国家地理 伊朗的波斯游牧民为什么逐渐消失(1)

The peaks of the Zagros mountain range are still dusted with snow. Long, twisting roads draw lines over the valleys and slopes here in western Iran. They are ancient paths, trodden by feet and hooves for thousands of years in the ever repeating movement of migration¹.

扎格罗斯山脉的山峰仍然覆盖着冰雪。长长的、蜿蜒曲折的道路，在这伊朗西部的山谷和山坡上迂回前进。那是古老的迁徙路线，在不断重复的迁徙活动中被脚踩蹄踏了数千年。

These days cars and rented trucks, rather than horses, bring the remaining Iranian nomads² and their flocks to their summer pastures high up in the Iranian highlands near the city of Chelgard. Instead of making daylong hikes for news to the long-abandoned nomadic³ communication center, local Bakhtiari tribe members carry cell phones and complain about bad reception.

现在，小车和出租的卡车（而不再是马匹）载着剩下的伊朗游牧民和他们的牲畜迁徙到高处于Chelgard市附近伊朗高原里的夏季牧场。当地的巴赫蒂亚里部落成员已不必为了新闻信息走上一整天去那个长期荒废的游牧民通信中心，而是带着手机，只是抱怨信号不好。

Iran's nomads have been making the same migration for millennia⁴. In spring they headed for the cooler pastures of the Zagros, where grass for their flocks of sheep and goats was abundant. At the end of autumn they would return to Iran's oil-rich Khuzestan Province, their animals strong and well fed to make it through the winter.

伊朗游牧民数千年来一直在进行同样的迁徙。春天，他们朝扎格罗斯较冷的牧场走，那儿的草场对他们的绵羊和山羊来说很富饶。秋末，他们会返回伊朗石油丰富的胡齐斯坦省，他们的牲畜强壮而喂养良好以便安全过冬。

Iran's more than one million nomads have long resisted modernity through the isolation⁵ that comes with their lifestyle. Deep traditions and patriarchy also have kept change out. But the combination of persistent⁶ drought, dust storms that turn the skies orange, widespread urbanization, mobile internet, and the spread of higher education has made their numbers dwindle⁷. The elderly couples still setting up their tents on the flanks of the Zagros admit that they might be the final chapter in the history of one of the largest remaining nomadic communities on Earth.

伊朗的100多万游牧民长期以来通过与他们的生活方式隔离来抵制现代的东西。深厚的传统和父权制度也一直在改变。但是，持续的干旱、使天空变橙色的沙尘暴、普遍的城市化、移动互联网以及高等教育的普及，这一切加在一起使他们的人数日渐减少。年老的夫妇仍在扎格罗斯山脉两侧搭起帐篷，承认他们可能是地球上现存最大的游牧社区之一的历史的最后一章。

1 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。

2 nomads   

n.游牧部落的一员( nomad的名词复数 )；流浪者；游牧生活；流浪生活

参考例句：

• For ten years she dwelled among the nomads of North America. 她在北美游牧民中生活了十年。
• Nomads have inhabited this region for thousands of years. 游牧民族在这地区居住已有数千年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 nomadic   

adj.流浪的；游牧的

参考例句：

• This tribe still live a nomadic life.这个民族仍然过着游牧生活。
• The plowing culture and the nomadic culture are two traditional principal cultures in China.农耕文化与游牧文化是我国传统的两大主体文化。

4 millennia   

n.一千年，千禧年

参考例句：

• For two millennia, exogamy was a major transgression for Jews. 两千年来，异族通婚一直是犹太人的一大禁忌。
• In the course of millennia, the dinosaurs died out. 在几千年的时间里，恐龙逐渐死绝了。

5 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

6 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

7 dwindle   

v.逐渐变小（或减少）

参考例句：

• The factory's workforce has dwindled from over 4,000 to a few hundred.工厂雇员总数已经从4,000多人减少到几百人。
• He is struggling to come to terms with his dwindling authority.他正努力适应自己权力被削弱这一局面。