段落翻译
一、对龙图腾的崇拜在中国大约已绵延了八千多年。中国龙是古人将鱼、蛇、马、牛等动物与云雾、雷电等自然天象集合而成的一种神物。 中国龙的形成与中华民族的多元融合过程同步。在中国人的心目中，龙具有振奋腾飞、开拓变化的寓意和团结凝聚的精神。
二、秧歌舞是中国汉族的一种民间传统舞蹈，通常在北方省份表演。秧歌舞者通常穿上明亮多彩的表演服装，他们的表演动作有力迅速。在农历春节、元宵节等节日期间，人们一旦听到锣鼓声，不管外面天气有多冷，他们都会蜂拥到街上看秧歌舞表演。近年来，中国东北某些城市的老年人自发组织了了秧歌队，队员常年通过跳秧歌舞来保持健康，同事他们也乐在其中。
三、长城是人类创造的世界奇迹之一。如果你到了中国却没去过长城，就想到了巴黎没有去看看菲尔铁塔，或者就像到了埃及没有去看金字塔一样。人们常说：“不到长城非好汉。”实际上，长城最初只是一些断断续续的城墙，直到秦朝统一中国后才将其连城长城。然而，今天我们看到的长城——东起山海关，西至嘉峪关——大部分都是在明代修建的。
四、饺子是深受中国人民喜爱的传统食品。 相传为古代医圣张仲景发明。饺子的制作是包括： 1） 擀皮、2） 备馅、3） 包馅水煮三个步骤。其特点是皮薄馅嫩，味道鲜美，形状独特，百食不厌。民间有“好吃不过饺子”的俗语。中国人接亲待客、逢年过节都有包饺子吃的习俗，寓意吉利。对崇尚亲情的中国人来说，“更岁交子”吃饺子，更是欢度除夕、辞旧迎新必不可少的内容。
五、针灸是中医学的重要组成部分。按照中医的经络理论，针灸疗法主要是通过疏通经络、调和气血，来达到阴阳归于平衡，使脏腑趋于调和之目的。其特点是“内病外治”。主要疗法是用针刺入病人身体的一定穴位，或用艾火的温热刺激烧灼病人的穴位，以达到刺激经络。治疗病痛的目的。针灸以其独特的优势，流传至今并传播到了世界，与中餐、功夫、中药一起被海外誉为中国的“新四大国粹”。
六、中国功夫即中国武术，是将技击寓于搏斗和套路运动之中的中国传统体育项目，承载着丰富的中华民族传统文化。其核心思想是儒家的中和养气之说，同时兼容了道家、释家的思想。中国武术源远流长、流派林立、拳种繁多，讲究刚柔并济、内外兼修，蕴含着先哲们对生命和宇宙的参悟。后世所称十八般武艺，主要指：徒手拳艺，如太极拳、形意拳、八卦掌等；器械功夫，如刀枪剑戟、斧钺钩叉等。
七、汉字是从原始人用以记事的简单图画，经过不断演变发展最终成为一种兼具音、形、意韵的独特文字。现存中国古代最早成熟的文字是甲骨文，被认为是现代汉字的初形。此后，汉字又经历了金文、隶书、楷书、草书、行书等不同的阶段。汉字结构“外圆内方“， 源于古人”天圆地方“的观念。汉字有五种基本笔画，即：横、竖、撇、捺、折。
八、中国人使用筷子就餐的方式在世界上独树一帜。有史记载用筷的历史已有三千多年。筷子古时称为箸，它看似简单，但却同时具有夹、拨、挑、扒、拌、撮、戳、撕等多种功能。中国民间视筷子为吉祥之物，如婚俗中将筷子隐喻为快生贵子的祝福等。与使用刀叉以及手抓的 方式不同，成双结对的筷子含有“和为贵“的意蕴。西方人赞誉筷子是古老的东方文明。
九、印章就是图章。中国历代官、私所用的印章有印信、朱记、合同、符、契等等不同的称谓，而帝王所用的印章古时称玺、印、宝、章等。据史料记载，印章在战国时代已普遍使用。印章的制作是将篆隶等字体、图像用阴、阳的形式雕刻而成，形状以圆、方为主。印章用朱色
钤盖，除日常应用外，又多用于书画题识，逐渐成为中国特有的艺术形式之一。
十、天干地支是中国历法中用以记录和命名年岁的方法。十天干为：甲、乙、丙、丁、戊、已、庚、辛、壬、癸；十二地支为：子、丑、寅、卯、辰、巳、午、未、申、酉、戊、亥。古人观测朔望月，发现月亮圆缺12次大体上是一年的天数，而两个朔望月约是60天。古人以十天干与十二地支的顺序依次相配，记录不同年份，60年为一个轮回。干支纪年法从古沿用至今。按干支纪年法，2011年便是辛卯年。 C 十
一、京剧被誉为“东方歌剧”， 是地道的中国国粹。它起源于中国多种古老的地方戏剧，特别是南方的“徽班”。到了19世纪末，京剧形成并成为中国最大的戏曲剧种。京剧是综合性表演艺术，集唱（歌唱）、念（念白）、做（表演）、打（武）、舞（舞蹈）为一体，通过程式化的表演手段，叙述故事，刻画人物。角色主要分生（男性）、旦（女性）、净（男性）、丑（男性女性皆有）四大行当。 十
