Gibraltar : the victim of the divorce.

96 % of Gibraltarians were against Brexit

Despite its geographical position, Gibraltar is and will remain a territory of Great Britain. But after the recent events, its future is uncertain.

Current situation of Gibraltar

Gave in by Madrid to London in 1713, Gibraltar, with its almost 30 000 inhabitants spread over 7 square kilometers, is a british overseas territory, that is to say that it is controlled by the British governement. It is moreover the only one in Europe. Its streets packed of red phone boxes and fish-and-chips restaurants leave no doubt that Gibraltarians feel british, which I noticed when I went over there. Nevertheless, there is a Spanish presence. Every day, 10 000 Spanish people cross the border to work in Gibraltar, attracted by the economic growth of the peninsula and some Gibraltarians live in the other side of the border too because of the cheaper cost of living.

EU member since 1973, Gibraltar enjoys a special status: it is out of the Customs Union and exempt of the duty to deduct VAT. 90% of its commercial exchanges are made with the UK. Gambling and financial services are the two main economic drivers of the region, both representing 40% of Gibraltar's GDP(1500 millions pounds in 2016). In Gibraltar, the unemployment rate is of 1.1%, in other words, nearly non-existent. Besides, it boasts an economic growth of 10.3%.

Consequences for Gibraltar in the context of Brexit

However, in June 2016, the UK voted to get out of the EU. But 96% of Gibraltarians wanted to stay in the EU. Here is the problem. As a result, Gibraltar will end up excluded of the EU against its will. What are the issues that are making tension running high between Spain and the UK?

-The first issue of the referendum is about sovereignty. Spain offers to UK a shared sovereigny, which would allow Gibraltar access to the European single market. No agreement between the EU and the UK would be applied to Gibraltar if both kingdoms do not agree. Perhaps this is the sign of a coming restoration to Spain?

-Other issue is the border. Brexit could be a threat to the freedom of movements. Indeed, the UK is not part of the Schengen Area. Different problems like the quarrel over maritim boundaries, the existence of a toll at the border or the narcotics control will be discussed.

-Tourism will be affected too. Once Gibraltar out of the EU, controls will be intensified which will bring down the number of tourists.

-What's more, the british enclave depends on Spain for its supplying and Madrid benefits of its economy too. The inhabitants living on either side of the border are worried about Brexit to put and end to the economic influence of the peninsula. Furthermore, Madrid will oppose to Gibraltar's unfair competition after Brexit, in particular regarding investments taxation, which are making the british overseas territory a "tax haven". Acordingly, Spain will refuse an agreement that would not be completely acceptable for them.

-For that matter, the EU is not neutral anymore and will take sides of Spain for the simple reason that this one stays in the EU. But Gibraltar does no want to break its relationships with the EU because of its close economic relationship with Brussel and mainly with Madrid.

The Rock of Gibraltar.

Gibraltar is now a subject of discord between Spain and the UK. This situation remembers the Gibraltarians of the time of Franco when they were the stake of a showdown between both countries. Brexit is not effective yet but it will be someday. But did someone ask the apes-Gibraltar's most famous residents-their opinion?

By Marina Hill.

EPD 12, GRUPO 3.

The British legends: QUEEN

The British legends: QUEEN

There’s only been a few artists in music history that have left their mark in this big industry. Queen is a group whose members are clearly that type of artists.

Formed by Freddie Mercury, Brian May, Roger Taylor and John Deacon in London in 1971, this band is nowadays considered as one of the best rock bands in the history of this genre.

Their first album, Queen, was released in 1973, the same year the band signed their first contract for EMI. This album featured songs like Keep Yourself Alive and Seven Seas of Rhye.

  

                                                                                           Queen’s first album: Queen.

Their second album came out in 1975. In this album, called A Night At The Opera, there is one of the most popular songs of this band: Bohemian Rhapsody. Its success gave the band their first platinum album. This great hit was followed by the best two singles of the band: We Will Rock You and We Are The Champions, that came out in 1977 and were included in the album News Of The World.

                                               Queen’s second album: A Night At The Opera

By the end of 1980, Queen had already sold over 45 million records worldwide. Four years later, they released a new album called The Works which included one of their greatest hits I Want To Break Free. However, the song itself wasn’t the hit. Actually, it was the official video that turned the song into a great hit, where the members of the group appeared dressed in drag costumes.

                                                                   Queen’s album: The Works.

In 1985, their popularity was internationally recognised when they performed at the Rock in Rio festival. Nevertheless, after 5 years of success, the vocalist, Freddie Mercury, announced he was suffering from AIDS and the following day, unfortunately, he passed away. That same year, the group released their last album Innuendo.

                                                          

                                                                  Queen’s album: Innuendo.

As I see it, Queen is one of the best rock bands to ever play this kind of music. There have been very few rock bands to have such an impact on society as Queen. The fact that there is a musical about one of their songs and that it is still at theatres speaks for itself. If Queen had not existed, rock wouldn’t exist as we know it nowadays, and if you haven’t listened to any of their songs, the only advice I’ll give you is: Listen to these great artists! And if you have already listened to them, leave a comment down below telling us what you think about them!

