Why Do Snowmen Have Carrot Noses?为啥雪人的鼻子是胡萝卜?

One of the most popular things to do withsnow， other than to have a snowball fight， is tobuild a snowman.

除了打雪仗，其他和雪有关的最受欢迎的活动之一就是堆雪人。

The tradition has been passed on fromgeneration1 to generation， alongside tales of snowmen at Christmas.

这个传统和圣诞节雪人的故事一起代代相传。

But why do we dress a snowman in a certain way and more importantly whya carrot for a nose？

但是为什么我们要用某种方式给雪人装扮，更重要的是为什么要用胡萝卜当鼻子呢？

Why a carrot for a nose？

为什么用胡萝卜做鼻子？

Some of the earliest descriptions of snowmen date back as far as the 13th century and they show snowmen with long pointed noses.

关于雪人的一些最早的描述可以追溯到13 世纪，当时的雪人都长着长长的尖鼻子。

They were described as fierce and cold characters， so a pointy nose was a common way of making them appear harsh.

他们被描绘成凶猛而冷酷的人物，所以尖鼻子是让他们显得冷酷的常见方式。

Why a carrot for a nose？

为什么用胡萝卜做鼻子？

Some of the earliest descriptions of snowmen date back as far as the 13thcentury and" they show snowmen with long pointed noses.

关于雪人的一些最早的描述可以追溯到13世纪，当时的雪人都长着长长的尖鼻子。

They were described as fierce and cold characters， so a pointy nose was acommon way of" making them appear harsh.

他们被描绘成凶猛而冷酷的人物，所以尖鼻子是让他们显得冷酷的常见方式。

Much like we associate2 witches with a hooked3 or pointed nose， it wasimportant for a snowman to carry these characteristics.

就像我们把女巫和钩鼻或尖鼻子联系在一起一样，拥有这些特征对雪人来说很重要。

Other objects have been used throughout history for a snowman’s nose， thingssuch as buttons and coal but the carrot is the most iconic4 item to use.

历史上，其他物品也曾被用来做雪人的鼻子，比如纽扣和煤炭，但胡萝卜是最具代表性的物品。

Traditionally a snowman would have coal for eyes and a small piece of coal tomake a mouth.

传统上，雪人会有煤炭做的眼睛，和小块煤炭做的嘴巴。

Who was the first snowman with a carrot nose？

谁是第一个长着胡萝卜鼻子的雪人？

The first known snowman character to have a carrot for a nose featured in theGerman animation ， which was created in 1943.

世界上第一个以胡萝卜为鼻子的雪人角色出现在1943 年创作的德国动画《雪人》中。

In English，“Der Schneemann”， is known as“The Snowman”or“Snowman inJuly”.

在英语中，“Der Schneemann”被称为“雪人”或“七月的雪人”。

This was one of the first representations of a snowman being naive 5 and thatmade the audience love him very much.

这是雪人天真的最初描绘之一，这让观众非常喜爱他。

Throughout history， snowmen were associated with harsh winters and strength，but this was when snowmen started to become adored6 cartoon characters.

纵观历史，雪人总是与严冬和力量联系在一起，而这是雪人成为受人喜爱的卡通人物的开始。

This suggests that the tradition came from Europe and possibly morespecifically Germany， as there had not been depictions of a snowman with a carrotnose before this time.

这表明这一传统来自欧洲，更确切地说可能来自德国，因为在此之前还没有长着胡萝卜鼻子的雪人的描述。

Characters that win the hearts of the viewers will then often be represented in theirlives， and this could have been the start of the tradition of using a carrot for a nose.

赢得观众喜爱的角色通常会在他们的生活中出现，这可能是用胡萝卜做鼻子的传统的开始。

Where do carrots come from？

胡萝卜是从哪里来的？

Another question to help us solve this mystery is looking at where carrotsoriginate.

帮助我们解开这个谜团的另一个问题是研究胡萝卜的起源。

The orange carrots we use on snowmen today were specially grown in the Netherlands in the 16th Century.

我们现在堆雪人用的橙色胡萝卜是16 世纪荷兰专门种植的。

The myth and legend suggest that orange carrots were specifically bred by the Dutch in honor of King William I.

神话和传说表明，橙色胡萝卜是荷兰人为了纪念国王威廉一世而专门培育的。

Although there is not a large amount of evidence7 to suggest this story is true，it could have been one of the catalysts8 for growing orange carrots in Europe.

虽然没有大量证据表明这个故事是真的，但它可能是欧洲种植橙色胡萝卜的催化剂之一。

Thus meaning they were widely available and a common vegetable found in the home.

这意味着它们随处可见，是家中常见的蔬菜。

This would have meant that alongside coal and a scarf， a carrot became anormal household item to use when building a snowman.

这就意味着，在堆雪人的时候，胡萝卜和煤、围巾一样都是普通家庭用品。

Snowmen are an important character in creating a winter wonderland and Christmas atmosphere.

雪人是营造冬日仙境和圣诞氛围的重要角色。

We choose to decorate9 them with our household items， and this is different depending on where you are in the world.

我们选择用不同的家庭用品来装饰它们，这取决于你在世界的哪个地方。

It could have been that following the release of ， people loved the character and wanted to recreate him when building their own snowman.

也许是因为《雪人》上映后，人们喜欢上了这个角色，想在自己堆雪人的时候再现他的形象。

The tradition of using a carrot for a nose has become a global trend thanks to characters such as Der Schneemann， Jack Frost and Olaf from Disney’s .

用胡萝卜做鼻子的传统已经成为一个全球性的趋势，这多亏了雪人、杰克·弗罗斯特和迪士尼电影《冰雪奇缘》中的雪宝等人物。

（英语原文选自： thefactsite.com）