HOST:
Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC, in VOA Special English.
(THEME)
This is Doug Johnson.
On our show this week: some rap music by the Beastie Boys.
And a listener wants to know about the names of some cities inthe western state of California.
But first, a report about activities last weekend in the easternstate of Pennsylvania.
Battle of Gettysburg
HOST:
Last weekend, many Americans visited the small town ofGettysburg, Pennsylvania. That is because the first three days inJuly is the anniversary of one of the most important battles in theAmerican Civil War. Shep O’Neal has more.
ANNCR:
Gettysburg is about one-hundredkilometers north of Washington, D.C. It is a peaceful place,surrounded by low hills and rich farmland. But during the firstthree days of July in eighteen-sixty-three, the armies of the Northand South met in one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War.
It began when Southern soldiers rode into the northern town ofGettysburg looking for new shoes. They found Northern soldiersinstead. Other soldiers of the two armies rushed to the area. Forthree days, they battled fiercely near the small town.
When the fighting ended, more thanfifty-one-thousand soldiers were dead, wounded or missing. TheSouthern army fled to Virginia, never again to invade the North.
Today, the Gettysburg battlefield is a National Military Park.More than one-million people visit each year. Some visitors areinterested in military history. They study the methods of theopposing generals. Others want to see the thousands of monuments andstatues made by famous artists that honor the men who fought there.But most visit because Gettysburg is one of the best known names inAmerican history.
On the anniversary of the great battle, park guides take visitorson special walks that follow the paths taken by northern andsouthern troops. Battle experts dressed as Northern and Southernsoldiers are placed around the park to explain what happened duringthe battles. They also demonstrate the guns used during the CivilWar. And they answer questions from visitors.
Just outside the town of Gettysburg, men and women dress asNorthern and Southern troops. They re-create some of the famousbattles that took place on those three days in July,eighteen-sixty-three.
All of this activity brings a lot of money to the small town ofGettysburg. Officials say the park gets about six-thousand visitorson a normal day during the summer. But on the anniversary weekend,at least ten-thousand visitors come to the park each day.
Spanish Names in California
HOST:
Our VOA listener question thisweek comes from Brazil. Francisco de Assis Mateus would like to knowwhy so many big cities in the western state of California haveSpanish names. These include Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose andSan Francisco.
The simple answer is that they were named by Spanish explorers.However, there is more to that story. We really have to start at thebeginning in southern California near the American border withMexico.
San Diego was the first Spanish settlement in California. Spanishsoldiers built a fort there in seventeen-sixty-nine. The settlementwas named for San Diego de Alcala, a Spanish saint, or holy man.Americans have called San Diego the birthplace of California.
As the Spanish soldiers moved up the coast, they found otherplaces that would made good settlements. One of these is — getready for this long name – “Nuestra Senora la Reina de Los Angelesde Porciuncula.” In English it means “Our Lady the Queen of theAngels of Porciuncula.”
Porciuncula was a Roman Catholic church in Italy linked withSaint Francis of Assisi. He was the founder of the Franciscan Orderof religious workers and priests. Franciscan Priest Juan Crespi gavethe area that name. Today it has a much shorter name — Los Angelesor just “L.A.”
We would like to tell you about one more city in California –San Francisco. The first explorer to give the area that name was, infact, not Spanish but Portuguese. In fifteen-ninety-five, SebastianRodriguez Cermeno named part of the California coast “Puerto de SanFrancisco.” Or, Port of Saint Francis. Later, the Spanish discoveredthe great harbor where the city of San Francisco was later built. Asmall settlement near the present city was called Pueblo de SanFrancisco.
After the war between Mexico and the United States ineighteen-forty-six, Americans called the growing city San Francisco.A small island in the harbor was given the old Spanish name, YerbaBuena. So that explains the names of some cities in California.
I am sorry we do not have time to tell about Portola, Los Gatos,San Dimas, San Bernardino, Los Altos, San Carlos, San JuanCapistrano, Escondido, San Jose …
The Beastie Boys
HOST:
Critics are praising a newrecording by the American rap group the Beastie Boys. The group hasbeen performing and recording since nineteen-eighty-one. FaithLapidus tells us more.
ANNCR:
The three members of the Beastie Boys are Adam Horovitz, AdamYauch and Michael Diamond. The group’s first album was released innineteen-eighty-five. It was called “License to Ill.” It became thefirst rap album to be number one on the list of most popular recordsat the time. It sold more than eight-million copies in the UnitedStates. The biggest single record on the album was this song, “YouGotta Fight For Your Right To Party.”
(MUSIC)
In nineteen-ninety-nine, the Beastie Boys won two Grammy Awardsfrom the American record industry. One was for Best AlternativeMusic Performance for the song “Hello Nasty.” The other was Best RapPerformance by a Duo or Group for this song, “Intergalactic.”
(MUSIC)
Now, the Beastie Boys have a new album, “To the Five Boroughs.”The album sold more than three-hundred-sixty-thousand copies in theUnited States in its first week of release. We leave you with thefirst single from that album, “Ch-Check It Out.”
(MUSIC)
HOST:
This is Doug Johnson.
Send your questions about American life to mosaic@voanews.com. Orwrite to American Mosaic, VOA Special English, Washington, D.C.,two-zero-two-three-seven, USA.
Please include your name and postal address. We will send you agift if we use your question.
This program was written by Nancy Steinbach and Paul Thompson.Paul Thompson was our producer. And our engineer was ZenabAbdulrahman.
I hope you enjoyed AMERICAN MOSAIC. Join us again next week forVOA’s radio magazine in Special English.