The chartered plane carrying the Beijing Olympic sacred flame landed at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport early Friday morning for its 16th leg of torch relay scheduled for Saturday in the central Japanese city of Nagano.
(Source: en.beijing2008.cn)
The chartered plane carrying the Beijing Olympic sacred flame landed at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport early Friday morning for its 16th leg of torch relay scheduled for Saturday in the central Japanese city of Nagano.
(Source: en.beijing2008.cn)
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旁白: 说起泉州我可是早有耳闻。
I have long heard about Quanzhou.
它是中国历史上,
It was one of the important seaports
对外通商的重要口岸。
for foreign trade in Chinese history.
被称为“中国古代
It is regarded as the starting point
海上丝绸之路的起点”。
of ancient China’s Maritime
Silk Road.
韩佳: 渊源,你知道吗,
Yuanyuan, do you know
早在一千三百多年前的唐朝,
as early as the Tang Dynasty
some 1300 years ago,
这泉州的刺桐港
Citong Port of Quanzhou
就已经是中国对外贸易的主要港口了?
was already an important Chinese
port for trade?
因此享有“东方第一大港”的美誉。
It was considered the biggest port
in East Asia.
那这泉州就又被称为刺桐城了。
For this reason, Quanzhou was
also called Citong.
王渊源:那这“刺桐”是什么意思呢?
What does Citong mean?
韩佳: “刺桐”是阿拉伯语
Citong is the Chinese pronunciation
“橄榄枝”的中文发音。
of the Arabic word for
olive branch.
王渊源:哦。不过泉州跟橄榄枝
Oh. But what’s the connection
又有什么关系呢?
between Quanzhou and
olive branch?
韩佳: 因为当时泉州是一个
As Quanzhou was then
对外贸易开放的城市,
an open port city for
foreign trade,
很多阿拉伯人都到泉州来经商。
many Arabs came to Quanzhou
to conduct business.
他们看到这里和平繁荣的景象,
Seeing it was so peaceful
and prosperous,
所以就想到用“橄榄枝”
they described Quanzhou
这个词来形容泉州。
as an olive branch.
王渊源:哦,因为橄榄枝是和平的象征,
Oh, as the olive branch
symbolizes peace,
所以就把泉州比喻成橄榄枝。
they compared Quanzhou
to an olive branch.
韩佳: 没错儿。后来一传十,十传百,
Exactly. Later as the term spread
quickly by word of mouth,
“刺桐”这个名字就传开了。
Citong thus became the city’s name.
王渊源:“一传十,十传百”
“Yi chuan shi, shi chuan bai”
这是个俗语吧?
is a folk adage, isn’t it?
韩佳: 没错儿。“一传十,十传百”
Exactly. “Yi chuan shi, shi
chuan bai”
是用来形容消息传播得非常快,
refers to information spreading quickly
范围越来越广。
by word of mouth.
王渊源:“一传十,十传百”
So “yi chuan shi, shi chuan bai”
是用来形容消息传播得非常快,
refers to information spreading quickly
范围越来越广。
by word of mouth.
韩佳: 我们再把这句俗语复习一遍。
Let’s review this phrase.
Yī chuán shí shí chuán bǎi
一 传 十, 十 传 百。
The information spread quickly
by word of mouth.
旁白: 据考证,
According to textual researches,
到了一千多年前的宋元时期,
by the Song and Yuan dynasties
more than 1,000 years ago,
泉州的海外交通和对外贸易
Quanzhou’s transportation on
the sea and foreign trade
进入了鼎盛阶段。
had entered their heyday.
而这些都要归功于
All this should be ascribed
中国的海上丝绸之路。
to China’s Maritime Silk Road.
韩佳: 海上丝绸之路呢,
The Maritime Silk Road
就是指古代中国与世界各地区
refers to the sea route by
which ancient China
进行贸易往来的海上交通路线。
conducted trade with foreign countries.
王渊源:那这条路线都能连通哪些国家呢?
Which countries did this sea
route link to?
韩佳: 你看,答案在这张
Look, the answer can be found
古代泉州海上交通示意图上
on this sketch map of ancient
Quanzhou’s
就可以找到。
sea transportation.
如果往东北去,
To the east,
就可以到达日本和朝鲜半岛。
the route led to Japan and
the Korean Peninsula.
向南经过越南,
To the south, through Vietnam,
可以到达东南亚各国。
it could reach various Southeast
Asian countries.
