A Glimpse of Our Culture
Unit 1 · English for Today — Class 8
Folk Songs 🎶 · Nakshi Kantha 🪡 · Ethnic Friends 🌿 · Cuisine 🍚 · Children’s Song 🎵
🎯 Learning Objectives
After studying this unit, students will be able to:
Main Themes — This unit celebrates the richness of Bangladeshi culture — from soulful folk songs and the beautiful art of Nakshi Kantha, to the vibrant lives of ethnic communities, the flavours of Bangladeshi cuisine, and the timeless wisdom of Rudyard Kipling’s poem!
Folk music instruments of Bangladesh
| 🎵 Musical Instruments | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| dotara | sarinda | guitar | bamboo flute | drum |
| tabla | piano | harmonium | ek-tara | violin |
- Can you sing a song?
- Can you play any of these musical instruments?
- Do you know anybody who can play any of these instruments? Tell what you know about her/him.
Folk songs are songs sung in the traditional style of a community or country. Here the traditional style includes the themes, words and tunes of the songs that have existed for a long time among the common people.
We have a rich history and collection of folk songs in Bangladesh 🎶. Of them:
…are very popular 🌟. The traditional musical instruments are usually played with these songs.
People’s taste for music has changed over time. As people migrate to cities and villages transform, our traditional folk songs are slowly fading. Folk music or Palligiti is now sung with western instruments. At the same time, modern music is now fusing melodies from folk and traditional songs.
In general, band and pop music is becoming more and more popular — particularly among the young generation. Yet folk music has great importance in our everyday life today. As this song is deeply rooted in our culture, people still derive pleasure listening to folk music. Besides, folk music is still used in mainstream films and music albums.
- Who usually likes our folk songs?
- Can you name some well-known folk singers?
- Do you like folk songs? If you do, who is your favourite folk singer? Which song or songs do you like most?
“Do you like to listen to folk songs? Why? Why not?”
🎯 MCQ — Lesson 1 (Our Folk Songs)
Nakshi Kantha — the embroidered quilt of Bangladesh
- What do you see in the picture?
- What is it called?
- Have you seen it before? Where?
- What do we do with it?
Nakshi kantha is a kind of embroidered quilt. The name was taken from the Bangla word ‘naksha’ which means artistic pattern. It is a kind of traditional craft and is said to be indigenous to Bangladesh and West Bengal in India. The art has been practised in rural Bengal for centuries.
The name ‘Nakshi Kantha’ became popular after the poet Jasimuddin’s poem ‘Nakshi Kanthar Math’ was published in 1929 📖.
Mymensingh, Jamalpur, Rajshahi, Faridpur, Bogura and Jashore are most famous for this craft 🗺️. Now it is produced commercially. You can find them in many expensive handicraft shops in cities. The quilts are now in great demand because of the colourful patterns and designs embroidered on them 🌸.
Bengali · patterns · embroidery · years · fashion · art · rural · designs · quilt · naksha
| # | Incomplete Sentence | ✅ Answer |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Naksha means artistic ___. | pattern |
| 2 | The name was taken from a ___ word ___. | Bengali · naksha |
| 3 | The art has been practised in ___ Bengal for ___. | rural · centuries |
| 4 | Nakshi kanthas are now sold in ___ shops. | handicraft/expensive |
| 5 | Nakshi kanthas are in great demand because of their colourful ___ and ___. | patterns · designs |
| 6 | Nakshi kanthas are a kind of ___. | quilt |
“Old or new cloth and coloured thread are needed. First the cloth is folded, then……”
🎯 MCQ — Lesson 2 (Nakshi Kantha)
Ethnic communities of Bangladesh
- What do you see in the picture?
- What are they called?
- Who wear them?
- Do you know where the ethnic people live in Bangladesh?
- What are they called?
Bangladesh is home to more than 54 Indigenous groups 🌿, including the Chakma, Marma, and Tripura, with most living in the northern and southeastern flatlands, and the rest in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.
The ethnic people in Bangladesh hold a very important place in the culture of the country. The majority of these people live in the Chattogram Hill Tracts. The others live in the regions of Mymensingh, Rajshahi and Sylhet. They live in forest areas, in the hills and in rural areas.
They do jhum cultivation 🌾. For this work they clear a piece of land in the forest, prepare it and sow seeds in it. They are mostly farmers.
By religion they are Hindus, Christians or Buddhists. They speak their own mother tongues. They have at least 35 distinct languages, adding to the country’s cultural richness. However, many of these languages are endangered, as the dominance of Bangla and modern societal pressures push them towards extinction — a global issue known as “language death” 😢.
Some of the ethnic groups and their locations:
| Ethnic Group 🌿 | Location 📍 |
|---|---|
| Chakmas, Marmans, Tipperas, Moorangs | Chattogram Hill Tracts |
| Santals | Rajshahi |
| Khasias, Monipuries | Sylhet |
| Hajangs, Garos | Mymensingh |
During the British colonial rule, indigenous communities played a significant role in resisting oppression. Leaders like Sidhu and Kanu led uprisings, such as the Santhal Rebellion, highlighting their contributions to the anti-colonial struggle.