二、道教是中国土生土长长的宗教。创始人是春秋末期的哲学家、思想家老子。道教以老子所著的《道德经》为主要经典。道教主张“重人贵生”。崇尚清静无为，修身养性。“道可道，非常道。名可名，非常名。无名天地之始；有名万物之母。故常无，欲以观其妙；常有，欲以观其徼”便是老子的至理名言。
十三、中国成语是汉语中意义完整的表示一般概念的固定词组或短语。“成语”中的“成”既是约定俗成。成语是比词大而语法功能又相当于词的语言单位。绝大多数的中国成语由四个汉字组成，例如：自强不息、青出于蓝、厚积薄发。成语主要从民间谚语、古代文学作品、诗歌、寓言、典故、名言警句等方面提炼而成，是汉语语言中精炼而又富有生命力的一部分。
十四、中国是丝绸的故乡。栽桑、养蚕、缫丝、织绸是中国古代人民的伟大发明。商周时期丝绸的生产技术就已发展到相当高的水平。西汉时张骞通西域，把中原与波斯湾、地中海紧密联系起来，开辟了中外交流贸易的新纪元。从此中国的丝绸以其卓越的品质、精美的花色和丰富的文化内涵闻名于世，成为中国文化的象征。东方文明的使者。
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五、中国园林是把人造的山水、植物、建筑等与自然地貌有机结合的环境艺术，是我国古代建筑艺术的珍宝。其建造原则是“妙极自然，宛自天开”。游赏中国古典园林，能充分领略“假自然之景，创山水真趣”的园林意境。在世界三大园林体系中，中国园林历史悠久、内涵丰富，被誉为世界造园史上的渊源之一。
十六、笔墨纸砚是中国古代文人书房当中必备的宝贝，被称为“文房四宝”。用笔墨书写绘画在中国可追溯到五千年前。秦时已用不同硬度的毛和竹管制笔；汉代以人工制墨替代了天然墨；有了纸张以后，简牍锦帛逐失其用；砚台则随笔墨的使用而发展。 “文房四宝”到宋朝以后特指湖笔、徽墨、宣纸、端砚。可以说文房四宝书写了整个中华文明。
十七、中国书法（calligraphy），像中国汉字一样，最初见于殷商时期（Yin or Shang Dynasty）。书法不是像写字那样仅仅是为了达到社会交流的目的，而是一种用来表达作者思想，抱负以及自身感情的艺术。作为中国上乘艺术世界特有的一个构件，书法也是外国友人津津乐道或者掌握的最富挑战性的艺术形式之一。学习中国书法，必须对中国文字的起源有所了解。书法这门艺术包含了很多理论，也需要很多技巧，能够达到书法艺术最高境界的书法家并无几人。
十八、十二生肖（animal sign）在中国非常流行。十二属相是一个用来纪年的十二年的循环（cycle）。长期以来，人们与十二生肖之间有着特别的关系。许多艺术形式都取材于十二生肖。属相有其特别的文化内涵，如属鼠的人往往聪明，懂得积累财富。属相还有助于在社交活动中得知别人的年龄。为了避免直接问及一个人的年龄，人们通常问他的属相，这就可以确定他在十二生肖的排位。然而通常问属相只是在朋友和熟人之间弄明白谁的年龄更大。
十九、农历正月十五日的元宵节（Lantern Festival）是中国的传统节日。自汉代（Han Dynasty）起中国人就开始庆祝元宵节了。如今元宵节已经成为一个人们娱乐消遣的节日。节日期间，各地举行各式各样的灯节，街上会挂起形状不同、大小各异的灯笼，引得无数游人驻足。另外还举行猜灯谜、敲年鼓、耍龙灯、赶庙会等其他娱乐活动。元宵节另一个重要组成部分是吃元宵（也称汤圆），很显然它们是因为元宵节而得名的。
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十、师父/师傅是用来指大师或老师。通常用于武术（martial arts）的语境，表示一种教导关系。在中国大陆，师父/师傅是用来对需要知识或技术的各行各业的一种常见的尊称，例如教师、司机、厨师、家庭装饰人员以及某些行业和艺术中的一些长者，而且他们都有丰富的经验，例如绘画与书法（calligraphy）。在现代俚语（slang）中，人们用这个词来加强与其他人的关系，尤其是不太熟悉的人。
二十一、舞龙（dragon dance）是中国文化中一种传统的舞蹈与表演形式。舞龙最多出现于节日庆祝中，这与舞狮相似。在舞龙中，一队人用竿举着龙。传统的龙在表演中的动作象征着它的历史角色，即对力量和威严的表现。龙深深地扎根于中国文化之中，中国人经常认为自己是“龙的传人”并将其作为民族身份的象征。东方和西方都存在着龙的文化。在西方的许多文学作品中都可以找到龙，而且这些龙与中国龙存在着巨大的差异。
