2006年VOA标准英语-African, Native American Cultures Mix in N

By Greg Flakus
New Orleans
27 February 2006

Tuesday is Mardi Gras, French for "Fat Tuesday," celebrated¹ by Christians² around the world as the last day before Lent, which is a period of fasting. The celebration is special this year in New Orleans, which is still trying to recover from the massive flooding caused by Hurricane Katrina six months ago. Many African Americans in the city are also struggling to keep alive their own Mardi Gras traditions.

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Second Chief 'Lil Bo,' performs with the Wild Magnolias Mardi Gras Indian gang in New Orleans
  

The songs and chants of the Mardi Gras Indians have become part of the fabric³ of New Orleans culture. The Indian clubs have such names as "The Wild Magnolias", "Mandingo Warriors," and the "The Wild Tchoupitoulas".

The Mardi Gras Indians are not Native American Indians. They are African Americans who take to the streets during carnival⁵ wearing elaborate costumes with intricate bead⁶ work and colorful feathers. The words they chant are derived⁷ from various sources including African languages brought to New Orleans by slaves.

The heritage of the Mardi Gras Indians is preserved at the Backstreet Museum, in a small wood-frame house in the neighborhood known as Treme, north of the French Quarter. 

 
Silvester Francis 
  
Museum director Silvester Francis says the connection between New Orleans African Americans and American Indians dates back to a time in the 19th century when some Indian tribes helped slaves to escape.

"The Americans [Indians] was the ones who helped the blacks to run away from slavery, so we honor the American Indians. So when Carnival comes around, we start acting⁸ and performing like American Indians," explained Francis.

The Mardi Gras Indians also draw on warrior⁴ traditions from Africa and, in the 19th century, there were sometimes violent clashes between different Indian gangs or tribes on the streets of New Orleans. Today, these groups avoid conflict and instead compete with each other to see who can develop the most beautiful Mardi Gras costume.

Silvester Francis says they are carrying on their tradition this year despite the fact that most of them lost their homes and some of their members lost their lives six months ago to Hurricane Katrina.

"The majority of people lost their whole house. I lost my house, too, but this is my museum. My house went under, too, but the museum was spared," he added.
 

Bead work costume displayed in Backstreet Museum  
  
In the Backstreet Museum, Francis maintains displays of winning costumes from past events, photographs of various groups and items that have been donated by American Indian tribes who have responded to the honor they are shown here in New Orleans.

Silvester Francis says his small museum had some roof damage from Katrina, but is otherwise okay. He is more concerned about keeping alive his community's traditions now that so many people have been displaced. Many of the people participating in this year's Mardi Gras Indian events have had to travel from faraway cities where they took refuge after the hurricane. Most residential⁹ areas in New Orleans are still uninhabitable and recovery work is proceeding¹⁰ slowly.

But Francis says the descendants of African slaves who started this Carnival tradition must keep it alive for future generations.

"We support our own culture. Yeah, this is going to go on, even if we have to find a different way to do it, it will go on. We are not going to leave it to die because our ancestry¹¹ is so deeply involved in this," he said.

In addition to their appearances at this year's Mardi Gras, the Indian clubs plan to perform on two weekends in March. The Backstreet Museum in Treme is open year round.

1 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

2 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

3 fabric   

n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织

参考例句：

• The fabric will spot easily.这种织品很容易玷污。
• I don't like the pattern on the fabric.我不喜欢那块布料上的图案。

4 warrior   

n.勇士，武士，斗士

参考例句：

• The young man is a bold warrior.这个年轻人是个很英勇的武士。
• A true warrior values glory and honor above life.一个真正的勇士珍视荣誉胜过生命。

5 carnival   

n.嘉年华会，狂欢，狂欢节，巡回表演

参考例句：

• I got some good shots of the carnival.我有几个狂欢节的精彩镜头。
• Our street puts on a carnival every year.我们街的居民每年举行一次嘉年华会。

6 bead   

n.念珠；(pl.)珠子项链；水珠

参考例句：

• She accidentally swallowed a glass bead.她不小心吞下了一颗玻璃珠。
• She has a beautiful glass bead and a bracelet in the box.盒子里有一颗美丽的玻璃珠和手镯。

7 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》

8 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

9 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。

10 proceeding   

n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报

参考例句：

• This train is now proceeding from Paris to London.这次列车从巴黎开往伦敦。
• The work is proceeding briskly.工作很有生气地进展着。

11 ancestry   

n.祖先，家世

参考例句：

• Their ancestry settled the land in 1856.他们的祖辈1856年在这块土地上定居下来。
• He is an American of French ancestry.他是法国血统的美国人。