Antonio Riquelme Delgado - EPD 12. The other members: Isabel García Crespo, Irene Ortega López, Othman Maalmy.

LINGUISTIC VARIETY IN THE UK

Have you ever heard about RP ? Did you know the amount of linguistic variations there are in UK? If you didn’t know nothing about this, don’t worry I’m going to explain it.

Received Pronunciation (RP), is the ‘standard English’. It is described as ‘typically British’, and known as: ‘The Queen’s English’, ‘Oxford English’ or ‘BBC English’, but this can be a little misleading. Why? Nowadays, The Queen speaks an almost unique form of English, and the English that we hear at Oxford University or on the BBC radio or TV programs is not anymore that accent. And now maybe you’re thinking why refer to it as that, and the reason remained in the past because RP was the most prestigious accent in Britain, and people in the UK tried to have an RP accent.

However, the recent estimates suggest that only 2% of the UK population speak it. It has a  negligible presence in Scotland and Northern Ireland,and in Wales it’s arguably losing its prestige status. Actually, RP should be described as an accent rather than a dialect. RP doesn’t have a specific regional area, its language do not contain any clues about the speaker’s geographic background. But it does about their social or educational background. 

However, RP is not the only accent or linguistic variety in UK, there are at least 30 types of dialects and variations of English. As in other countries, there are different accents or dialects depending in which part of the country you are: in the north, in the midlands, in the south, etc. 

SOUTH--> the linguistic varieties in the south of UK are: South-East, Sussex, Kentish, Estuary, London, Cockney...  and I’m going to explain you two of them:

• COCKNEY

Cockney is an accent/dialect traditionally spoken spoken by working-class inhabitants of London especially in the East-End. By the 1980s and 1990s, many aspects of cockney English had become part of general South East English speech, producing a variant known as Estuary English. Cockney is speaking nowadays in Dagenham, Barking, Loughton, Harlow, Basildon, Cheshunt, Welling and Eltham among others. 

In the following picture, you can see some of the features in the Cockney phonetic:

 

The following pictures show a costume that is associated with cockneys is that of the pearly King or Queen, worn by London costermongers who sew thousands of pearl buttons onto their clothing in

 elaborate and creative  patterns.

• SUSSEX

The Sussex dialect is a dialect that was once widely spoken by those living in the historic county of Sussex in southern England. Much of the distinctive vocabulary of the Sussex dialect has now died out, although a few words remain in common usage and some individuals still speak with the traditional Sussex accent.

Historically, there were three main variants to the dialect: west Sussex (west of Shoreham and the river Adur), mid Sussex (between the Adur and Hastings) and east Sussex (from Hastings eastwards). 

The following picture shows the Sussex phonology:

EAST-ANGLIA -->Cambridgeshire, Norfolk, Suffolk or Essex are some of the linguistic variety in this area:

• NORFOLK 

The Norfolk dialect, is spoken in the county of Norfolk in England. Even though a few people nowadays speak it, the dialect and vocabulary is still be heard across the county, but with some variations. It employs distinctively unique pronunciations, especially of vowels; and consistent grammatical forms that differ markedly from standard English. 

This picture shows the Norfolk phonology and important characteristics:

MIDLANDS --> Brummies, Potteries, East Midlands or West Midlands area some of the linguistic variety in this area:

• POTTERIES

It’s an English dialect of the North Midlands of England, almost exclusively in and around Stoke-on-Trent.

Here you can see the phonology of this dialect:

  

WEST-COUNTRY --> West-Country, Anglo-Cornish,Bristolian or Devonshire are some of the linguistic variety in this area:

• ANGLO-CORNISH

Anglo-Cornish is a dialect of English spoken in Cornwall by Cornish people. The Cornish language is a Celtic language of the Brythonic branch, as are the Welsh and Breton languages. In addition to the distinctive words and grammar, there are a variety of accents found within Cornwall from the north coast to that of the south coast and from east to west Cornwall. 

In this picture, you can see the phonolgy of this dialect:

 

WALES & ISLE OF MAN --> Manx, Welsh and Cardiff are some of the linguistic variations in this area:

• MANX

Manx English dialect of English spoken on the Isle of Man. Only a small minority of the Isle of Man's population is fluent in the language, but a larger minority has some knowledge of it and Manx is considered an important part of the island's culture and heritage.

 Vowels phonology in Manx:

Consonants phonology in Manx:

NORTH--> Geordie, Yorkshire and Scousse are some of the linguisic variations in this area:

• GEORDIE 

 

Geordie is the name given to English dialect spoken in North of UK by its inhabitants.This dialect is associated with the working-class background. In 2008 a newspaper survey found out that Geordie accent was the "most attractive in England". 

This picture shows the vowels and consonants phonology in Geordie:

What do you think of this huge variety of English ? 

In my opinion, it's beautiful to have a country with that linguistic variety because of this dialects and accents, you can learn more about UK society, life style, history and culture. But. also, this amount of varities can create difficulties and differencies between the speakers of a accent or dialect and the speakers of other linguistic variety. 

Do you think this linguistic variety can be a problem, or not? 

Entry by Irene Astete Becerra, student from EPD 11