第 104 期. Why Is December 26 called Boxing Day?

Transcription

1 OELM 語言學習電子報 第 104 期 Why Is December 26 called Boxing Day? 為什麼 12 月 26 號被稱作 節禮日 (Boxing Day)? You may or may not have heard of Boxing Day. It is the day after Christmas, but unlike Christmas it is a non-religious holiday. It started in England, and today it is mostly celebrated in countries that were once part of the British Empire (such as Canada, Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand) as well as many European countries. 你可能或是不曾聽過節禮日 是聖誕節隔日, 但和聖誕節不同, 它不 是宗教節日 它起源於英國, 現在大多曾為英國殖民地的國家 ( 像加 拿大 澳洲 南非和紐西蘭 ) 以及許多歐洲國家都會慶祝節禮日 Despite the name, Boxing Day has nothing to do with the sport boxing. In the 1800s in England, many servants and other workers would receive a Christmas box from their boss on the first workday after Christmas. These boxes could include money, leftover foods, or gifts that the workers could share with their families. 儘管其名為 Boxing, 但它和拳擊運動沒有任何關係 在 19 世紀的英國, 許多傭人和其他工作者會在聖誕節過後的第一個工作天, 從他們的老闆 手中收到 聖誕禮盒 禮盒中可能有現金 聖誕大餐的剩菜, 或是員 工可以和其家人一起共享的禮物 Today, in most countries where it is celebrated, Boxing Day is regarded as a shopping day. Most stores offer major discounts and for many of them, it is their busiest day of the year. Many see it as the day when they can spend any money or gift cards they received for Christmas, or buy things they hoped to receive for Christmas but didn t. For people who aren t shopaholics, they mostly just stay at home and relax with their family. 現在, 大多會慶祝節禮日的國家將這天視為購物日 大部份店家都會提供非常漂亮的優惠方案, 這是他 們一年中最忙碌的一天 許多人把這天當成能夠花掉聖誕節收到的禮金及禮卡, 或是購買他們希望可以 在聖誕節收到但卻沒有收到的禮物 對一些較沒有購物慾的人, 他們多數人只待在家和家人一起放鬆休 息

2 Vocabulary 好字精選 1. religious (adj) related to religion 和宗教相關的 The cross is a religious symbol that represents Christianity. 十字架是代表基督教的宗教符號 2. empire (n) a group of countries ruled by a single king or state 帝國 The British Empire once covered nearly a quarter of the Earth s land area. 大英帝國的領地曾經涵蓋了幾乎四分之一的地球版圖 3. servant (n) a person whose job is to serve another 僕人, 佣人, 雇工 The rich couple had more than 20 servants working in their home. 這對有錢的情侶雇用了二十多名佣人到家裡工作 4. leftover (adj) remaining/not used 殘餘的 ; 吃剩的 You should put the leftover paint back in the paint can instead of throwing it out. 你應該將剩餘的油漆倒回油漆桶, 而非直接丟掉 5. gift card (n) a card that is given as a gift and has money loaded onto it for shopping at a certain store 禮物卡 For her birthday, Anne received a $2000 gift card for her favorite clothing store. Anne 生日的時候收到了一張她最愛的服飾店的兩千元禮物卡 6. shopaholic (n) a person who is addicted to shopping 購物狂 ; 購物成癖的人 True shopaholics know when all the department stores anniversary sales are. 一位真正的購物狂會知道所有百貨公司的週年慶時間 Phrases and Sentence Patterns 句型解析 1. hear of (phr verb) to know about something or somebody 知道, 聽過 Everybody was surprised that Mike had never heard of Arnold Schwarzenegger. 每個人都因 Mike 從沒聽過阿諾史瓦辛格而感到驚訝 2. Despite (+ adj) + N, S + O (sentence pattern) 儘管, 不論 (Despite the name, boxing day has ) Despite his large size, George is not a very strong man. 儘管 George 看來體型龐大, 但他其實並不強壯 3. nothing to do with (phr) nothing related to 毫無關係 The movie titled Brazil actually has nothing to do with the country Brazil. 這部名為 巴西 Brazil 的電影, 其實和巴西這個國家一點關係都沒有

3 4. N + wh- + S + V (sentence pattern) 關係副詞用法 ( 介係詞 + 關係代名詞 ) (countries where it is celebrated) (the day when they can spend) The couple walked past the café where they had gone for their first date. 這對情侶剛經過他們第一次約會的咖啡店 平台的特色 提供英日文數位化的學習和測驗資源簡單的操作介面, 讓學習者學習更有效率實用的後台功能, 讓管理更加方便支援 PC MAC IOS 安卓作業系統使用目前已有上百所的學校使用, 提供客戶最好和專業的服務 版權宣告 本內容版權為驊鉅數位科技有限公司所擁有, 未經授權請勿作商業使用 轉載時請勿修改圖片文字內容等資訊, 並保留版權宣告的相關訊息, 否則將視為侵權使用 Huachu Digital Technology Limited Company. All Rights Reserved. Please do not change any contents and information when you forward this newsletter, and keep all messages of COPYRIGHT. Or you will infringe the rights of Huachu Digital Technology Limited Company.

