Mayan civilization

背景介绍

美洲古代文明主要包括墨西哥的阿兹特克文明、中美洲北部的玛雅文明、秘鲁的印加文明和更古老的奥尔梅克文明。玛雅文明是其中的杰出代表，它于16世纪被西班牙殖民者摧毁，此后被长期湮没在热带丛林中。1839年，美国探险家约翰·斯蒂芬斯在洪都拉斯的热带丛林中发现了玛雅古文明遗址。

情景对话

Patricia:I just finished watching this great documentary about the Mayan people...I learned so much！I had no idea that the Maya were still a major cultural group in Mexico！Did you know that sizable populations of Maya and their descendants still maintain traditions and beliefs of their ancestors?Even today,millions of people speak Mayan languages.

Lionel:Really?Where in Mexico are they?

Patricia:Well,actually,it's not just Mexico.Before the New World was discovered by the Europeans,the Mayan civilization extended through out the present-day southern Mexican states of Chiapas,Tabasco,and the Yucatan Peninsula（半岛）states of Quintana Roo,Campeche,and Yucatan.In addition to these areas in Mexico,the Maya were also found throughout the northern Central American region,including Guatemala,Belize,Honduras,and El Salvador.

Lionel:Wasn't it the Maya who invented calendars?I remember hearing so much about the Mayan calendar predicting the end of the world...

Patricia:Actually,the calendar didn'toriginate withthe Maya,but their civilization fully developed it.They are the only pre-Columbian American civilizations to have a fully developed written language,and had amazing advancements in art,architecture,mathematics,and astronomy.They were also one of the most successful Mesoamerican（中美洲）civilizations in withstanding Spanish invasions （入侵）.

Lionel:Why were they able to do that?

Patricia:There are a few reasons.Unlike other groups,like the Aztecs or the Incas,the Maya had nocentralizedpolitical center.Therefore,conquistadors（西班牙征服者）had to fight the independent Mayan groups one by one...Another reason was that most of the Spanish forces were in it for the gold,but the land where the Mayan people lived weren't rich in precious metal resources.The Spanish were more motivated to seek riches in South America or central Mexico.

Lionel:So the Spanish never actually took control of Mayan land?

Patricia:Well,they did,but it took them 170 years for the conquest of the Yucatan.It was a very lengthy,costly,and lethal（致命的）effort for them.The Maya were able to avoid being subdued（征服）by the Spanish until almost the 18th century.And they never were able towipethem allout.They are still a major cultural force,even today.

Lionel:Amazing！

译文助读

帕特里夏：我刚刚看完这部关于玛雅人的大型纪录片……我从中学到了很多东西！我以前都不知道，玛雅人在墨西哥仍然是一个主要的文化群体！相当多的玛雅人及其子孙后代仍然保留着祖先们的传统和信仰，这一点你知道吗？即使是今天，仍然有数百万人说玛雅语。

莱昂内尔：真的吗？他们住在墨西哥的什么地方呢？

帕特里夏：哦，实际上，不仅是在墨西哥。在欧洲人发现“新大陆”之前，玛雅文明就已延伸至今天的墨西哥南部的恰帕斯州和塔巴斯科州，以及尤卡坦半岛上的金塔纳罗奥州、坎佩切州和尤卡坦州。此外，玛雅文明也出现在中美洲北部地区，包括危地马拉、伯利兹、洪都拉斯和萨尔瓦多。

莱昂内尔：日历不就是玛雅人发明的吗？我记得听过很多关于玛雅日历预言世界末日的事……

帕特里夏：实际上，历法并不是玛雅人首创的，但是玛雅文明充分发展了历法。在哥伦布发现美洲大陆以前，他们是唯一拥有全面发展的语言文字体系的民族，而且在艺术、建筑学、数学、天文学方面也取得了惊人的进步。他们也是抵御西班牙入侵最成功的中美洲文明之一。

莱昂内尔：他们为什么能做到呢？

帕特里夏：有几方面的原因。与阿兹特克和印加民族不同，玛雅人没有集中的政治中心。因此西班牙征服者不得不一个接一个地应战各个独立的玛雅部族……另一个原因是，大部分西班牙军队是冲着黄金去的，而玛雅人居住的土地上并没有丰富的贵金属资源。西班牙更热衷于在南美洲或墨西哥中部寻找财富。

莱昂内尔：所以西班牙人从未真正控制过玛雅人的领土，是吗？

帕特里夏：哦，他们控制过，不过他们用了170年才征服了尤卡坦。那对他们来说是一场非常漫长、代价巨大而且致命的战争。直到大约18世纪，西班牙人才将玛雅人征服。而且他们从未能将玛雅人消灭掉。即使到今天，玛雅人仍然是一支主要的文化力量。

莱昂内尔：真了不起呀！

Language study

originate with由某人发起/首创

centralized adj.集中的；中央集权的

wipe out彻底消灭