Additionally, the 1957 construction of the Kaptai Dam — funded by USAID and built by the Pakistani government — displaced thousands of people in the hill tracts, submerging their homes and farmlands under the Karnaphuli River.
- Where do you find the Marmans?
- What language do they speak at home?
- Where and how do they do the Jhum cultivation?
✅ 1. The Marmans are found in the Chattogram Hill Tracts.
✅ 2. They speak their own mother tongues (their own ethnic languages).
✅ 3. They do jhum cultivation in the forest areas and hills. They clear a piece of forest land, prepare it, and sow seeds in it.
🎯 MCQ — Lesson 3 (Our Ethnic Friends 1)
Ethnic lifestyle — machang houses and traditional attire
Most of these ethnic people living in Bangladesh have some common characteristics. They have their own lifestyles.
They build their houses on bamboo or wooden platforms called ‘machang’ 🏚️. Rice is their staple food. They eat vegetables, maize 🌽 and fish, poultry and meat 🍖. Their kitchen utensils are bamboo, wooden and earthen pots — which they make themselves 🏺.
Men wear lungis and women wear thamis or sarongs and angis. Women weave their own clothes 🧵.
Traditional musical instruments such as bugles are made from buffalo horns, drums and bamboo flutes 🎵. Wrestling 🤼 is a popular sport for them.
| Column A — Questions | Column B — Answers ✅ |
|---|---|
| 1. Where do the ethnic people build their houses? | On wooden or bamboo platforms called machang |
| 2. What are their favourite pastimes? | Fishing and hunting |
| 3. What is a bugle? | A traditional musical instrument made from a buffalo horn |
| 4. What do the women wear? | Thamis or sarongs and angis |
| 5. What are their kitchen utensils made of? | Clay, bamboo and wood |
| 6. What is their staple food? | Rice |
- Dress
- Food
- Songs
- Sports
- Pastimes
🎯 MCQ — Lesson 4 (Our Ethnic Friends 2)
Traditional Bangladeshi food — rice, fish, pitha and sweets
- What do you see in the pictures?
- Which foods are seen in the pictures? Do you prepare/eat them at home?
- Among the foods, which one is your favourite? Why?
Bangladeshi cuisine is rich and varied with the use of many spices. We have delicious and appetizing food, snacks and sweets 😋.
Boiled rice 🍚 is our staple food. It is served with a variety of vegetables, curry, lentil soups, fish and meat. Fish 🐟 is the main source of protein. Fishes are now cultivated in ponds. Also we have fresh-water fishes in the lakes and rivers.
More than 40 types of fishes are common. Some of them are:
Shutki or dried fishes are popular. Hilsha 🐟 is very popular among the people of Bangladesh.
The people of Bangladesh are very fond of sweets 🍮. Almost all Bangladeshi women prepare some traditional sweets. Pitha — a type of sweet made from rice flour, sugar, syrup, molasses and sometimes milk — is a traditional food loved by the entire population. During winter, Pitha Utsab (pitha festival) is organised by different groups of people 🎊.
Sweets are distributed among close relatives when there is good news like births, weddings, promotions, etc. 🎁
Sweets of Bangladesh are mostly milk-based. The common ones are:
There are hundreds of different varieties of sweet preparations. Sweets are therefore an important part of the day-to-day life of Bangladeshi people 🌟.
- What has made Bangladeshi food so special?
- Where do we get the fishes from?
- Apart from fish, what other foods do we eat with rice?
- Why are sweets an important part of our life?
✅ 1. The use of many spices makes Bangladeshi food rich and special.
✅ 2. We get fish from ponds, lakes and rivers.
✅ 3. Apart from fish, we eat vegetables, curry, lentil soups and meat with rice.
✅ 4. Sweets are important because they are distributed during celebrations and good news and are part of daily life.
🎯 MCQ — Lesson 5 (Bangladeshi Cuisine)
Our love and toil in the years to be;
When we are grown and take our place
As men and women of our race.
Oh help Thy children when they call;
That they may build from age to age,
An undefiled heritage.
With steadfastness and careful truth;
That, in our time, Thy Grace may give
The Truth whereby the Nations live.
Controlled and cleanly night and day;
That we may bring, if need arise,
No maimed and worthless sacrifice.
On Thee for judge, and not our friends;
That we, with Thee, may walk uncowed
By fear or favour of the crowd.
By deed or thought, to hurt the weak;
That, under Thee, we may possess
Man’s strength to comfort man’s distress.
And Mirth that has no bitter springs;
Forgiveness free of evil done,
And Love to all men, ‘neath the sun!
For whose dear sake our fathers died;
O motherland, we pledge to thee
Head, heart and hand through the years to be!
