EZCNN 易英网

The Nile River 尼罗河：古埃及文明的摇篮

课文朗读

课文讲解

繁體中文譯本

A scorching sun bakes the parched ground of the Sahara Desert where the ancient Egyptians live. The Egyptians’ stores of food are low and need re-stocking soon if they are to survive the drought. Suddenly, the waters of the Nile rise and the river bursts its banks, destroying houses. But the Egyptians see this flooding as a blessing rather than a disaster, because along with the flood comes life-giving soil and water.

炽热的太阳烧烤着古埃及人居住的撒哈拉沙漠干旱的大地。埃及人的粮食存量很少，如果想度过干旱，得在短时间内补充粮食。突然，尼罗河水位上升，使河岸溃堤、摧毁房舍。但埃及人却将河水泛滥视为恩赐而非灾祸，因为洪水会带来孕育生命的土壤及水源。

The Egyptians regarded the rising and falling of this mighty river as part of the life cycle. The Nile was the beginning and the end of their world, and was their only lifeline. Each year, the river provided both the water and rich volcanic silt needed for farming and survival. The Nile provided the ancient Egyptians with food. Just beyond the rich Nile Valley lay the Sahara Desert, where there was no way to scratch out a living.

古埃及人将这条大河涨退视为生命周期的一部份，他们将尼罗河视为世界的起源及终点，是他们唯一的生命线。每年，河水提供农耕及生存所需的水源和肥沃的火山泥。尼罗河供给古埃及人食物。富饶的尼罗河谷外，便是绝对无法维生的撒哈拉沙漠。

As such, the ancient Egyptians felt blessed and were completely aware of how much they owed to the mighty river. They imagined the Nile lay at the heart of a cosmos composed of water where even the sky was made of water, and the sun sailed across it. The sun’s crossing from east to west and the Nile’s running south to north created a perfect symmetry. The ancient Egyptians’ belief in this symmetry was so strong that they thought everything in the natural world had its place in the supernatural world as well. Every day, Re the sun god miraculously came to life in the east and then he passed down into the west: the mysterious Underworld. The Egyptians didn’t view death as an end, but as the start of a better life.

因此，古埃及人觉得自己受到眷顾，深切了解一切都是大河所赐。他们想象尼罗河位于一个连天空都由水组成的宇宙中心，太阳则在天际巡行。太阳穿梭东西及尼罗河奔流南北，形成完美的对称。古埃及人深信这种对称，因而认为自然界的一切，在超自然界中也都各有其位。太阳神瑞每天神奇的在东方苏醒后再降落于西方：神秘的阴间世界。埃及人认为死亡并非终点，而是更美好人生的起点。

Vocabulary

单词发音

drought [draʊt] n. 干旱

blessing [ˋblɛsɪŋ] n.（上帝的）赐福

mighty [ˋmaɪtɪ] adj. 巨大的；伟大的

scratch [skrætʃ] out  勉强维持

owe [o] v. 亏欠; 应该把……归功于[（+to）]

be composed of 组成，构成

compose [kəmˋpoz] v. 组成，构成

symmetry [ˋsɪmɪtrɪ] n. 对称（性）

supernatural [͵supɚˋnætʃərəl] adj. 超自然的

More Information

单词发音

scorching [ˋskɔrtʃɪŋ] adj. 灼热的

parched [pɑrtʃt] adj.〔尤指由于天气炎热而〕焦干的﹐干枯的

store [stor] n. 贮存，贮藏[（+of）]

burst [bɝst] v. 使爆炸；使破裂

life-giving [ˋlaɪf͵gɪvɪŋ] adj. 给予生命的

lifeline [ˋlaɪf͵laɪn] n. 生命线﹐命脉

silt [sɪlt] n. 泥沙，淤泥

blessed [ˋblɛsɪd] adj. 受祝福的

cosmos [ˋkɑzməs] n.（有和谐体系的）宇宙

miraculously [məˋrækjələslɪ] adv. 神奇地；出乎意料地

come to life 苏醒过来 to become animated; grow excited.

Underworld [ˋʌndɚ͵wɝld] n.（大写）阴间，地狱

课文讲解

The ancient Egyptians never bothered to discover the source of the Nile, for they believed the Nile to be a gift from their gods. However, somewhere far from the Egyptian Nile Valley, powerful forces caused the Nile to swell each year.

古埃及人相信尼罗河是天神赐给他们的礼物，因此从不费神想发现尼罗河源头。然而在埃及尼罗河谷外一个遥远的地方，强大的力量促使尼罗河水位每年上涨。

Upstream, the Nile splits into two distinct branches: the Blue Nile and the White Nile, named for the different colors of their waters. The two rivers meet at the ancient civilization of Khartoum in Sudan, poetically named “the longest kiss in history.”

