AES 130 Communications Skills

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Culture Capsules: People, Places, and Processes Said Al-khayraeen and Takako Shibata Please listen to our welcome message!

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Arabian Horses In Qatar
Said Al-khayraeen

From the ancient deserts of the Middle East evolved the oldest known breed of riding horse, the Arabian. Now one of the most popular breeds in America, the Arabians' incredible energy, intelligence and gentle disposition allow riders to excel in most equine sports and activities. Today, Arabian horses spend as much time on the trail as they do at horse shows and other competitive events.

For thousands of years, Arabians lived among the desert tribes of the Arabian peninsula, bred by the Bedouins as war mounts for long treks and quick forays into enemy camps. In these harsh desert conditions evolved the Arabian with its large lung capacity and incredible endurance.

Historical figures like Genghis Khan, Napoleon, Alexander The Great and George Washington rode Arabians. Even today, one finds descendants from the earliest Arabian horses of antiquity. Then, a man's wealth was measured in his holdings of these fine animals. Given that the Arabian was the original source of quality and speed, and remains foremost in the fields of endurance and soundness, he still either directly or indirectly contributed to the formation of virtually all the modern breeds of horses.

The prophet Mohammed, in the seventh century AD, was instrumental in spreading the Arabian's influence around the world. He instructed his followers to look after Arabians and treat them with kindness. He instructed that special attentions should be paid to the mares because they insure the continuity of the breed. He also proclaimed that Allah had created the Arabian, and that those who treated the horse well would be rewarded in the afterlife.

The severe climate required the nomads to share food and water, and sometimes even their tents with their horses. As a result, Arabians developed a close affinity to man and a high intelligence.

Over the centuries, the Bedouin tribes zealously maintained the purity of the breed. Because of their limited resources, breeding practices were extremely selective. Such practices, which eventually helped the Arabian become a prized possession throughout the world, have led to the beautiful athletic breed we know today, which is marked by a distinctive dished profile; large, lustrous, wide-set eyes on a broad forehead; small, curved ears; and large, efficient nostrils.

Even today the purebred Arabian is virtually the same as that ridden in ancient Arabia. Arabians now display their athletic talents in a variety of disciplines from English to Western, with the Arabian positioned as the undisputed champion of endurance events.

Although there are many animals in Japan, Japanese monkey is one of the most popular animals. Japanese have loved Japanese monkeys for a long time. They are so cute, and their actions are often fascinated people.

Japanese often say "Japanese Monkey", but the formal name is "Japanese Macaque." The size of the Japanese macaque is about 2 to 4 feet long, and weighs from 22 to 66 pounds. Generally, the males are much bigger than females; which is called "sexual dimorphism." They are the only monkeys to live that far north in the world. The Japanese macaque lives throughout Japan. Because Japan is a long island, the climate is not the same throughout the country, so there are great differences in habitat depending on the area where they live. Mainly, there are four different areas in Japan that Japanese macaques are located; these are Shimokita peninsula, Nagano Mountains, Oshima and Yaku-Shima.

Japanese monkeys have given big influences on Japanese people and culture. If you go to Nikko, you can see the monkey's performances. It is famous as "Nikko-Saru Gunndann" ( saru means monkey and gunndann means corps), and it is one of the attractions of Nikko. In addition, there is a well-known shrine named "nikko-tousyouguu" in Nikko, which is a world heritage site, and three wise monkeys are displayed in the shrine. Tokugawa Iemitu who is a famous samurai in Japan in the Edo era (about 400 years ago) constructed nikko-tosyouguu about 360 years ago, and Tokugawa Ieyasu is sacred. Any way, each of three monkeys has its own name, which are "mizaru", "kikazaru" and "iwazaru". Mizaru, covering his eyes, shows a character that sees no evil. Kikazaru, covering his ears, shows a character that hears no evil; Iwazaru, covering his mouth, shows a character that speaks no evil. Although I'm not sure that these monkeys originated in Japan, it is clear that monkeys have affected Japanese culture for a long time. Monkeys are high in favor with Japanese traditionally.

Then, why do Japanese love monkeys so much? I think one of the reasons is that monkeys have many similarities with people. For example, monkeys take a bath during the winter, monkey's children play with using snow,and they also become pollen fever; a disease which is popular for Japanese. They also feel affections between mothers and children.   In addition, monkeys are smart; they demonstrate great intelligence. The communication between monkeys shows us the high intelligence.              

In belief, monkeys have played big roll in Japanese culture. In my opinion, it is important to take care of this animal and keep this good relationship between monkeys and human beings. Because it is clear that monkeys are one of the most popular animals in Japan.

There are many animals in the world, and a lot of countries have their own traditional animals. In Japan, this is a Japanese monkey, and in Qatar, this is a horse. It is clear that Japan and Qatar have completely different cultures and, of course, there are big differences between monkeys and horses. However, there are not only contrasts but also some similarities between these animals in the way they are used and why they are popular.  

In Qatar, when people describe a man who is strong and smart, they say, "He is like a horse" because houses are smart, strong and beautiful animals for Qataris. In Japan, sometimes monkey also describes people's character. When people express a person who is crafty and foolish, they use "monkey". Although these characteristics are different, it is the same that people use the animal to describe human characteristics. Another similarity is that both horses and monkeys have an effect on each country's religion. In Japan, there are temples where monkeys are sacred. Horses are written about in the Koran as a virtuous animal.

Of course, there are different points between hr monkey and horse as well. For example, how the animals are used is one of the biggest different points between them. Generally speaking, horses have been used as transportation in Qatar. Qataris use horses when they are racing, working on farms and hunting. On the other hand, Japanese monkeys are too small to be used as transportation. Therefore, Japanese have used monkeys only for shows. For example, there was a TV program that showed us shopping and traveling of the monkey and the dog. The name of monkey was "PAN-kun". He goes to various places with the dog, and there is no help. Pan-kun seems like a small child and he is so cute. Like this, monkeys are still popular for Japanese.

Thus, both animals, monkeys and horses, have contributed to the people of Japan and Qatar and their cultures. We can see each country's culture through traditional animals. In addition, we can see that both Japanese and Qatari feel affection toward their traditional animals.

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