向西航行还可以到达
And to the west, it could reach
南亚、阿拉伯半岛和东非沿海。
South Asia, the Arabian Peninsula
and the coast of East Africa.
王渊源:能经过那么多的国家呀!
It passed through so many countries!
韩佳: 是啊。有了这条海上丝绸之路,
Yes. With this Maritime Silk Road,
泉州跟其他国家的贸易往来
Quanzhou was able to
conduct trade
也变得非常频繁。
with foreign countries more frequently.
王渊源:“频繁”指次数很多。
“Pinfan” means frequent or often.
韩佳: “频繁”是个形容词,
“Pinfan” is an adjective,
指次数很多。
meaning frequent or often.
王渊源:当时主要都有一些什么贸易活动呢?
What kinds of foreign trade
did it conduct?
韩佳: 当时,
At that time,
人们会把一些茶叶、丝绸、瓷器等
tea, silks, porcelain objects
具有中国特色的物品,
and other Chinese goods
输出到中亚、西亚
were exported to countries and
regions in Central Asia, West Asia,
和非洲 欧洲等国家和地区。
Africa and Europe.
同时,其他国家
Meanwhile, the other countries
也会把它们的香料、花草,
also transported their spices,
rare flowers
以及一些奇珍异宝运往中国。
and other valuable things
into China.
王渊源:可以想象,
I can imagine
当时的贸易往来
how booming the foreign trade
一定是一派繁荣的景象。
was then.
旁白: 要适应频繁的贸易往来,
The booming trade with
foreign countries
把货物源源不断地运送到港口,
and uninterrupted delivery
of goods to the port
就必须要具备良好的交通设施了。
required sound transport facilities.
因此,古代泉州人
So people of ancient Quanzhou
就发挥聪明才智。
brought their wisdom into play.
架起了中国的第一座跨海石桥——
They set up China’s first
stone bridge over the sea,
洛阳桥。
the Luoyang Bridge.
韩佳: 在宋元时期,
By the Song and Yuan dynasties,
泉州先后造了一百多座桥。
Quanzhou had built over
100 bridges.
这座洛阳桥
Of them all, the Luoyang Bridge
就是其中最有价值的一座了。
was the most valuable.
王渊源:不过那个时候,
But at that time,
也没有什么先进的工具。
there weren’t any advanced
tools to use.
人们又是用了什么办法
With what methods
才能把桥建在海上呢?
did they set up the bridge
over the sea?
韩佳: 这个嘛主要就是依靠一些特别的设计,
They mainly used a special design
一是采用了筏形桥基。
and adopted the boat-shaped piers.
筏形桥基是什么呀?
What is a boat-shaped pier?
就是把桥基建成筏子的形状,
A boat-shaped pier
两头尖尖的。
has two pointed ends.
这样呢
This kind of pier can
就有效地减缓了海水对桥身的冲击。
alleviate the seawater’s impact
on the bridge.
王渊源:韩佳,你看,这桥墩上
Look, Han Jia, there seem
to be
好像有很多白色的东西啊。
some white stuff on the piers.
韩佳: 那个啊
That is
就是它第二处特别的设计了。
the second aspect of this
special design.
采用养殖牡蛎的方法
Oysters were raised here
来加固桥基。
to consolidate the bridge foundation.
王渊源:用牡蛎加固桥基呀,
How can that be possible
to use oysters
这怎么可能呢?
to strengthen the foundation
of the bridge?
韩佳: 当我们对别人说的话
When we doubt or disbelieve
表示怀疑或者是不相信的时候呢,
someone’s words,
就可以反问对方“怎么可能”。
we can use “zenme keneng”
as a rhetorical question.
这是我们口语中经常会用到的。
This is frequently used in
our conversation.
王渊源:“怎么可能”常用于对别人说的话
So saying “zenme keneng” is
a common way
表示怀疑或者是不相信。
of expressing doubt or disbelief
in Chinese.
用英语可以说“How can that be?”
In English one might say, “How
can that be?”
韩佳: 渊源刚才不相信我所说的话,
Yuanyuan didn’t quite believe
what I said,
所以他问,
so he asked,
yòng zhè zhong fāngfǎ jiā gù qiáojī zěn me kěnéng?
用 这 种 方法 加 固 桥基 怎 么 可能?
How can that be possible to use this method
to strengthen the foundation of the bridge?
当然可能了。
Of course it is possible.
这牡蛎的外壳附着力很强,
The oyster has strong adhesion
to solid surface
而且繁殖得又很迅速。
and reproduce very quickly.
