用英語說中國商朝

　　學習英語的方法很多，掌握好方法自然能提高自己的英語水平。小編在此獻上用英語來了解中國的文化，希望大家喜歡。　　

　　：General 概況

　　Thousands of archaeological finds in the Huang He, Henan Valley, the apparent cradle of Chinese civilization----provide evidence about the Shang dynasty, which endured roughly from 1700 to 1027 B.C.

　　上千起在中國文明的搖籃——黃河河南流域的考古發現為商朝大約從公元前1700年持續到公元前1027年提供了證據。

　　The Shang dynasty also called the Yin dynasty in its later stages is believed to have been founded by a rebel leader who overthrew the last Xia ruler.

　　據信，商朝在其後期也被稱為商殷是由一個造反的領袖推翻了夏朝的最後一任統治者而建立的。

　　Its civilization was based on agriculture, augmented by hunting and animal husbandry.

　　它的文明以農業為基礎，以打獵和動物飼養而擴大。

　　Two important events of the period were the development of a writing system, as revealed in archaic Chinese inscriptions found on tortoise shells and flat cattle bones commonly called oracle bones or ,

　　這段時期有兩大重要事件，一個是文字系統的發展，表現為在烏龜殼和憑證的牛骨上發現的古老的中國文字一般稱為甲骨文，

　　and the use of bronze metallurgy.

　　另一個是青銅冶金的使用。

　　A number of ceremonial bronze vessels with inscriptions date from the Shang period;

　　很多在慶典上使用的刻有銘文的青銅器皿都源於商朝。

　　The workmanship on the bronzes attests to a high level of civilization.

　　對於青銅器的技藝證實了其文明水平之高。

　　：Political History 政治狀況

　　The Shang Dynasty was the second monarchical state in Chinese history.

　　商朝是中國歷史上第二個君主制國家。

　　Tang, the founder of Shang, having drawn lessons from the ruin of the previous dynasty,

　　湯——商朝的創立者，從前朝的覆滅中吸取了教訓，

　　treated his people benevolently and employed many able and virtuous ministers.

　　仁慈地對待他的臣民，並任用有能力且有德行的官員。

　　The Shang made great progresses in its economy during the reign of Tang.

　　商朝在湯在位期間在其經濟上取得了長足的進步。

　　While, due to political struggle for power in the imperial court and continuous wars with frontier tribes, Shang state moved its capital five times.

　　同時，由於朝廷內對於權力的政治鬥爭和與外部的不斷戰爭，商朝曾五次遷都。

　　The most notable move was during the reign of King Pangeng, the seventeenth king of the Shang.

　　其中最著名的一次是在盤庚——商朝的第十七任君主在位期間。

　　He reestablished the capital at Yin, in the neighborhood of present Xiaotuncun, in Anyang City of Henan Province.

　　他將都城重新遷回殷，也就是今天的河南省安陽市小屯村附近。

　　The new capital contributed a lot to the stable government of the Shang Dynasty afterwards.

　　新的都城後來對於商朝政府的穩定起到了很大作用。

　　Once the successful new capital was established, it did not change throughout the remainder of the Shang Dynasty.

　　新都一旦確立，商朝就再也沒有改變過都城。

　　Therefore, the Shang Dynasty is often called “the Yin” or “the Yin-Shang Dynasty”.

　　所以，商朝常常被稱為“殷”或是“殷商”。

　　Another renowned Shang ruler was Wuding, the nephew of Pangeng.

　　商朝另一個著名的君主是盤庚的侄子，武丁。

　　He was an aspirant and benevolent king and always endeavored to make his kingdom strong.

　　他是一個有抱負的人也是一個仁慈地君主，他總是致力於讓國家更加強大。

　　Under his leadership, the empire of Shang made great achievements in its economy, which laid a foundation for the continuous development of following dynasties.

　　在他的領導下，商朝在經濟上取得累累碩果，這也為之後的朝代奠定了基礎。

　　：Economy and Society 社會與經濟

　　From the findings on the site of Yin, the capital city of the Shang, archeologists found out that the productivity of the Shang Dynasty reached a relatively high level even during the former period.

　　從商朝都城殷的遺址所發現的東西看來，考古學家們發現商朝的生產力在其前期就已經但到了一個相對高的水平。

　　As far as agriculture was concerned, farm implements had been improved.

　　就農業而言，農耕工具已經得到改進。石犁、鐵鍬和鐮刀被廣泛運用。基本的作物包括粟和小麥。

　　Stone ploughs; spades and sickles were widely used. The primary crops included millet and wheat.

　　更重要的是，商朝的青銅器皿製造空前繁榮。

　　More important, the Shang Dynasty thrived in the manufacture of bronze vessels.