尼罗河上游分为两条不同的支流：蓝尼罗河及白尼罗河，各因不同的水流色泽命名。两条河交汇于苏丹的文明古城卡土穆，诗意地被命名为「史上最漫长的亲吻」。

The Blue Nile begins far in the south at the Ethiopian Highlands, known as “Africa’s Water Tower.” During the rainy season, these volcanic hills become sodden with strong rains, causing small rivulets to pour down the hillsides. They flow into the Blue Nile, which becomes a mighty torrent of water. This strong current will carry rich, volcanic silt, joining the White Nile at Khartoum. As it winds through the desert, the Nile breathes new life into the land of Egypt. But how can this vast river flow across hundreds of miles and never run dry?

蓝尼罗河的源头远在南方的衣索比亚高地，以「非洲水塔」着称。雨季时这些火山丘会因大雨充满水，满溢形成的小河汇流山坡，汇入蓝尼罗河后形成强劲的水流，这股强力水流挟带肥沃的火山泥，流到卡土穆后和白尼罗河交汇。蜿蜒穿越沙漠的同时，尼罗河为埃及的土地注入新生命。但这条大河如何能流经几百英哩却从不干涸？

Explorer Henry Morton Stanley solved the mystery. He discovered that the source of the Nile was the combination of large lakes situated near Africa’s Rift Valley plateau. Shallow dimples in the plateau created these massive lakes, which were fed by the nearby cloud-shrouded Mountains of the Moon.

探险家亨利．莫顿．史丹利解开了这个谜团，他发现尼罗河源自非洲裂谷高原附近，由当地许多大型湖泊汇流而成，高原上的浅坑形成这些大湖，湖水则源自附近被云笼罩的月之山。

The mountains supplied the Nile with a constant source of water. An overabundance of water causes the lakes to spill over, creating spectacular waterfalls and the steady stream of water known as the White Nile. From there, this venerable vein of water quenches the thirst of a land almost half a continent away.

月之山不断地为尼罗河提供水源，过量的水使湖水溢流，形成壮丽的瀑布及白尼罗河的平稳水流。自此，这股珍贵的水流，灌溉了近半个大陆外土地。

−by Ryan Campbell

Vocabulary

单词发音

swell [swɛl] v.（河水等）上涨

split [splɪt] v. 分裂[（+up/into/with）]

torrent [ˋtɔrənt] n.（水、熔岩等的）奔流；洪流

breathe life into  注入活力

breathe [brið] v. 将（生气、信心或兴奋）注入；为…带来; 呼吸；呼气；吸气

plateau [plæˋto] n. 高原

supply [səˋplaɪ] v. 提供[O1][（+to/for/with）]

spectacular [spɛkˋtækjəlɚ] adj. 壮观的；壮丽的

venerable [ˋvɛnərəb!] adj.（因历史、宗教的原因）神圣的，珍贵的

More Information

单词发音

bother [ˋbɑðɚ] v. 费心; 因…操心

Sudan [suˋdæn] n. 苏丹（非洲国家）

poetically [poˋɛtɪkəlɪ] adv. 诗意地

sodden [ˋsɑdn] adj. 湿透的[（+with）]

rivulet [ˋrɪvjəlɪt] n. 小河；小溪

hillside [ˋhɪl͵saɪd] n. 山腰，山坡

dimple [ˋdɪmp!] n. 小凹；涟漪

shroud [ʃraʊd] v. 覆盖；掩蔽

overabundance [͵ovərəˋbʌndəns] n. 过剩；过多

spill over 从某物中溢出

quench the thirst of 解..的渴

quench [kwɛntʃ] v. 解（渴）[（+with）]

Reading Questions

1.   How did the ancient Egyptians view the Nile?

A.  As a constant burden that hindered their daily survival.

B.  As the center of their universe and their lifeline.

C.  As a nuisance that they would have eliminated if they could.

D.  As an unnecessary part of the surrounding landscape.

2.   What happens at the city of Khartoum in Sudan?

A.  The Nile River finally reaches the sea.

B.  The Blue Nile becomes the White Nile.

C.  The Blue Nile and the White Nile meet.

D.  The river bursts its banks and floods the countryside.

3.   Based on the article, what can be said of the Nile River?

A.  Its source can be traced back to lakes near Africa’s Rift Valley plateau.

B.  The Egyptian people believed it was the cause for the drought.

C.  Its source still remains a mystery, unknown to the public.

D.  It has never done anything to benefit the Egyptian people.

4.   What is the main purpose of this article?

A.  To make a case for building a dam on the Nile River to stop the floods.

B.  To show how harmful the Nile River is to Egypt and its surroundings.

C.  To give a comprehensive history of Egypt and its people.

D.  To give an overview of the Nile River and the people around it.

Answer