英语PK台 第633期:那些你不知道的圣诞文化

 Dialogue 1

Jingjing and Mark are chatting after work.

下班后，京晶和马克在聊天。

Jingjing: Good to see you, Mark. Are you getting into the yuletide spirit?

京晶：很高兴见到你，马克。你是否已经进入了Yuletide Spirit（圣诞气氛）？

Mark: Huh? Are you talking about Christmas?

马克：什么？你是在说圣诞节吗？

Jingjing: Yeah! Don't you know: yuletide comes from a German month, Jéola, in wintertime. The ancient Germanic peoples had celebrations of their own, which merged² with Christmas when it was introduced. Don't you use the phrase, yuletide, a lot?

京晶：对！难道你不知道“Yuletide”这个词来自日耳曼语“Jéola”，表示冬季的一个月吗？古代日尔曼人曾经有过自己的类似节日，后来，圣诞节引入后，这两个节日就融为一体。你们很少用“Yuletide”这个词吗？

Mark: Sure, I guess. I just knew it had to do with Christmas coming. It doesn't surprise me that the word comes from German, as it doesn't sound Latin or Greek.

马克：我感觉确实不怎么用。我只知道这个词肯定与圣诞节有关。它来自日耳曼语，我一点也不觉得惊讶，因为它听起来既不像拉丁语，也不像希腊语。

Jingjing: You know about yule logs, don't you?

京晶：那你肯定知道“Yule Log”（圣诞柴），是吧？

Mark: Yeah, that one's a little more obvious. Again, I just thought that yule had to do with Christmas time. And a yule log is a big piece of wood, partially³ burned in the fireplace in a family home, and then kept for a year to light next year's yule log—which is supposed to last the 12 days of Christmas.

马克：是的，这个词就更明显些了。我就是因为这个词才觉得“Yule”肯定与圣诞节有关。而，圣诞柴是一种人们家中壁炉里未完全燃烧的大块木头，这种大木块会被保存下来，用于点燃来年圣诞节的圣诞柴——圣诞柴应该在圣诞节期间燃烧12天。

Jingjing: Is Christmas Day—December 25—the first or the last of those 12 days?

京晶：这12天是从12月25日圣诞节当天算起，还是12天假期的最后一天算起?

Mark: It's the first day. So the twelfth day would be January 5th of the following year.

马克：圣诞节的当天算起。所以，第12天就是次年的1月5日。

Jingjing: I like the song, "the Twelve Days of Christmas".

京晶：我喜欢《圣诞节的十二天》这首歌。

Mark: Yeah, that's a catchy⁴ tune⁵, and fun to sing in a group. Hey, do you know what boughs⁶ of holly⁷ are, from the line, "deck the halls with boughs of holly"?

马克：没错，这首歌的曲调挺朗朗上口的，而且合唱的效果不错。嘿，你知道“deck the halls with boughs of holly”（出自歌曲《Deck The Halls》）这句歌词里的“boughs of holly”是什么吗？

Jingjing: Well, holly is an evergreen⁸ tree with leaves instead of needles. And boughs are leafy branches.

京晶：知道啦，“Holly”就是冬青树，它是一种非针叶的常青树。“Bough”就是它的叶枝。

Mark: Is there anything you don't know?

马克：关于圣诞节，你还有什么不知道的吗？

Jingjing: Hmm, I guess you could tell me what makes a jingle⁹ bell a jingle bell, rather than just a bell.

京晶：嗯，我想你可以告诉我究竟什么是圣诞铃铛，它与普通铃铛有什么区别。

Mark: Ha ha. That's easy, if you've seen them. You know how most bells are, well, bell-shaped? Jingle bells are round. Whenever they shake—or jingle—they ring a little.

马克：哈哈。这很简单，你看到圣诞铃铛就明白了。你肯定知道大多数铃铛都是钟形的吧？而圣诞铃铛却是圆形的。每当有振动或摇动时，它就会发出不太大的铃声。

Jingjing: So, rather than being struck, they jingle.

京晶：所以，不用击打它，它也会叮当响。

Mark: Yeah, that's it in a nutshell.

马克：没错，简单说就是这样。

New words: 习语短语

yuletide 圣诞季

Christmas season

merge¹ 融合，合并

come/bring together

catchy tune 朗朗上口的旋律

a melody that is pleasant and easy to remember

boughs 粗树枝

leafy branches

evergreen 长青的

a tree that stays green all year round

in a nutshell 简言之，一言以蔽之

a summary (often an oversimplification)

Dialogue 2

the next day

第二天

Jingjing: You again, Mark? Are you doing any Christmas shopping?

京晶：马克，又见面了！你开始圣诞采购了吗？

Mark: Well, you know me: I prefer to buy something when I see a good deal, or when I know what will make someone's day. I don't like buying stuff just because it's Christmas season.

马克：呃，你是了解我的——我更喜欢在遇到划算的，或者当我知道这件东西会让别人开心时，才去把它买下来。我太不喜欢只因为圣诞季去买东西。

Jingjing: But you are going to give gifts this year, aren't you?

京晶：但你今年要送礼物，不是吗？

Mark: I guess I should start shopping. Did you ask Santa for anything special this year?

马克：我想我应该开始去采购了。你没要求圣诞老人今年送点特别的礼物吗？

Jingjing: Um, I haven't sat on St Nick's lap since I was eight or nine. Actually, I can't think of anything I need. Some new furniture would be great. But I don't think Santa will be putting much of that on his sleigh. What about you?