　　青銅器的歷史在中國始於公元前3000年，在公元前13世紀左右達到頂峰。

　　Bronze culture has appeared in China before 3000 BC and achieved its zenith around the 13th century B.C.

　　青銅製品不僅影響著人們的日常生活還影響著國家的武器裝備。

　　Bronze objects affected not only people’s daily life but the arms of the state.

　　它的廣泛使用使商朝在政治、經濟、文化和藝術方面取得了空前的成就。

　　Its wide use enabled unprecedented accomplishments of the Shang Dynasty in politics, economy, culture and art.

　　在武丁執政期間，銅、鉛、錫合金的出現是一個里程碑。

　　In the reign of King Wuding, the landmark was the appearance of an alloy of copper, lead and tin.

　　人們大量生產青銅器。

　　Bronzewares were under mass production.

　　它們主要被分為兩類：烹飪器皿和盛酒的容器。

　　They fell mainly into two classifications ： cooking vessels and alcohol containers.

　　在它們之中，司母戊鼎是最著名的工藝品，它重達732.84公斤，是世界上最大的青銅器。

　　Among them，the famous works of art include simuwu quadripod， which is 732.84kg in weight as the largest bronzeware ever found anywhere in the world.

　　它是獻給商朝君主已故母親的禮物。

　　It was made in tribute to the deceased mother of Shang king.

　　另外一個是四邊都有山羊的一個盛酒的容器。

　　Another is a wine container that has four goats resting on its rim.

　　商朝標誌著青銅時代的到來。

　　The Shang Dynasty marked the coming of Bronze Age.

　　在同一時期，其他工業也取得了很大的發展，

　　At the same time, great development came about in other industries as well.

　　手工業上，手工的操作被劃分的更加精細。

　　In handicraft, the operation went under much subtler division of labor.

　　記載顯示那時的手工業已有100種線存在。

　　It was recorded that a hundred lines emerged in handicraft at that time.

　　商朝的工匠們需要掌握鑲嵌、打磨和華美裝飾他們的玉製品、石器和象牙製品的技能。

　　Shang craftsmen acquired the skill of inlaying and carving and had their jade wares, stone wares and ivory wares brilliantly decorated.

　　紡織品工人發明了簡單的提花織機，用這種織機可以織出高質量的帶有隱藏圖案的絲織品。

　　Textile workers invented the simple jacquard loom, which could produce high-quality silk fabric with a hidden pattern.

　　除此之外，商朝人民在醫學、交通和天文學上也取得了巨大的進步。

　　Additionally, the Shang people also made significant progress in medicine, transportation and astronomy.

　　在這段時期，重要的事件由甲骨文記錄在龜殼和動物骨頭上，這是中國已知的最古老的文字交流。

　　During this period, important events were recorded on tortoise shell and animal bone using Oracle Script, which is the oldest known Chinese form of written communication.

　　祭祖的傳統在中國有了很長的歷史。

　　The tradition of ancestral worship has a long history in China.

　　考古學家們發現甚至在史前時期公元前1700000年到公元前21世紀祭祖就在被實行。

　　Archeologists have found it was practiced even in Prehistoric Times 1.7 million years to the 21st century B.C..

　　隨著農業的出現，人們懷著求得對作物來說的好天氣而祭天。

　　With the emergence of farming，people worshipped the heaven in hope of favorable weather for crops.

　　另一種祭祀方式是祭祖，也被稱為鬼魂崇拜。

　　It actually was a kind of nature worship.

　　人們為祖先供奉祭品，祈求祖先的保佑。

　　Another kind of worship was ancestor worship, also called soul worship.

　　從夏朝開始，君主被賦予了至高無上的權力。

　　People offered sacrifice to their ancestor, praying for blessings bestowed by their ancestors.

　　為了守護他的權力，君主會將祭祖與祭天結合起來，創造一個神或天庭，宣稱自己是上天的代表和在凡間的後代。

　　From the Xia Dynasty onwards, Kings were endowed with supreme authority.

　　在商朝，奴隸制度盛行。

　　In order to secure his power, the king combined ancestral worship and nature worship to create the God or the Heaven, and proclaimed himself the agent or the descendent of the God.

　　貴族享受著榮華富貴，奴隸卻過著狗一樣的生活。奴隸屬於他們的主人。

　　In the Shang Dynasty, slavery system prevailed.

　　當奴隸主去世之後，奴隸會被活埋，與犧牲一起作為活人祭品。

　　The aristocrats enjoyed all the luxuries while the slaves lived a dog's life. They belonged to their lord.

　　After the slave owner died, the slaves were often buried alive as human sacrifice together with animal offerings.