二十二、放鞭炮（firecrackers）是春节庆祝时最盛行的习俗之一。在宋朝，人们用火药制作鞭炮，代替以前的爆竹。最初，放鞭炮是为了驱赶邪恶，寻求幸福。现在放鞭炮驱赶邪恶的用意逐渐淡化，更多的是为了增加节日的气氛。由于燃放烟花爆竹会引起火灾和造成人身伤害，所以近来各地方市区都有规定禁止燃放烟花爆竹。尽管有禁止燃放烟花爆竹的规定，但很多市民还是会到乡村、郊区放烟花来庆祝新年。
一、Chinese Dragon
Dragon totem worship in China has been around for the last 8,000 years.The ancients in China considered the dragon (or loong) a fetish that combines animals including the fish, snake, horse and ox with cloud, thunder, lightning and other natural celestial phenomena.The Chinese dragon was formed in accordance with the multicultural fusion proce of the Chinese nation.To the Chinese, the dragon signifies innovation and cohesion.
二、Yangko Yangko is one of tradition folk dance of Han in China.It is usually performed in northern provinces.The dancers usually wear colorful and light costumes, and the performance is powerful and rapid.During some festivals such as Spring Festival, Lantein Festival, if people hear the sound of drum and gong, no matter how cold the weather is , they will come to street and appreciate the Yangko.Recent years, the old people in city of east-northern of China organized the team of Yangko by themselves, the teamers keep their health by dancing Yangko the whole year.
三、The Great Wall
The Great Wall is one of the wonders of the world that created by human beings! If you come to China without climbing the Great Wall, it's just like going Paris without visiting the Eiffel Tower; or going to Egypt without visiting the Pyramids! Men often say, "He who doest not reach the Great Wall is not a true man."In fact, it began as independent walls for different states when it was first built, and did not become the "Great Wall" until the Qin Dynasty.However, the wall we see today, starting from Shanhaiguan Pa in the east to Jiayunguan Pa in the west, was mostly built during the Ming Dynasty.