所以人们就巧妙地利用了这个特点,
So the bridge builders made use
of the phenomena
在桥下养殖了大量的牡蛎。
and raised large numbers of
oysters under the bridge.
通过它们把桥墩和桥基
Through them, the piers
and the foundation
连接成了一个非常牢固的整体。
became joined into a solid entirety.
王渊源:古代人可真是太聪明了!
The ancients were so intelligent!
韩佳: 对啊。这座桥与北京的芦沟桥、
Yes indeed. This bridge and together
with the Marco Polo Bridge in Beijing,
河北的赵州桥,
the Zhaozhou Bridge in Hebei
还有广东的广济桥
and the Guangji Bridge
in Guangdong
并称为中国古代四大名桥。
are known as China’s four
great ancient bridges.
赏心悦目:
泉州是中国古代海上丝绸之路的起点
Quanzhou was the starting point of China’s
Silk Road on the Sea
素有“东方第一大港”的盛誉
as the largest port in East Asia.
通商贸易在这里吞吐往来
It was one of the places China conducted
东西文化在这里汇合交融
trade and cultural exchange with
foreign countries.
各种遗迹折射出泉州昔日的繁荣
Many historical sites prove Quanzhou’s
former prosperity.
古老的木制海船设计巧妙
Replicas of ancient ocean-going wooden ships
体现出泉州先进的造船技术
show the advanced ship building techniques
in ancient Quanzhou.
壮观的跨海石桥巧夺天工
This magnificent sea-spanning stone bridge
展现了泉州人的勤奋与聪明
reflects the industriousness and ingenuity
of ancient Chinese in Quanzhou.
王渊源:泉州果然是个好地方。
Quanzhou is indeed a
very nice place.
它不光历史悠久,
It not only has a long history,
而且景色也特别的好。
but also beautiful scenery.
韩佳: 那除了我们今天看到的这些之外呢,
In addition to what we’ve seen today,
泉州可看、可说的事儿还多着呢。
there are still many other things
worth seeing and talking about.
王渊源:没错儿。
Exactly.
那么在明天的节目中,
In our program tomorrow,
我们将继续带您看泉州。
we’ll continue to show you
around Quanzhou.
韩佳: 好了,那现在又轮到我给大家出
Okay, it’s my turn again
今天的有奖问答题了。
to set the day’s award-winning question.
您听好了。
Listen carefully.
今天的题目是这样的。
Here’s today’s question.
(问题部分略)
快乐的时光总是很短暂。
A happy moment is always transient.
到这里我们又该跟您说再见了。
It’s time again for us to say
goodbye to you.
王渊源:希望在这短短的十分钟
We hope in these short
ten minutes,
您能有所收获。
you have learned something.
韩佳: 明天的节目依然精彩。
Our tomorrow’s program is
equally wonderful.
请您千万要锁定频道收看哦。
Be sure to tune in to our channel.
王渊源:我们的口号是:
And our slogan is:
合: 学说中国话,朋友遍天下!
Learn Chinese and make friends everywhere!
(Source: cctv.com)
Chicken-Head Kettle is a kettle with a cover over its spout that looks like a chicken’s head. The black-glazed Chicken-Head Kettle of the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420), unearthed in Deqing County of East China’s Zhejiang Province, is the most representative one, reflecting the great achievements of china firing and decoration techniques.
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The black-glazed Chicken-Head Kettle is 17 cm in height with a caliber of 7 cm in diameter. The kettle is endowed with a very thin bottleneck, a round body and a flat bottom. On one shoulder of the kettle there is a spout in shape of a chicken’s head and on the other shoulder is an arc handle connecting the mouth and the shoulder. The whole body of the kettle was glazed blue in great thickness and the glaze color is uniform and pure. The luster of the jet-black produces the artistic effects of lacquer ware. The kettle is now displayed in the Beijing Palace Museum.
Chicken-Head Kettles first appeared in the Western Jin Dynasty (265-316) and were initiated by the Yue Kiln in Zhejiang Province. By the Eastern Jin period (317-420), function of the chicken-head part was transformed from decoration to practical use. The chicken head could communicate with the kettle body and became the spout. In the early years of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), Chicken-Head Kettles gradually phased out. The Chinese characters “chicken” and “good luck” have the similar pronunciation of Ji . Therefore, the continuous use of Chicken-Head Kettles for hundreds of years reflected people’s pray for good luck and peace during those war-ridden chaotic periods.
(Source: chinaculture.org)