雅思聽力：圣誕節(jié)的傳說 - 雅思聽力

圣誕節(jié)快到了，正在準(zhǔn)備雅思考試的同學(xué)們還是要關(guān)注一下的。這是西方世界最重要的節(jié)日之一，在雅思聽力中，也會經(jīng)常出現(xiàn)，那么圣誕節(jié)的傳說是什么呢，圣誕節(jié)又是怎么來的呢?

History tells us that the origin of Santa Claus begins in the 4th centurywith Saint Nicholas, Bishop of Myra (an area in present day Turkey). One of thelegends tells about that he acquired a fortune when his parents died while hewas still in his teens. By nature St.Nicholas was a generous and honest man,particularly devoted to children. He also cared deeply for the poor. He broughtvarious gifts, money and other useful items to the houses of the poor. He didthis at night, and in secrecy, so that no one knew, as he wanted no glory, hejust wanted to help people. He became widely known for his generosity.

據(jù)史料記載，圣誕老人的原型是公元4世紀(jì)的圣尼古拉斯，他是米拉(位于今土耳其境內(nèi))的主教。有一種傳說認(rèn)為在他十多歲的時候父母雙亡，給他留下一大筆財產(chǎn)。圣尼古拉生來就是個慷慨正直的人，尤其喜愛孩子，還很關(guān)心窮苦人，給窮人家里送去各種禮物、錢以及其他有用的物品。他一般都是在夜里秘密地做這些事，這樣就沒人知道，因為他并不想獲得什么贊頌，只是想幫助別人。很快，他就因自己的慷慨而廣為人知。

There is one famous legend about Saint Nicholas. The story tells ofNicholas hearing one day of three beautiful sisters who lived in a miserable huton the edge of Myra. The three sisters were very poor. They could barely earnenough to keep themselves and their old mother from starving to death. WhenNicholas heard of their plight, he was very concerned. He decided to dosomething to help them.

有一個關(guān)于圣尼古拉斯的著名傳說，講的是有一天，尼古拉斯聽說在米拉鎮(zhèn)邊界上一所簡陋的小屋里住著美麗的三姐妹。她們非常窮，賺錢很少，幾乎難以保證自己和老母親不被餓死。尼古拉聽說了三姐妹的悲慘境況后非常擔(dān)憂，決定幫助她們。

One night, when everyone was asleep, Nicholas crept through the streets tothe edge of town. Quietly, he tiptoed up to the hut where the three sisterslived. He climbed onto the roof and dropped three bags of gold through the holein the roof where the smoke from the fire came out. Now it so happened that thethree sisters has washed their stockings before they went to bed. The stockingshas been hung by the fire to dry. When Nicholas dropped the gold through thesmoke hole, each bag of gold fell into a stocking.

一天夜里，當(dāng)大家都入睡后，尼古拉斯躡手躡腳地穿街走巷，來到了小鎮(zhèn)邊界。他悄悄地踮起腳走到三姐妹住的小屋旁，爬上屋頂，把三袋金子順著房頂爐火冒煙的洞口扔了下去。而三姐妹上床前恰巧剛洗完自己的長襪，把它們掛在爐火旁烘干。就在尼古拉斯把金子透過煙囪扔下去時，每袋金子分別落入了一只襪子中。

The three sisters were overjoyed to find three bags of gold in theirstockings when they woke up the next morning. Soon, the story began to spread.Other people began to hang up stockings in the hope of finding bags of gold whenthey woke up in the morning. From this legend sprang the custom of hangingstockings up by the chimney on Christmas Eve. Over the years, Saint Nicholasbecame associated with Christmas.

第二天一早，三姐妹醒來，發(fā)現(xiàn)她們的長襪里竟然有三袋金子，她們欣喜若狂。很快，這個故事便流傳開來。其他人也開始把襪子掛起來，希望第二天早上醒來也能發(fā)現(xiàn)一袋袋的金子。圣誕夜那天把襪子掛在煙囪旁的習(xí)俗就是由這個傳說而來。多年來，人們就把圣尼古拉斯與圣誕節(jié)聯(lián)系在了一起。

After his death around 350 A.D. he was buried in Myra, but in 1087 Italiansailors purportedly stole his remains and removed them to Bari, Italy, greatlyincreasing St. Nicholas' popularity throughout Europe. His kindness andreputation for generosity and love for children gave rise to claims that hecould perform miracles and devotion to him increased. St. Nicholas became thepatron saint of Russia, where he was famous for his red cape, flowing whitebeard, and bishop's mitre. In Greece, he is the patron saint of sailors; inFrance he was the patron of lawyers, and in Belgium the patron of children andtravelers. The Dutch kept the legend of St. Nicholas alive. In 16th centuryHolland, Dutch children would place their wooden shoes by the hearth in hopesthat they would be filled with a treat and goodies.

尼古拉斯在約公元350年去世后，被葬于米拉;但據(jù)稱在1087年，意大利水手們偷走了他的遺骨，轉(zhuǎn)運到了意大利的(東南部港市)巴里，從而大大提升了尼古拉斯在整個歐洲的知名度。他的善良、慷慨以及對孩子的喜愛都讓人們認(rèn)為他會施魔法，人們更加熱愛他了。尼古拉斯成了俄羅斯人的守護(hù)神，在那里，他以身披紅斗篷，留著飄逸的白胡須，戴著主教法冠而聞名。在希臘，他是水手的守護(hù)神;在法國，他是律師的庇佑人;在比利時他則是孩子和旅行者的保護(hù)神。荷蘭人一直都傳頌著圣尼古拉的傳說。在16世紀(jì)的荷蘭，孩子們會把他們的木鞋放在壁爐邊，希望里面會裝滿禮物和糖果。

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