四、Dumplings
Dumplings are one of the Chinese people’s favorite traditional dishes.According to an ancient Chinese legend, dumplings were first made by the medical saint---Zhang Zhongjing.There are three steps involved in making dumplings: 1) make dumpling wrappers out of dumpling flour; 2) prepare the dumpling stuffing; 3) make dumplings and boil them.With thin and elastic dough skin, fresh and tender stuffing, delicious taste, and unique shapes, dumplings are worth eating hundreds of times.There’s an old saying that claims, “Nothing could be more delicious than dumplings”.During the Spring Festival and other holidays, or when treating relatives and friends, Chinese people like to follow the auspicious custom of eating dumplings.To Chinese people who show high reverence for family love, having dumplings at the moment the old year is replaced by the new is an eential part of bidding farewell to the old and ushering in the new year.
五、Acupuncture
Acupuncture is an important part of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).In accordance with the “main and collateral channels” theory in TCM, the purpose of acupuncture is to dredge the channel and regulate qi and blood, so as to keep the body’s yin and yang balanced and achieve reconciliation between the internal organs.It features in traditional Chinese medicine that “internal diseases are to be treated with external therapy”.The main therapy of acupuncture involves using needles to pierce certain acupoints of the patient’s body, or adopting moxibustion to stimulate the patient’s acupoints so as to stimulate the channels and relieve pain.With its unique advantages, acupuncture has been handed down generation after generation and has now spread all over the world.Nowadays, acupuncture, along with Chinese food, kung fu (otherwise known as Chinese martial arts), and traditional Chinese medicine, has been internationally hailed as one of the “four new national treasures.”
六、Chinese Kung Fu
Chinese kung fu, or Chinese martial arts, carries traditional Chinese culture in abundance.It is a traditional Chinese sport which applies the art of attack and defence in combat and the motions engaged with a series of skill and tricks.The core idea of Chinese king fu is derived from the Confucian theory of both “the mean and harmony” and “cultivating qi” (otherwise known as nourishing one’s spirit).Meanwhile, it also includes thoughts of Taoism and Buddhism.Chinese kung fu has a long history, with multi-various sects and many different boxing styles, and emphasizes coupling hardne with softne and internal and external training.It contains the ancient great thinkers’ pondering of life and the universe.The skills in wielding the 18 kinds of weapons named by the later generations mainly involve the skills of bare-handed boxing, such as shadow boxing (Taijiquan), form and will boxing (Xingyiquan), eight trigram palm (Baguazhang), and the skills of kung fu weaponry, such as the skill of using swords, spears, two-edged swords and halberds, axes, tomahawks, kooks, prongs and so on.
七、Chinese Characters
Chinese characters were initially meant to be simple pictures used to help people remember things.After a long period of development, it finally became a unique character system that embodies phonetic sound, image, idea, and rhyme at the same time.The writing system, which was extremely advanced in ancient times, began with inscriptions on bones and tortoise shells, and these are regarded as the original forms of Chinese characters.Afterwards, Chinese characters went through numerous calligraphic styles: bronze inscriptions, official script, regular script, cursive script, running script, etc.Chinese characters are usually round outside and square inside, which is rooted in ancient Chinese beliefs of an orbicular sky and a rectangular Earth.The five basic strokes of Chinese characters are “---“ (the horizontal stroke) “│” (the vertical stroke), “／”( the left-falling stroke), “＼” (the right-falling stroke), and “乙” (the turning stroke).
八、Chinese Chopsticks
The Chinese way of eating with chopsticks is unique in the world.The recorded history of chopsticks started more than three thousand years ago.Chopsticks were named zhu in ancient Chinese.They look deceptively simple to use, but poe multi-various functions, such as clamping, turning over, lifting up, raking, stirring, scooping, poking, tearing, and so on.Chopsticks were taken as an auspicious mascot by ordinary people in ancient China.For example, the partial tone of chopsticks is often used by people as a metaphor at weddings to indicate a bleing or benediction for the couple to have a baby soon.Unlike using a knife and fork or one’s own hands, a pair of chopsticks also implies the meaning of “Harmony is what matters”.Chopsticks are highly praised by Westerners as a hallmark of ancient oriental civilization.
