Vera Blazevska
Professor Shenkler
Communication in Action
7 November 2014
Informative Speech
General Purpose: To inform my audience about The Republic of Macedonia
I. INTRODUCTION
A. Attention Getter: Zdravo na site! Kako se osekjame denes? For those of you who do not speak Macedonian let me translate. Hello, everyone! Everyone doing well today?
B. Purpose Statement: Today I would like to inform you about my home country, Macedonia.
C. Credibility Statement: I lived in Macedonia for 16 years, and never in 16 years I thought to myself what makes my country different than other countries. But the second I started traveling and moved to the US is when I realized that every country is unique in its own way.
D. Preview Statement: Today, besides a brief History and Geography lesson, I would like to share three topics that stand out to me whenever I think about my home country, Macedonia. My first point will be about the deliciousness of Macedonian food. My second point will cover the aspect of Macedonian culture and my third point will cover some interesting facts about the country.
TRANSITION: Let’s begin with going just a few decades ago.
II. BODY
A. History: Macedonia, declared its independency on September 8th, 1991. Prior to this, Macedonia was part of the 6 countries that made up Yugoslavia. The people of the Republic of Macedonia achieved their independence in a peaceful, democratic and legal way. Two years after, Macedonia became a member of the international organization United Nations, an organization that is committed to “maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and promoting social progress, better living standards and human rights. Macedonia became a member in the UN under the provisional name of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, because Greece protested Macedoina’s right to the name. The reason behind this is because in Greece there is a province with the same name. To Greece the use of the name implies Macedonian’s intention to territorial expansion into the Greek province.
B. Geography: Macedonia is in Southeastern Europe, and its neighbors are Serbia, Albania, Bulgaria and Greece. It’s land area is 9,928 square miles which makes Macedonia slightly larger than the state of Vermont. The largest city is Skopje which is also the capitol of Macedonia.
C. Food: Ajde na ruchek, babo dosta and se napolniv do miski, are the three most common used phrases when it comes to food.
1. Ajde na rucek! If you translate it means Come have lunch with me its one me. Macedonians are big eaters, but most importantly they love to invite people over their houses (relatives, neighbors, friends) when it’s lunch time.
Dishes : Tavche Gravche, Turli Tava, Ajvar, Pindzur
2. Babo dosta! This means, grandma that’s enough. The reason why I emphasized this phrase its because Macedonian older ladies LOVE to feed you. They will keep on going and offering more and more food, so it is very important to let Grndma know you can not store any more food. Older ladies are known for their amazing pastry and “testenini” skills which is another characteristic of the Macedonian cuisine. Different types of pastry, sweet and salty are typically a breakfast meal.
Burek, mekici, kifli
3. The third phrase that I mentioned above was “ Se napolniv do miski”. In simple words this means I am full, but if you translate it word for word It means I am full from toes to shoulders, as if your whole body but your head is a big bucket now filled with food. This phrase is usually used when you are at lunch with your relatives and close friends. Since, said at a more formal lunch occasion might be considered as rude.
TRANSITION: Now that I have all your mouths watering over Macedonian food, I will talk about the families, a big value of a Macedonian culture that prepare those delicious dishes.
D. Culture
1. Families, is a big theme in the Macedonian culture along their love of sports and