运动休闲—和尚在寺院发明网球运动？Origins

 　　The earliest origins of tennis are a matter of some dispute. One side believes that the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans played a precursor¹ to tennis. Drawings or descriptions of any tennis-like games have not been discovered, but a few Arabic words dating from ancient Egyptian times are cited as evidence. The theory says that the name tennis derives² from the Egyptian town of Tinnis alongside the Nile.
　　一种说法是关于网球的起源，古埃及，希腊和罗马是网球的发源地。在古埃及时代，尽管没有相关的古代刻画图形作为证据，但是，却发现了很多阿拉伯单词。有理论说，网球这个单词起源于尼罗河畔的一个名为Tinnis的古埃及小镇。

　　Aside from this word, evidence for any form of tennis preceding the year 1000 is lacking, and most historians credit the first origins of the game to 11th or 12th century French monks³, who began playing a crude handball against their monastery⁴ walls or over a rope strung across a courtyard.
　　除了这个单词，关于网球一千年前的情况，并没有历史记载。但是大多的历史学家把其历史归于11，12世纪的法国和尚，这些和尚曾拿着粗糙的球打向寺院的墙壁，或者打过栓在院子里的绳子。

　　The game took on the name jeu de paume, which means "game of the hand." Many who dispute more ancient origins argue that tennis derived⁵ from the French tenez, which meant something to the effect of "take this," said as one player would serve to the other.
　　这种和尚所玩的游戏在那时被叫做 jeu de paume，意思是“用手玩的游戏”。但是还有人说其起源于法国的 tenez一词，意识是“接住”，也就是一方球手在发球时对另一方球手所说的词语。

　　As the game became more popular, courtyard playing areas began to be modified into indoor courts, where the ball was still played off the walls. After bare hands were found too uncomfortable, players began using a glove, then either a glove with webbing between the fingers or a solid paddle, followed by webbing attached to a handle -- essentially⁶ a racquet. Rubber balls were still centuries away, so the ball was a wad of hair, wool, or cork⁷ wrapped in string and cloth or leather, then in later years, hand-stitched in felt to look something like a modern baseball.
　　随着这种运动越来越流行，玩耍场地也由室外改为室内的小方地，但是那时的玩法仍然是将球扔向墙壁。但后来人们发现，光着手玩，手会感觉非常疼痛，就开始想了一个办法，将手指间缠绕布，或者用一个结实的拍子，后边带一个把手，把手上缠绕着布，其实在那时就具有了球拍的雏形。但是橡胶球仍然是几个世纪以后的事情。那时的球，是一团头发丝，或者羊毛，或者用细丝，布或者皮毛等缠绕的软木块。随后的年代，人们发明了用手织出的球，类似现在的棒球。

1 precursor   

n.先驱者；前辈；前任；预兆；先兆

参考例句：

• Error is often the precursor of what is correct.错误常常是正确的先导。
• He said that the deal should not be seen as a precursor to a merger.他说该笔交易不应该被看作是合并的前兆。

2 derives   

v.得到( derive的第三人称单数 )；（从…中）得到获得；源于；（从…中）提取

参考例句：

• English derives in the main from the common Germanic stock. 英语主要源于日耳曼语系。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He derives his income from freelance work. 他以自由职业获取收入。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 monks   

n.修道士，僧侣( monk的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The monks lived a very ascetic life. 僧侣过着很清苦的生活。
• He had been trained rigorously by the monks. 他接受过修道士的严格训练。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 monastery   

n.修道院，僧院，寺院

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• She was appointed the superior of the monastery two years ago.两年前她被任命为这个修道院的院长。

5 derived   

vi.起源；由来；衍生；导出v.得到( derive的过去式和过去分词 )；（从…中）得到获得；源于；（从…中）提取

参考例句：

• Many English words are derived from Latin and Greek. 英语很多词源出于拉丁文和希腊文。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He derived his enthusiasm for literature from his father. 他对文学的爱好是受他父亲的影响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

7 cork   

n.软木，软木塞

参考例句：

• We heard the pop of a cork.我们听见瓶塞砰的一声打开。
• Cork is a very buoyant material.软木是极易浮起的材料。