New York (3541)

Manhattan [mæn'hætən] – Манхэттен

Babylon ['bæbilən] – Вавилон

United Nations Headquarters ['hed'kwotəz] – главное управление ООН

Situated at the mouth of the deep Hudson River, New York has always been the gate of the USA. But it is more than just a door: it is also a window through which the life of the whole nation may be observed. New York is a city of striking social contrasts. It is a place where most of the millionaires live and at the same time a greater proportion of New Yorkers live at a lower level than the average for the US.

New York is one of the largest cities in the world and the leading financial, industrial, transport and trade centre of the USA. It is a city of islands connected by 60 bridges. In comparison with such ancient cities as Rome, Moscow, London or Paris, New York is quite young.

In 1626 Dutch colonists set up here the first settlement, named New Amsterdam. They bought Manhattan Island from Indians for 24 dollars and a barrel of rum. The Americans say that it was the best business deal ever made in New York. In 1664 the colony was captured by British fleet under Duke of York and renamed New York.

Today New York City consists of five districts, enjoying certain independence. They are Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn and Richmond (Staten Island) with a total population of over 8 million people (up to 18 million including its all suburbs). It is a multinational city, called "modern Babylon" or “Big Apple”, the people of almost all nationalities and races speak 75 different languages.

The centre of New York is Manhattan Island, the heart of business, finance and American policy. It is the smallest of the five city boroughs in size and it is not the largest in population although the majority spend a considerable part of the day in this centre of business life. Here are Broadway, Wall Street and the Stock Exchange. The island stretches to 21 km from north to south between the Hudson River and the East River and is only 4 kilometres in breadth. The longest and widest street in New York, Broadway, runs through the whole of Manhattan. Straight avenues follow the length of the island. The avenues are crossed by 200 streets numbered from south to north. Numerous sky-scrapers house banks and offices of American business. The 102-storeyed Empire State Building, 381 metres high is the tallest sky-scraper in the city. Rockefeller Centre, the largest business and entertainment centre in America, covers nearly four city blocks. United Nations Headquarters is here as well. The four buildings were erected in 1950.

Harlem is also in Manhattan. Thick walls separate this «Black Bottom» with 450,000 coloured people from the white population.

The Bronx is a more residential rather than industrial part of the city. The well-known Zoo and Botanic Gardens are in the Bronx.

Queens is both a residential and industrial area. New York's two biggest airports are both there.

The Brooklyn Navy Yard is the largest naval shipbuilding centre in the world. Brooklyn has more people than any other part of the city – about 3,000,000. It is mostly a district of middle-class people.

Richmond is the borough of piers and warehouses. Its population is only 200,000.

What makes New York? First of all, it is a great seaport, the greatest in the USA. The sea encircles many of the city areas. It is also a great financial centre, where «money-making» is the main law of life. It is the symbol of big business and its Wall Street has become a nickname for big monopolies all over the world. New York is the leading textile centre of the country and its clothes industry. It has a considerable printing industry and many book-shops. It is also undoubtedly one of the centres of social and spiritual life of America. There are a lot of Art Galleries, among them rich Henry Frick collections, and many impressive art museums (Metropolitan Museum, Modern Art Museum, American Art Museum and others). The "Metropolitan" Opera House, the "Radio-City" concert halls attract many visitors. For a long time New York specialized in giving visitors a good time at its theatres, restaurants, night clubs, sporting arenas, and therefore has a large hotel industry. It is the main publishing, advertising and radio centre with Columbia and New York universities and various city colleges. More than 300,000 students study at the New York institutions of higher education.

Check your comprehension.

1. What kind of a city is New York? 2. Where was it founded? 3. Who founded the city? 4. What name did the city have at that time? 5. How did the Dutch get Manhattan Island? 6. When was the city renamed? 7. What districts does New York consist of? 8. How many people live in the city and its suburbs? 9. Why is the city called "modern Babylon" now? 10. What is the other city’s nickname? 11. What is the centre of New York? 12. Where is Harlem situated? What is it? 13. What cultural and scientific institutions are there in New York?

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