九、Chinese Seal
A seal can also be defined as a stamp.Both the Chinese official and private seal of various dynasties have different titles, such as stamp, zhu note, contract, fu, lease and others.The seals used by the emperors of ancient China were called xi, yin, bao, etc.According to historical records, seals were widely used during the Warring States Period (475BC-221BC).The making of a seal is to engrave fonts, such as seal characters and official script and so on; or images in the form of intaglio and emboment into the seal, basically shaped as round or square.Covered with a vermilion overlay, the Chinese seal is not only used in daily life, but it is also used to represent signatures on paintings and calligraphies.It is gradually becoming one of China’s unique artworks.
十、Chinese Era
The Chinese era is the symbol that the Chinese calendar uses for recording and naming years.The ten Heavenly Stems are: jia, yi, bing, ding, wu, ji, geng, xin, ren, gui.The twelve Earthly Branches are: zi.chou, yin, mou, chen, si, wu, wei, shen, you, xu, hai.After observing the lunar month, the ancients found that the moon always wazes and wanes roughly 12 times a year, and two lunar months account for about 60 days, so the order of the ten Heavenly Stems and the order of the twelve Earthly Branches are properly matched in turn.In terms of recording date, 60 years is considered to be a full time cycle.The Chinese era chronology was first invented in ancient times and is still in use now.according to the chronology of the “ten Heavenly Stems,” 2011 is the year of “the seventh of the ten Heavenly Stems” and “ the fifth of the twelve Earthly Branches”.
十一、Beijing Opera
Praised as “Oriental Opera”, Beijing Opera is a genuine national quinteence of China.It originated from many kinds of ancient local operas, especially huiban in southern China.At the end of the 19th Century, Beijing Opera evolved and took shape, becoming the greatest kind of opera in China.Beijing Opera is a blend of performing arts---song, speech, performance, acrobatix fighting and dance.Beijing Opera portrays and narrates the plot and characters through stylized acting.The main types of roles in Beijing Opera are sheng(male), dan (young female), jing (painted face, male), and chou( clown, male or female). 十
二、Chinese Taoism
Taoism first originated in China.The founder of Taoism is Laozi, a philosopher and thinker who lived in the late Spring and Autumn Period (770BC-476BC).Tao Te Ching whose authorship has been attributed to Laozi, is considered to be the main Taoist claic.Taoism advocates the value of a human being’s life, recommends the discarding of all desires and worries from one’s mind, and encourages the cultivation of moral character and the nourishment of human nature.The following is an example of Laozi’s golden saying: The way that can be told of is not an unvarying way; The names that can be named are not unvarying names.It was from the namele that Heaven and Earth sprang; The named is but the mother that rears the ten thousand creatures, each after its kind.Truly, only he that rids himself forever of desire can see the secret eences; He that has never rid himself of desire can see only the outcomes.
十三、Chinese Idioms
Chinese idioms refer to comprehensive and integrated fixed phrases and expreions.Idioms are established and accepted by constant usage and common practice.An idiom is a language unit that is larger than a word, but has the same grammatical function as a word.Most Chinese idioms consist of four characters.For example, ziqiangbuxi ( make unremitting efforts to improve oneself), qingchuyulan(bluer than indigo), and houjibofa (succe comes with time and effort).Idioms are extrated from folk proverbs, ancient works of literature, poems, fables, allusions, and well-known sayings.Idioms are a part of the Chinese language that are concise and have great vitality.
