotta  – 1. fired clay (from Italian ‘baked earth’); 2. an object made from coarse, porous clay

412

heliotrope  – dark-green mineral with bright-red spots

413

shilling  – a former British coin, 1/20 of a pound or 12 pence

414

the Bog of Allen  – a group of peat bogs in east-central Ireland between the Liffey and the Shannon Rivers

415

the Shannon  – the longest river in Ireland; it flows south and enters the Atlantic Ocean

416

the Viking  – also called Norseman, one of the Scandinavian warriors in the 9th-11th centuries; the Vikings raided European countries and greatly influenced the history of Europe

417

Hampshire  – a historic county on the English Channel in south-central England

418

sangfroid = composure, self-control ( French )

419

the Saxons  – a Germanic people who lived along the Baltic coast in ancient times; they invaded Britain in the 5th century AD

420

hamlets  – small villages

421

yeomen  – peasants or farmers who owned their land

422

yards  – yard is a unit of length, 91.44 cm

423

the Morris dance  – an old English ritual folk dance performed by specially chosen men

424

coming to grips  – idiom; to come to grips = to deal with

425

epicurean  – devoted to pleasure and enjoyment; from Epicurus (341 BC–270 BC), a Greek philosopher, the author of philosophy of pleasure and retirement

426

casus belli  – ground for war, cause of war and justification of it ( Latin )

427

empyrean  – heavenly, celestial

428

stoic  – having great self-control, bearing everything without complaint

429

basta!  – that’s enough!; no more of it! ( Spanish )

430

Isaac  – in the Old Testament, a Hebrew patriarch, the son of Abraham; to test Abraham’s faith, God told him to sacrifice the child, but at the last moment God spared Abraham and his boy

431

the Mater Dolorata  – the Suffering Virgin Mary (Mother of God), a theme in Christian art

432

the Saviour  – Jesus Christ

433

the Mother with the seven swords in her breast  – a theme in Christian art and iconography depicting the Virgin Mary with seven swords in her breast

434

stigma  – a mark of smth. (disgrace, suffering, etc.)

435

before the Romans came  – the Romans invaded Britain in 43 AD, and Britain became a part of the Roman Empire

436

maenad  – adj frenzied; n a priestess of Bacchus, the Greek god of wine and ecstasy

437

Ishmael  – in the Old Testament, an illegitimate son of Abraham by his wife’s maid; when the maid got pregnant, her behavior became haughty and arrogant

438

Baal  – a fertility god in the ancient Middle East, one of the most important gods of ancient times (2nd millennium BC)

439

Ashtaroth  – the plural form of the name Ashtoreth, the greatest goddess of the ancient Middle East; the plural form of the name is a general term denoting paganism

440

‘Rule, Britannia’  – a famous song by Thomas Arne (1710–1778), the most important British composer of the 18th century

441

en bloc ( French ) = as a whole ( French )

442

canaille = mob, common people ( French )

443

Puget Sound  – a bay near the USA-Canadian border in the eastern part of the Pacific Ocean

444

San Diego  – a city and port in southern California, on the Pacific Ocean, founded in 1769 by the Spanish

445

Santa Clara Valley  – an area near San Diego, a region of orchids

446