听播客学英语 94 最长的名字

 　　Once upon a time, there was a village in north Wales¹ called Llanfair. Llanfair means², simply, “the church of St Mary” in the Welsh language, and there are many other places in Wales called Llanfair. The particular Llanfair in this story was called Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll, to distinguish³ it from the other places called Llanfair. The name Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll means, in English, “the church of St Mary beside the hollow⁴ (or little valley) with the white hazel tree”. I think you will agree that Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll is perhaps too long for normal, everyday use. And English speaking people like me often find Welsh names difficult to pronounce. So people shortened⁵ the name to Llanfair PG. And people often still call the village Llanfair PG today.

　　In the 1850s, a railway line was built along the coast of north Wales. It ran to Holyhead, which was the main port for ships sailing⁶ to Ireland⁷. The railway line was busy and important. But only a few trains stopped at the station at Llanfair PG, and only a few visitors came to the village.

　　How could Llanfair PG attract more visitors? “I know,” said a man who lived near the village. “We need a new name. A special name. A name that people will remember. A name that will make people say ‘That’s interesting. I really want to visit that place’”. So he suggested a new name – the longest place name in Britain. And other people agreed, and so the village was re-named ???Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch. (That was not me speaking, by the way. That was a real Welsh person speaking real Welsh!) What did the new name mean? In English it is: “The church of St Mary beside the hollow with the white hazel tree and the rapid whirlpool and the church of St Tysilio with the red cave”. They put up a new name sign in the railway station, and it was the longest railway name sign in Britain. And they waited for the tourists to come.

　　Changing the name of the village was what today we would call a “publicity stunt” – something which you do to get people to notice you. Many companies, when they want to sell more of their products, find a new name for the product, or they design new packaging⁸, or do something else to attract more customers. Sometimes this works⁹. sometimes it doesn’t.

　　Did the new name work for Llanfair PG? I do not think so. Llanfair is still a quiet little place with about 3,000 inhabitants¹⁰. Some trains stop there, but many go through without stopping. People arrive in their cars. They park in the station car park. They take a photograph of the the name sign on the station platform. Then they get back in their cars and drive away.

　　Why did the new name not attract more visitors? The answer is easy, I think. Imagine going to a railway ticket office and asking for “a ticket to ???Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, please.”

1 Wales   

n.威尔士(在大不列颠岛西南部)

参考例句：

• The company are opening up a new factory in Wales.公司将在威尔士开一家新工厂。
• She teaches English at the University of Wales.她在威尔士大学教英语。

2 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

3 distinguish   

vt.区别，辩明，识别，辨认出；vi.区别，辨别，识别

参考例句：

• It is not easy to distinguish cultured pearls from genuine pearls.辨别真正的珍珠与养殖的珍珠不容易。
• Some people find it difficult to distinguish right from wrong.一些人认为很难辨对与错。

4 hollow   

adj.空的，中空的，空心的；空洞的，无价值的

参考例句：

• The boys scraped out a hollow place for planting trees.那些孩子挖了个坑准备栽树。
• Bamboo is a sort of hollow plant.竹子是一种中空的植物。

5 shortened   

v.弄短，缩短( shorten的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She shortened the skirt by an inch. 她把裙子缩短了一英寸。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Vacations have lengthened and the work week has shortened. 假期延长，工作周就缩短了。 来自辞典例句

6 sailing   

n.航行，航海术，启航

参考例句：

• Experienced seamen will advise you about sailing in this weather.有经验的海员会告诉你在这种天气下的航行情况。
• The operation was plain sailing.手术进行得顺利。

7 Ireland   

n.爱尔兰(西欧国家)；爱尔兰岛(西欧)

参考例句：

• Ireland lies to the west of England.爱尔兰位于英格兰之西。
• Dublin is the capital of Ireland.都柏林是爱尔兰的首都。

8 packaging   

n.包装，包装业，包装术

参考例句：

• The packaging does not conform to EU rules.这种包装不符合欧盟规定。
• These materials can be recycled into other packaging products.可以回收这些材料制成其他包装产品。

9 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

10 inhabitants   

n.居民，住户， （栖息在某地区的）动物( inhabitant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They set fire to the city and massacred all the inhabitants. 他们放火烧了这座城市，而且屠杀了所有的居民。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He quartered his men on the inhabitants in the town. 他把他的部队安置在镇上的居民家中。 来自《简明英汉词典》