京晶：嗯，八九岁以后，我就再没坐在“圣诞老人”的大腿上要过礼物了。实际上，我都想不出我需要什么。几件新家具会很不错。但我觉得圣诞老人的雪橇上应该放不下那么多东西。你呢？

Mark: Santa could throw some money into my iTunes account. That'd be enough.

马克：圣诞老人可以直接向我的iTunes帐户里打点钱。这就足够了。

Jingjing: That sounds like a pretty good stocking stuffer. I should think of something more along those lines, when people ask.

京晶：这圣诞节小礼物听起来相当不错哦。我也应该沿着这样的思路想想礼物的事情，有人问起时好回答。

Mark: Hey, I wasn't suggesting that you put money in my account! I'm just glad we can touch base sometimes.

马克：嘿，我并不是暗示你给我账户打钱啊！我就是挺乐意与你交流交流想法。

Jingjing: How about we just get each other some chocolate? We both like it. Take it easy when you go shopping.

京晶：我们就互相给对方买点巧克力当礼物怎么样？我们俩都喜欢吃巧克力。这样，你去采购圣诞礼物时，就可以放轻松点儿了。

Mark: Sweet! I'll get you a Snickers bar and you can give me a Godiva assortment¹⁰. Sound good?

马克：真贴心！那我就给你买一根士力架巧克力棒，你可以给我买一盒歌帝梵巧克力。听起来不错吧？

Jingjing: Uh, that sounds a little lop-sided. You're kidding, right?

京晶：嗯啊，听起来不太公平。你在逗我，对吧？

Mark: You bet. I'll pick up something nice. Don't worry. It won't be anything too big.

马克：当然啦。我会给你挑选一件不错的礼物。不过，别担心，它不会太大的。

Jingjing: If I can, I'll get you a chocolate Santa Claus.

京晶：如果可以的话，我会给你买一个巧克力圣诞老人。

Mark: Hey, that's just what I was thinking of. Except it's kind of weird¹¹ to eat Santa.

马克：嘿，我们想到一块了。就是吃圣诞老人感觉有点奇怪。

Jingjing: You know what I've always wanted? A gingerbread house.

京晶：你知道我一直想要什么吗？一个姜饼屋！

Mark: Yeah those are cool. I always see them around Christmas time, and have never actually had one.

马克：不错，这东西很酷。我总能在圣诞节期间看到它，可实际上我从来没吃过。

Jingjing: Well, there's an idea!

京 晶：好嘞，我有主意了！

New words: 习语短语

make someone's day 做了让某人开心快乐的事

do something that will make someone feel happy for the rest of their day

Santa Claus 圣诞老人

Father Christmas

St Nick 圣诞老人的另外一个名字

Another name for Father Christmas, short for Saint Nicholas

sleigh 雪橇

a kind of car with skis instead of wheels, which Santa rides

stocking stuffer 圣诞节的小礼物

a small gift given at Christmas time

along those lines 根据这个主意，按这个思路

according to an idea

lop-sided 不公平

uneven, unfair

gingerbread house 姜饼屋

a small house made out of a kind of hard cake, flavored with sugar and ginge

1 merge   

v.(使)结合，(使)合并，(使)合为一体

参考例句：

• I can merge my two small businesses into a large one.我可以将我的两家小商店合并为一家大商行。
• The directors have decided to merge the two small firms together.董事们已决定把这两家小商号归并起来。

2 merged   

（使）混合( merge的过去式和过去分词 )； 相融； 融入； 渐渐消失在某物中

参考例句：

• Turf wars are inevitable when two departments are merged. 两个部门合并时总免不了争争权限。
• The small shops were merged into a large market. 那些小商店合并成为一个大商场。

3 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

4 catchy   

adj.易记住的，诡诈的，易使人上当的

参考例句：

• We need a new slogan.The old one's not catchy enough.我们需要新的口号，旧的不够吸引人。
• The chorus is very catchy to say the least.副歌部分很容易上口。

5 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

6 boughs   

大树枝( bough的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The green boughs glittered with all their pearls of dew. 绿枝上闪烁着露珠的光彩。
• A breeze sighed in the higher boughs. 微风在高高的树枝上叹息着。

7 holly   

n.[植]冬青属灌木

参考例句：

• I recently acquired some wood from a holly tree.最近我从一棵冬青树上弄了些木料。
• People often decorate their houses with holly at Christmas.人们总是在圣诞节时用冬青来装饰房屋。

8 evergreen   

n.常青树；adj.四季常青的

参考例句：

• Some trees are evergreen;they are called evergreen.有的树是常青的，被叫做常青树。
• There is a small evergreen shrub on the hillside.山腰上有一小块常绿灌木丛。

9 jingle   

n.叮当声，韵律简单的诗句；v.使叮当作响，叮当响，押韵

参考例句：

• The key fell on the ground with a jingle.钥匙叮当落地。
• The knives and forks set up their regular jingle.刀叉发出常有的叮当声。

10 assortment   

n.分类，各色俱备之物，聚集

参考例句：

• This shop has a good assortment of goods to choose from.该店各色货物俱全，任君选择。
• She was wearing an odd assortment of clothes.她穿着奇装异服。

11 weird   

adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的

参考例句：

• From his weird behaviour,he seems a bit of an oddity.从他不寻常的行为看来，他好像有点怪。
• His weird clothes really gas me.他的怪衣裳简直笑死人。