- What do the children promise to their motherland?
- What do the children ask God to teach them?
- Do you like the poem? Why?
✅ 1. The children pledge their love and toil (hard work) to their motherland for years to come. They promise head, heart and hand.
✅ 2. They ask God to teach them: to bear responsibility, to rule themselves with discipline, to be judged by God not people, to have the strength not to hurt the weak, to find delight in simple things, and to have mirth without bitterness and love for all.
📘 Important Word Meanings — All Lessons
| 🔤 Word | 📖 Meaning |
|---|---|
| folk 🎵 | Relating to traditional customs, arts and songs of a community, passed down through generations |
| traditional 🏛️ | Following long-established customs passed down through generations; not modern |
| community 👨👩👧 | A group of people living in the same area or sharing the same culture / interests |
| fading ⬇️ | Gradually disappearing / becoming less strong or popular over time |
| migrate 🚶 | To move from one place to another to live or work |
| mainstream 🌊 | Widely known and accepted by most people; the most common or popular |
| quilt 🧣 | A thick decorative blanket made by stitching layers of cloth with patterns |
| artistic 🎨 | Showing creative skill and imagination in design or appearance |
| indigenous 🌍 | Originating and living naturally in a particular place; native |
| commercially 💰 | In a way related to buying and selling / produced for profit |
| demand 📈 | The strong desire of buyers to have / purchase something |
| pattern 🔷 | A repeated decorative design on a surface; a regular arrangement |
| ethnic 🌿 | Relating to a group with a shared culture, language and traditions different from the majority |
| region 📍 | A specific area or zone of a country or world |
| majority 👥 | The greater number / more than half of a total group |
| jhum cultivation 🌾 | A farming method: clearing and burning forest land, cultivating it, then moving to a new area |
| endangered ⚠️ | At serious risk of disappearing or becoming extinct |
| characteristics 🔍 | Typical features or qualities that make someone or a group distinctive |
| staple food 🍚 | The main food eaten regularly / most important food in a diet |
| machang 🏚️ | A raised platform made of bamboo or wood used as the foundation for ethnic houses |
| weave 🧵 | To make cloth by crossing threads over and under each other on a loom |
| bugle 🎺 | A wind instrument (like a horn); ethnic bugles are made from buffalo horns |
| cuisine 🍽️ | The style and tradition of cooking food typical of a country or region |
| appetizing 😋 | Looking or smelling very attractive / that makes you feel hungry |
| protein 💪 | A nutrient in food essential for body growth, repair and energy |
| molasses 🍯 | A dark, thick, sweet syrup produced from sugarcane or date palm juice |
| platter 🥘 | A large flat serving dish; also refers to a full meal arranged on one plate |
| pledge 📜 | A serious and solemn promise made to someone or something |
| toil ⛏️ | Long, hard, tiring work or labour |
| heritage 🏛️ | The history, traditions and qualities a country has had for generations — an important part of national identity |
| yoke 🐂 | A wooden frame connecting two working animals; figuratively means a heavy burden or responsibility |
| steadfastness 💎 | Firm, unwavering determination; not giving up despite difficulties |
| undefiled ✨ | Pure and uncorrupted; not spoiled by wrong actions |
| mirth 😄 | Great joy, happiness and laughter |
| maimed 🩹 | Injured, disabled or physically damaged; incomplete |
| uncowed 🦁 | Not made timid or frightened; not intimidated by others |
🗺️ Unit Summary — At a Glance
🎶 L1 — Our Folk Songs — Bangladesh has a rich tradition of folk music: Bhatiali, Bhawaiya, Jari, Sari, Gambhira, Lalongiti and more. Rooted in rural life — reflecting agriculture, seasons and emotions.
🪡 L2 — Nakshi Kantha — An embroidered quilt; indigenous to Bangladesh. Named from ‘naksha’ = artistic pattern. Made famous by poet Jasimuddin’s poem (1929). Now sold commercially.
🌿 L3 — Ethnic Friends (1) — 54+ indigenous groups; Chakma, Marma, Tripura, Santal, Garo and more. CHT is home to most. They practise jhum cultivation and speak 35+ languages.
🏡 L4 — Ethnic Friends (2) — Common lifestyle: machang houses, rice staple food, women weave thamis, buffalo horn bugles, hunting/fishing pastimes, wrestling sport.
🍚 L5 — Bangladeshi Cuisine — Boiled rice is staple food. Fish = main protein. Hilsha is most popular. Panta ilish on Pohela Boishakh. Pitha Utsab in winter. Milk-based sweets: roshgolla, rasamalai and more.
🎵 L6 — The Children’s Song — A poem by Rudyard Kipling. Children pledge love and toil to the motherland, ask for strength, wisdom, mirth, and love for all humanity.
🃏 Fun Card — Flashcards
Tap a card to flip it and see the meaning! Swipe or scroll to see all cards.