十四、Chinese silk
China is the home of silk.Mulberry planting, sericulture, silk reeling and thickening are all great inventions of the ancient Chinese.As early as the Shang and Zhou Dynasties (1600BC-256BC), the Chinese people’s silk-weaving techniques had reached an extremely high level.During the Western Han Dynasty (206BC-25AD), Zhang Qian, an outstanding diplomat, travelled around central Asia and connected China with the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean, opening up a new era of Sino-foreign trade, exchange and communication.From then on, China’s silk became well known for its extraordinary quality, exquisite design and color, and abundant culture connotations.Hitherto, Chinese silk has been accepted as a symbol of Chinese culture and the emiary of oriental civilization.
十五、Chinese Claical Garden
The Chinese claical garden is a precious treasure of our ancient Chinese architecture.It is a kind of environment art, which systematically combines artificial mountains and rivers, plants and buildings with the natural landscape.The construction standard of a Chinese claical garden is “artificial as it is, the garden must look ingenious and natural.” When you go sightseeing in a Chinese claical garden, you should be able to appreciate its artistic concept which “makes use of the natural landscape to create the real fun of mountains and rivers for viewers.” Of the world’s three major garden systems, the Chinese claical garden is hailed as one of the origins of the world’s garden due to its long history and abundant connotations.
十六、The Four Treasures of the Study
The writing brush, ink stick, ink stone, and paper were requisite treasures in the study of the scholars of ancient China, and they are often referred to as the “Four Treasures of the Study.” The writing brush and ink stick have been used by the Chinese to write and paint since 5,000 years ago.In the Qin Dynasty (221BC---206BC), people already used feathers of different hardne and bamboo trunks to make brushes.During the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD), man-made ink was used instead of natural ink.After paper was invented by the Chinese, bamboo slips, wooden tablets, brocade and silk, which originally functioned as writing surfaces, gradually faded out.The ink stone was first developed with the use of writing brushes and ink.After the Song Dynasty (960AD---1279AD), the “Four Treasure of the Study” particularly referred to hubi, the writing brush produced in Huzhou, Zhejiang province; huimo, the ink stick produced in Huizhou, Anhui province; xuan paper, a kind of paper produced in Xuanzhou, Anhui province; and duanyan, the ink stone made in Zhaoqing, Guangdong province (Zhaoqing was earlier called Duanzhou).Indeed, the Four Treasures of the Study” have writtin the whole Chinese civilization, as it is. 十
七、Chinese Calligraphy Chinese Calligraphy, like character, first appeared during the Yin or Shang Dynasty.Calligraphy, unlike writing for the sole purpose of social communication, is an art used to expre the ideas, accomplishments, and feelings of the calligrapher.Calligraphy is a special category in China’s world of fine arts and one of the most challenging Chinese art forms for a foreigner to appreciate or master.Studying Chinese calligraphy one must learn something about the origins of Chinese characters.Calligraphy is an art of form that involves a great deal of theory and requires many skills; consequently there are few calligraphers that have reached the highest realm of calligraphy.十
八、Animal Sign The 12 animal signs are very popular in China.The Chinese animal signs are a 12-year cycle used for dating the years.For a long time there has been a special relationship between humans and the 12 animal signs.The 12 animal signs are widely used in many art forms.These animal signs have specific cultural connotations.For example, people under the rat sign are usually smart and willing to accumulate wealth.The animal signs also serve a useful social function for finding out people’s ages.Instead of asking directly how old a person is, people often ask what his or her animal sign is.This would place that person’s age within a cycle of 12 years.More often, asking for animal signs is simply to know who is older among friends and acquaintances.十
九、The Lantern Festival The Lantern Festival is a traditional festival celebrated by Chinese on the 15th of the 1st lunar month.Chinese started to celebrate the Lantern Festival since the Han Dynasty.Nowadays the Lantern Festival has become an occasion for people to entertain themselves and have fun.During the Lantern Festival, different lantern appreciation activities are held, lanterns of various shapes and sizes are hung in the streets, attracting countle visitors.Other entertainments such as gueing riddles on lanterns, beating drums, playing dragon lanterns and going to fairs are also held.Another important part of the Lantern Festival is eating small dumpling balls, yuanxiao or tangyuan.Obviously, they get the name from the festival itself.
