牛人超强英文解说：10分钟了解中国（视频）

What is China ?

　　The People's Republic of China,commonly known as China,is located in east Asia, and borders 14 nations or any other county in the world.

　　It is the most populous¹ state in the world with a 1.3 billion citizens,while the world's population is 6.8 billion.That means other every 5 people in the world,one is Chinese.

　　China's made of 56 distinctive(显著的，特殊的) ethnic² groups(民族)with Han Chinese making the 92% of its whole population.

　　China is a single party state govemed by the Communist Party of China,whose power is enshrined in Chinese constitution.

　　Though China is officially an atheist³ country,its religious roots lie within Confucianism,Buddhism and Taoism,and from these most social and moral values are derived(衍生，起源_).There are also a significant number of Chinese Muslims,who arrived via the silk road trade route and still retain (保持，保留)their distinct culture.

　　History

　　China is one of the world oldest civilizations,dating back more than 5 million year and was ruled by successive(持续的) dynasties until 1912.

　　During these time,many great discoveries in tields(领域) of science and technology were made,including the inventions of printing,paper,gun power and compass.

　　This period also saw the construction of many landmarks⁴ such as the great wall which streches(延伸，扩展)over 4000 miles,equals to 30 return travels from London to Paris.

　　After a period of foreign occupation and civil war(内战),the Communist Party of China led by Mao gained control of mainland China in 1949 and established PRC.

　　The modern China of today is as much shaped by its past as its rapidly looking to the future.While many of its big cities are comparable to(类似) any in the wast,the underlying⁵ culture is still vastly different.Traveling outside large urban areas also highlights(使显著) the growing disparity between rich and poor(贫富差距).

　　Language

　　Chinese which is the most widely spoken language in the world as well as one of the most impenetrable(难以理解的)for foreigners.There are many regional dialects of Chinese although the most widely spoken is Mandarin(普通话) and Cantonese(粤语).

　　Chinese characters(汉字) evolved over time from earlier forms of hieroglyphs(象形文字). Chinese contains over 40,000 characters,but a well-educated person can recongnize around 6000 characters,some 3000 are required to read a newspaper.

　　Chinese calendar

　　Chinese Zodiac(十二宫图)'s a scheme(计划、方案) that relates each year to an animal.This is the year of the rabbit.

　　Chinese new year is the most important of traditional Chinese holidays.Windows and doors will be decorated with red color paper-cuts(剪纸) and couplets with popular themes of happiness,wealth,and longevity(长寿).On the Eve of Chinese New Year,supper is a feast with families.The family will end the night with firecrackers.Early the next morning,children will meet their parents by wishing them a healthy and happy new year,and receive money in red paper envelops⁶

　　Chinese people love red color,which symbolizes⁷ prosperity(繁荣) and good luck.

　　The period around Chinese new year is also the time of the largest human migration⁸ and between 150 and 200 million migrant workers(农民工) in China bring home their earnings⁹ and go to have a unit dinner with their families on Chinese new year eve.

 

1 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。

2 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

3 atheist   

n.无神论者

参考例句：

• She was an atheist but now she says she's seen the light.她本来是个无神论者，可是现在她说自己的信仰改变了。
• He is admittedly an atheist.他被公认是位无神论者。

4 landmarks   

n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 )；目标；（标志重要阶段的）里程碑 ~ (in sth)；有历史意义的建筑物（或遗址）

参考例句：

• The book stands out as one of the notable landmarks in the progress of modern science. 这部著作是现代科学发展史上著名的里程碑之一。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The baby was one of the big landmarks in our relationship. 孩子的出世是我们俩关系中的一个重要转折点。 来自辞典例句

5 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

6 envelops   

v.包围，笼罩，包住( envelop的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He glued many envelops yesterday. 他昨天用胶粘了许多信封。 来自辞典例句
• Ask your friends or mother and father to save used envelops for you. 让你的朋友或父母为你留下用过的信封。 来自英语晨读30分（高二）

7 symbolizes   

v.象征，作为…的象征( symbolize的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The use of light and dark symbolizes good and evil. 用光明与黑暗来象征善与恶。
• She likes olive because It'symbolizes peace. 她喜欢橄榄色因为它象征着和平。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

9 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。