4 OELM 語言學習電子報 第 104 期 The Real Santa Claus 聖誕老公公真實身分 Ho Ho Ho! People around the world are familiar with the image of this plump, jolly, white-bearded, red-suited old man and his hearty Christmas greeting. Children believe that on Christmas Eve he rides a sleigh pulled by eight flying reindeer to deliver presents made by elves in his North Pole factory to boys and girls around the world. But did you know that the concept of Santa Claus is based on a real man from history, Saint Nicholas? Ho Ho Ho 全世界的人對這個微胖 快樂 有著白鬍子的紅衣老人, 以及他精力充沛的聖誕問候語都 感到熟悉 孩童們相信聖誕前夕, 他會駕著八隻會飛翔的麋鹿拉的雪橇, 將北極工廠裡小精靈製作的禮 物分送給世界各地的男孩與女孩們 但你是否知道聖誕老人的概念是根據歷史上一位真正的老人聖尼可 拉斯而塑形? Saint Nicholas was a Greek Christian bishop, or senior member of the church, who was born in the year 280 and lived in present-day Turkey. As a young man, both of Nicholas parents died, leaving him a large inheritance. Reportedly, he used this money to help countless sick and impoverished people. Many miracles are also attributed to him, which is common for many Christian saints. But what he is most famous for, and the reason for the Santa Claus connection, was gift giving. Legend has it that he once snuck into the home of three poor sisters and left bags of money for them. 聖尼可拉是一名天主教的希臘主教, 或教堂的資深成員, 他在西元 280 年出生, 住在現今的土耳其 在他還是年輕人時, 尼可拉斯的雙親已故, 遺留給他一份很大份的遺產 據傳聞, 他利用這筆錢幫忙無數的生病及 貧窮的人們 許多奇蹟也由他而起, 這對許多天主教聖人來說是件常見 的事 但他最具盛名的, 和聖誕老人的關聯就是, 分發禮物 傳說中他 曾經潛入三名窮困姊妹的家裡, 然後留下錢袋 Nicholas remained an important figure in Christian history, especially in Holland. There they honored the anniversary of his death every year on December 6. On that morning, children would find gifts in their shoes placed there by Sinterklaas during

5 the night. Much of Santa Claus image today comes from the way the Dutch portrayed him. Dutch immigrants brought the idea of Santa Claus to America, where he changed a little and was eventually adopted into Christmas festivities. Images of him were further popularized as a part of Coca-Cola Christmas campaigns in the 1930s. 尼可拉斯依然是天主教歷史上的重要人物, 特別是在荷蘭 每年 12 月 6 日是他的逝世紀念日 那天早上, 孩子們會在鞋子裡發現 Sinterklaas( 荷蘭語的聖尼可拉斯 ) 在晚上留下的禮物 今日聖誕老人的形象大多來 自於荷蘭人描繪他的圖像 荷蘭移民將聖誕老人的想法傳入美國, 他的形象有些改變, 最後融入聖誕活 動中 他的形象更進一步成為 1930 年代可口可樂聖誕活動的一部分而更加通俗平易近人 Vocabulary 好字精選 1. plump (adj) big and round/fat 豐滿的, 胖嘟嘟的 The girl bit into the plump, juicy apple. 女孩咬一口飽滿多汁的蘋果 2. hearty (adj) loud and cheerful 誠懇的, 由衷的, 痛快的, 精力充沛的, 豐富的 The drunk men sang a hearty traditional song in the pub. 喝醉的男人在酒吧裡痛快地唱了一首傳統的歌曲 3. inheritance (n) the money one gets when somebody dies 繼承權, 遺產, 贈遺 The three sons fought for years over their parents inheritance. 這三個兒子為了父母的遺產爭吵多年 4. reportedly (adv) according to what people say 據傳聞地, 據報導地 Reportedly, there were no witnesses to the car accident. 據報導, 車禍沒有目擊證人 5. impoverished (adj) poor 貧困的 Bangladesh is one of the most impoverished nations in Asia. 孟加拉共和國是亞洲最貧困的國家 6. portray (v) depict something or somebody in art or literature 描繪, 畫 ( 人物 風景等 ) Many famous people don t like the way they are portrayed in movies based on their lives. 許多名人不喜歡根據他們的人生改寫的電影中他們被描繪的方式 7. festivities (n, usually plural) all the activities related to a festival 慶典活動 New Year s Eve festivities usually start in the evening and last until the early morning. 新年前夕的慶祝活動通常在傍晚開始, 然後持續到隔天清早 8. popularize (v) to make something more popular 使通俗化, 宣傳 Movie actors in the 1950s such as James Dean helped to popularize the fashion of wearing jeans. 50 年代的電影演員像是 James Dean 有助於宣傳穿著牛仔褲的流行

6 9. campaign (n) a series of advertising activities for a product, or a series of political activities to get a person elected 競選活動,( 社會 ) 活動 Apple began its advertising campaign for the new iphone months before it was actually released. 蘋果在 iphone 真正開始販售前幾個月就會開始展開廣告活動 Phrases and Sentence Patterns 句型解析 1. sth. + be + attribute to + sb. (sentence pattern) when people says that sb. did or said something 歸因於, 起因於 The quote was attributed to the president in the article, but it was actually the president s advisor who had said it. 引言緣起總統在文中提到的話, 但其實這是總統的幕僚說的 2. legend/rumor/word has it that (phr) according to legend/rumors/what people are saying 傳說 / 謠言 / 據說 Rumor has it that our boss is pregnant. 謠言說我們老闆懷孕了 平台的特色 提供英日文數位化的學習和測驗資源簡單的操作介面, 讓學習者學習更有效率實用的後台功能, 讓管理更加方便支援 PC MAC IOS 安卓作業系統使用目前已有上百所的學校使用, 提供客戶最好和專業的服務 版權宣告 本內容版權為驊鉅數位科技有限公司所擁有, 未經授權請勿作商業使用 轉載時請勿修改圖片文字內容等資訊, 並保留版權宣告的相關訊息, 否則將視為侵權使用 Huachu Digital Technology Limited Company. All Rights Reserved. Please do not change any contents and information when you forward this newsletter, and keep all messages of COPYRIGHT. Or you will infringe the rights of Huachu Digital Technology Limited Company.