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The following bilingual Russian MiniLesson is meant to build your vocabulary by providing Russian phrases within English text. Hover over the bold Russian to reveal its English translation. It is written for those students who may be interested in discussing with Russian friends the meaning and history of one of America’s most important holidays.
is celebrated in the United States on July fourth, and is therefore sometimes called simply . This holiday celebrates . It served to . The Declaration of Independence was signed by some of the most famous , such as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams, who were members of the .
Independence Day is the in the US. The on the Fourth of July can be compared to the atmosphere on in Russia. Independence Day is a , so most businesses on that day. Because it , many traditions related to Independence Day occur .
Since Independence Day is such an important holiday, many Americans decide to their houses with . The most common colors for these decorations are, or course, .
Many towns begin their celebrations with a in the morning. These parades almost never feature . Instead, they tend to focus on celebrating the local community – schools, businesses, and local organizations will often contribute “floats” (decorated trailers usually pulled by trucks – Russian parades and the Russian language have no equivalent for this) that are usually meant to be fun and call attention to the sponsoring organization. In the afternoons, there may be a , or family and friends . Traditional foods for the day include and cooked over a grill and eaten with and other regional favorites.
A very important tradition in the evening is to . may take place in a , or families might decide to set off their own fireworks. People often during or after fireworks displays. Those community displays will often be timed to songs that will play on a specific radio station that people can tune into for the event.
