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在没有天气预报和现代气象科学的时代,英语文化中曾流行很多关于气候节令的天气谚语(Weather lore),都是通过谚语的形式口头流传。
关于三月最著名的谚语是:
March comes in like a lion, and goes out like a lamb.
三月来如雄狮,去如羔羊。
This well-known proverb means that March is a month in which you can experience a Lion's fierce roar of frigid cold, the long white teeth of biting winds that can cut through flesh; and the gentle softness, the warmth of fluffy white fleece, and the innocent kiss of sunshine like a docile newborn lamb.
这句谚语的意思是,三月天的寒冷如狮子的吼声,刺骨的寒风宛如雪白的长牙刺穿你的肉;三月天的温暖如那毛茸茸的羊毛,阳光如天真的亲吻落在皮肤上,就像一只温顺的小羊羔。
令人惊奇的是,这句谚语在最开始出现时和天气并没有关系,而是与天上的星星息息相关。
It is believed that this saying has more to do with the month beginning with the constellation Leo. Leo rises in the east to start March and ends the month with the constellation Aries setting in the west.
人们认为,这句话与狮子座的关系更密切。三月之初,狮子座从东方升起;三月之末,白羊座在西方落下。
而关于三月的天气,在世界各地都有不同的谚语来形容,但大多都是集中在它的复杂和多变上。
In Scotland they say, \"March comes in with adders' heads and goes out with peacocks' tails.\" An Adder is Scotland's sole venomous snake. A timid creature and unlikely to bite unless threatened. Again, showing a feared image of winter, with the beauty and splendor the weather at the end of March can bring.
在苏格兰,人们说:“三月带着蝰蛇的脑袋到来,带着孔雀的尾巴离去。” 蝰蛇是苏格兰唯一的毒蛇,是一种胆小的动物,除非受到威胁,否则不太可能咬人。这句话再一次展示了令人畏惧的冬天的形象,三月底的天气可以带来美丽和辉煌。
In the Netherlands, they say \"Maart roert zijn staart,\" which means \"March stirs its tail\"—evidence of the variety and extremes that can come day to day this time of year. All the same for the roller coaster of wacky weather we call March.
在荷兰,人们说“三月摇动它的尾巴”——说明了一年中这段时间经常出现多样和极端的天气,就像人们会把三月的古怪天气比喻成过山车。
在欧洲的传统文化中,狮子被视为最强大的猛兽,称为“king of the forest”;而在中国历史上,这个角色是由老虎来担任的,叫作“百兽之王”。
中文的“拦路虎”这个比喻,在翻译成英语时就需要转换成“a lion in the way”,利用英语中的现成比喻能更有效地传达含义。
如果中国也有与“March comes in like a lion”类似的谚语,估计多半会用“三月猛如虎”来形容吧。
编辑:陈月华
来源:阿则外英语笔记 CNN
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