美索不达米亚（中英双语）

MESOPOTAMIA

美索不达米亚

The flat Mesopotamian plain is very fertile. The land was built up of mud and clay deposited by two great rivers, the Tigris and the Euphrates.

美索不达米亚平原非常肥沃。这片土地由底格里斯和幼发拉底两条大河沉积的泥土构成。

In ancient times the two rivers had separate mouths. The Tigris, 1,180 miles (1,900 kilometers) long, is shorter than the Euphrates, but it is more important commercially because its channel is deeper.

在古代，两条河有不同的河口。底格里斯河长约1180英里（1900千米），比幼发拉底河短，但在商业上更重要，因为它的河道更深。

The longest river of western Asia is the 1,700-mile (2,700-kilometer) Euphrates. Because of Iraq’s hot, dry climate much of the river’s water is lost through evaporation and use for irrigation. It is navigable only by flat-bottomed riverboats.

西亚最长的河流是1700英里（2700千米）的幼发拉底河。由于伊拉克炎热、干燥的气候，这条河的大部分水通过蒸发和灌溉而流失。只有平底船才能航行。

In ancient Mesopotamia, a land of blazing sun and very little rainfall, irrigation was vital for farming. The rich soil produced abundant crops of barley, emmer (a kind of wheat), beans, olives, grapes, and flax.

在古代美索不达米亚，一片阳光灿烂、降雨量稀少的土地上，灌溉对农业至关重要。肥沃的土壤盛产大麦、二粒小麦（一种小麦）、豆类、橄榄、葡萄和亚麻。

There were no nations then, only small city-states. City-states were ruled by leaders, called ensis, who were probably authorized to control the local irrigation systems.

当时没有国家，只有小城邦。城邦由称为恩斯的领导人统治，他们可能被授权控制当地的灌溉系统。

The Sumerians built their villages on artificial mounds to protect them from floods. Very early they learned to make bricks in molds and dry them in the sun or bake them in kilns.

苏美尔人把他们在村庄建在人造土丘上，以保护他们免受洪水的侵袭。他们很早就学会了在模具中制作砖块，然后在阳光下烘干或窑里烘烤。

Their sturdy houses were small and crowded close together on narrow lanes. The whole city was surrounded by a wall for protection. Outside the wall were the poor people’s huts, built of reeds that were plastered with clay.

他们结实的房子很小，在狭窄的巷子里紧紧地挤在一起。有些有两层或更高。为了保护整个城市都被一堵墙围住。墙外是穷人的小屋，用涂满泥土的芦苇搭成。

Each Sumerian city rose up around the shrine of a local god. The temple buildings stood on a spacious raised platform reached by staircases and ramps.

每座苏美尔城市都在当地神的神殿周围崛起。寺庙建筑直立在一个由楼梯和坡道通往宽敞的高台上。

There were also pens for keeping the sheep and goats that were destined for sacrifice to the temple god. Horses and camels were still unknown, but sheep, goats, oxen, donkeys, and dogs had been domesticated.

还有一些围栏，用来饲养要献祭给寺庙神的绵羊和山羊。马和骆驼还不为人知，到绵羊、山羊、牛、驴和狗已经被驯化了。

The plow had been invented, and the wheel, made from a solid piece of wood, was used for carts and for shaping pottery. Oxen pulled the carts and plows; donkeys served as pack animals.

犁已经被发明出来了，轮子是用一块实木做成的，用来推的手推车，也用来塑造陶器。牛拉着手推车和犁；驴子充当驮畜。

Bulky goods were moved by boat on the rivers and canals. The boats were usually hauled from the banks, but sails also were in use.

大件货物在河流和运河上用船运输。这些船通常是从岸上拖出来，但也使用风帆。

Before 3000 BC the Sumerians had learned to make tools and weapons by smelting copper with tin to make bronze, a much harder metal than copper alone.

在公元前3000年，苏美尔人已经学会了制造工具和武器。方法是用锡熔炼铜来制造青铜，这是一种比单独用铜硬得多的金属。

Akkad was the northern (or northwestern) division of ancient Babylonian civilization. To the south of the region of Akkad lay Sumer.

阿卡德是古巴比伦文明的北部（或西北部）地区。在阿卡德地区的南面是苏美尔。

The name of Akkad was taken from the city of Agade, which was founded by the Semitic conqueror Sargon in about 2300 BC. Sargon united the various city-states in the region and extended his rule to encompass much of Mesopotamia.

阿卡德的名字取自阿加德市，该市由闪族征服者萨尔贡在公元前2300年左右建立。萨尔贡统一了该地区的各个城邦，并将他的统治范围扩大到美索不达米亚的大部分地区。

Under the kings of Akkad, Akkadian became a literary language that was written with the cuneiform system of writing. Akkadian is the oldest Semitic dialect still preserved.

在阿卡德国王统治下，阿卡迪亚语成为一种用楔形文字书写的文学语言。阿卡迪亚语是现存最古老的闪族方言。

词汇短语：

fertile 肥沃

deposited 沉淀

separate 各自的

more important 更为重要的

commercially 商业

channel 河道

evaporation 蒸发量

irrigation 灌溉

blazing 灿烂的

vital 重要的

abundant 大量的

barley 大麦

emmer 二粒小麦

olive 橄榄

authorized 校准的

artificial 人造的

mound 土丘

brick 砖

kiln 窑

sturdy 结实

crowded 拥挤的

narrow 狭窄

lane 巷

surrounded 被…围绕着的

protection 防卫

hut 小屋

clay 黏土

shrine 神庙

stand on 站立在…上

platform 平台

staircase 楼梯

ramp 斜坡

destined 用于…目的

sacrifice 献祭

camel 骆驼

domesticate 驯化

plow 犁

cart 手推车

pottery 陶器

bulky 庞大的

haul 拖/拉

sail 帆

smelting 熔炼

tin 锡

bronze 青铜

division 部分

Semitic 闪族的

city-state 城邦

region 区域

extend 扩展

encompass 包含

dynasty 朝代

jointly 连带地

literary 文学的

cuneiform 楔形文字

dialect 方言