Land of the Vikings

The Week (13 November 2004)

I. Fill in the gaps with the appropriate word. Beware! There are 2 unnecessary words. (8

marks)

necessity, necessary, attitude, society, ease, cohabit, including, rate, hard, hardly
Iceland is a _________ that has stayed truer to its Viking heritage than any other part
of Scandinavia. Its language has ___________ changed over the ages: Icelanders today can
read the old Sagas with ________. The ancient system of names is still in use: instead of
family names – a legal _________ elsewhere in Europe – Icelanders simply add “son” or
“dottir” (daughter) to their father’s first name. So Jon, the son of Sigurd becomes Jon
Sigurdson. Women don’t change their names on marrying and this also reflects Iceland’s
historically enlightened ___________ to women. From the earliest times women have held
equal rights under the law; __________ rights to divorce and property. One Viking survival is
the extraordinarily high _________ of children born outside wedlock. Illegitimate children are
accepted and rather common in Iceland. Couples often _________ and have a child or two
before they marry.

II. Fill in each gap with ONLY ONE WORD. This time you have no help. (6 marks)

Iceland has not ______ favoured by the gods; the country has few natural advantages.
Rivers provide hydroelectric power; natural geothermal energy supplies 90% of homes
______ cheap, pollution-free heating. But the country is cold: 12% of the land is ice-covered,
treeless and, for much ______ the year, sunless. The Gulf Stream, however, ______ the
coastal valleys surprisingly green. Lack of natural resources hasn’t proved fatal; what’s
_____, such conditions have made Iceland resourceful. Iceland may have been one of the
poorest countries some decades ago _____ today it’s one of the richest in Europe.

III. Read the text and decide whether the statements are TRUE or FALSE. (4 marks)

Most of Iceland’s export is still from fishing but services – everything from software
development to tourism – are beginning to outstrip fishing. And faced with a tiny home
market, businessmen have been setting up successful companies overseas, many of them in
Britain. Much of the success is due to the favourable terms Iceland enjoys in Europe: it isn’t
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part of the European Union but it is in the European Economic Area. That brings the benefits
of the single market with few of the related costs. So economic growth is 6.4% compared with
2% for the single market as a whole. Iceland’s most famous son is Leif Ericksson, who
discovered America in 1000, centuries before Columbus. The country has only a few
celebrities (for example Björk, the singer) but it is not surprising: its population is only about
285,000 people, half of whom live in the capital, Reykjavik.

Statements:
Iceland’s economic growth is lower than Europe’s.
Entrepreneurs have set up companies abroad because Iceland’s economy doesn’t grow
fast enough.
The income from services will soon be higher than the income from fishing in Iceland.
America was first discovered by Columbus.

IV. Choose the correct alternative! (6 marks)

Iceland was the last European country to be settled. The first arrivals has been/had
been/were Irish monks in the eight century. In 930 Icelanders established the first National
parliament in the world which already/still/yet operates. Independent for more than/like/as
300 years, Iceland fell under Danish and Norwegian rule but independence was granted in
1918.
Life in Iceland has always been a struggle for survival in favour of/opposite/against
climate, disease and volcanic activity. After long years of ice and volcanic eruptions in the
1780s, the population tripled/halved/doubled from 50,000 to 26,000. At one stage, the Danish
authorities even considered evacuating entire/the whole/every population.

V. There are TWO mistakes IN EACH sentence. Find and CORRECT them! (4 marks)

Lack of immigration over hundreds of years has meant that Icelanders share a
remarkably genetic similarity which has make Iceland the best genetic laboratory in the
world. It allows scientists isolating genetic disease-causing mutations and it could well
earning Iceland hundreds of millions of dollars.

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VI. Answer the questions as briefly as you can! It is advisable to use the expressions from the text. This

way you won’t be likely to make mistakes. (8 marks)

Why is Iceland’s economy so successful? (2 marks)

Why are people genetically so similar in Iceland? (2 marks)
In what ways has Iceland kept its Viking heritage? (4 answers) (4 marks)

This is the end of the text.

Check your answers with the help of the key below.

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Key:
I. society, hardly, ease, necessity, attitude, including, rate, cohabit
II. been, with, of, makes, more, but
III. F, F, T, F
IV. were, still, than, against, halved, the whole
V. remarkable, has made, to isolate, earn
VI. (A) because of its favourable terms in Europe/because it is not part of the EU but is part of the European
Economic Area; (B), because of the lack of immigration; (C) (1) the language hardly changed, (2) the ancient
system of names is still in use, (3) historically enlightened attitude to women; (4) high rate of children born
outside wedlock/high number of illegitimate children.



If you scored 22 marks or more: CONGRATULATIONS! You have passed the exam!

If you scored 29 marks or more: EXCELLENT JOB, your English is great! Keep up the good

work!

If you scored less than 22 marks: it will be ok, just don’t stop practising!

Légy profi vizsgázó!

Készülj a vizsgára INSTANT Nyelvtan és INSTANT Szóbeli Tanulókártyákkal!
Postaköltséggel és hanganyaggal együtt 1890Ft-tól!