Culture and History of Greenland

 　格陵兰的文化和历史

　　大家听说过Greenland吗？与它的名字，绿色岛屿，恰恰相反，它实际上是个冰雪世界。它就是"格陵兰岛"，世界上最大的岛。格陵兰岛位于加拿大北部，大部分地区都在北极圈内，当然是终年冰封雪冻了。居住在那里的居民叫Inuit（因纽特人），就是我们常说的爱斯基摩人。他们在这冰天雪地中是如何生存呢？看完下文你就知道了。

　　Greenland is blessed with a peaceable people that has never waged war with anyone, and people generally show great openness to visitors.

　　* People：大家都知道people是"人"的意思，不过在这里我要提醒大家：people还有一个含义是"民族"，如本文第一句话就出现了两个people，第一个表示 "民族"，第二个才表示"人"。体会一下它们的区别！

　　* Wage："工资"、"薪水"的意思，是名词用法，a living wage就是"能够维持生活的工资"。那么wage作动词是什么意思呢？表示"开展、进行"等，最常见的用法就是本文的wage war（进行战争）了。

　　The population of Greenland is predominantly Inuit, a people bearing an affinity and solidarity with the Inuits of Canada, Alaska and Siberia. It is only 130 years since the last immigration from Canada took place.

　　The Greenlandic people are few in number: 55,000 in an enormous country. Approx. 20 percent of the population was born outside Greenland.

　　* Inuit："因纽特人"，就是我们现在常说的Eskimo爱斯基摩人。他们主要住在北美洲极地附近，以捕鱼、打猎为生。

　　* Affinity："密切关系"、"姻亲"、"亲戚关系"等意思，如：The French and Italian languages have many affinities（法语与意大利语彼此有很多密切之关联）。另外，affinity还有一个意思，表示"强大的吸引力"，He feels a strong affinity for/to her（她对他很有吸引力）。

　　* Solidarity："团结"、"一致"、"抱有共同工作目标"等，它是由 solid（固体、紧密）引申而来的。

　　Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, but since the introduction of Home Rule in 1979 Greenland has moved towards relative independence based on parliamentary democracy.

　　Today fishing is the all-dominating trade and accounts for 95 percent of total exports, but in the hunter districts of the outer areas, the seal and whale catch is of great importance. It actually forms the stable existence for one fifth of the Greenlandic population. For millennia the philosophy has been to live at one with nature. The hunters live with nature and follow the natural seasons.

　　In South Greenland ruins from the norse (viking) settlers 1,000 years ago are well preserved, including the ruins of the first Christian churches on the North America continent.

　　* Seal：是"海豹"的意思。

　　* Whale："鲸鱼"的意思，whale是世界上最大的动物，由此，我们得到一个很有趣的词组，a whale of time（玩得很痛快）。

　　* For millennia the philosophy has been to live at one with nature.这是一个非常精彩的句子，它的意思是"几千年来，与大自然溶为一体--即依靠大自然--成为格陵兰人的生存哲学"。

　　* Norse："古代斯堪的纳维亚人"、"古代挪威人"。

　　The symbols of the ancient culture are still alive even in the larger towns. Many people build and use their own kayak as you'll see in every harbor. The old drum dance is performed by a growing number of artists. The musical and theatrical life is largely based on myths and sagas conveyed in a modern form.

　　Arts and crafts often express perceptions of ancient myths. The tupilaks - small grotesque figures carved in narwhal or walrus tooth or reindeer antler - were originally evil spirits. Today they are popular souvenirs, and many skilled artists carve the tupilaks - each and every with a unique character.

　　* Kayak："爱斯基摩划子"、"小艇"。

　　* Sagas："中世纪挪威、冰岛历史事件和传说"、"英雄传奇"等。

　　* grotesque："风格奇异的"、"奇形怪状的"等意思。small grotesque figures就是"风格奇异的小人物像"。本文的tupilaks就是指这种small grotesque。

　　*narwhal："一角鲸"、"独角鲸"。

　　*walrus："海象"，在俚语里也表示"身材矮胖的人"。

　　*reindeer antler：reindeer是"驯鹿"的意思，antler是"鹿角"的意思。reindeer antler就是"驯鹿的角"。

　　* Souvenir："纪念品"的意思。