外國人最想和你聊的文化話題：北京的胡同

     The majority of Beijing's hutongs were built between the 13th and 19th centuries during the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties.
     北京的胡同大部分建于13到19世紀的元、明、清三個朝代。
     According to experts, the word hutong originated from mongolian language meaning"well".
     專家認為，"胡同"這個詞來源于蒙古語，意思是"井"。
     So the original meaning of Hutong should be"a place where people gather and live."
     古時候人們生活和聚集在井的周圍，所以"胡同"一詞的本意應(yīng)是"人們生活聚集的地方"。
     Hutong first appeared in Beijing during the Yuan Dynasty.
     胡同在北京第一次出現(xiàn)是在元朝。
     With the growth of the population, many old Hutongs have disappeared to make way for high-rise apartments.
     隨著人口的增長，一些老胡同被拔地而起的高樓取代。
     Most of today's Hutong were formed during the Ming and Qing Dynasties that followed.
     今天我們看到的大多數(shù)胡同是明清兩代的產(chǎn)物。
     Nobody knows exactly how many Hutongs there are in nowadays Beijing.
     沒有人能夠確切地說出北京有多少胡同。
     Or to make it clear, it could build a highway from Seattle to Boston, all across America.
     說得更清楚些，相當于從西雅圖修一條高速路直達波士頓，這可是橫穿美國大陸??！
     Today you can find various Hutongs with different shapes, lengths or directions.
     今天您可以發(fā)現(xiàn)不同形狀、長度和方向的胡同。
     The shortest one is only 40 centimeters wide.
     最窄的胡同僅40厘米寬。
     And some Hutongs have more than 20 turns.
     還有些胡同有20多個彎。
     As we walk through the Hutongs, you may find most of them look almost the same with gray-colored walls and bricks.
     當我們進入胡同時，您也許會發(fā)現(xiàn)幾乎所有的墻和磚都是灰色的。
     Actually inside those walls are the courtyard houses, where people live. In Chinese we call them "siheyuan".
     其實，在這些墻的后面就是居民的家，我們稱其為"四合院"。
     "Si"literally means four,"he"means to surround,and"yuan"refers to the courtyard.
     "四"的字面意思是4，"合"就是圍起來，而"院"就是后院的意思。
     So a rectangular wall enclosing four houses, one built on each side facing into the center,is called a Siheyuan.
     也就是一個長方形的圍墻圍著四間屋子，每間屋子的門朝著院子中間。
     When they were first built, usually one Siheyuan was owned by only one family, but nowadays, with the growth of the population, most Siheyuans are shared by 4 to 10 families.
     過去，一個四合院只屬于一個家庭，而現(xiàn)在隨著人口的增長，大多數(shù)四合院住四至十戶人家。
     Hutongs are the countless little alleyways that connect the courtyards of traditional houses.
     胡同是無數(shù)條連接北京四合院的小巷子。
     The hutongs not only link Beijing's streets and communities but also its past and present.
     胡同不僅連通了北京的街道和社區(qū)，它還聯(lián)系著北京的過去和現(xiàn)在。
     Hutongs are still an integral part of Beijing life.
     胡同仍然是北京生活的一部分。
     Or wander down Rongxian-the longest hutong at 2 km or squeeze through Qianshe-the narrowest at only 40 cm wide!
     或徜徉在長達兩公里的絨線胡同，或側(cè)身擠過最窄處只有40厘米的錢舍胡同。
     As they offer the travelers a rare glimpse into China's fascinating past.
     因為透過這難得一見的胡同，游客能看到中國引人入勝的過去。
     Even houses tucked away in very small lanes have their own courtyards and trees.
     最小的胡同里的房子也有院子與樹。
     Investigation showed that the Stone Tiger Alley where Cao Xueqin lived was in Xidan, called Small Stone Tiger Alley.
     經(jīng)進一步查證，曹雪芹住過的石虎胡同在西單，名小石虎胡同。
     No.33 Small Stone Tiger Alley in Xidan was the Right Wing Zongxuefu (school), where Cao Xueqin once worked before he went to the West Mountains to write his book.
     西單的小石虎胡同33號在清時是右翼宗學府，曹雪芹到西山著書之前曾在這里任差。
     Conditions improved a great deal and many of the original hutongs were renovated and preserved.
     胡同的條件得到改善，對很多早期的胡同進行了修繕和保護。
     And it is not surprising that tourists are fascinated by the hutongs.
     你不會感到吃驚為什么他們對胡同如此著迷。
     "Siheyuan" style residences and the "hutongs" that linked them were unique to old Beijing.
     比如，四合院和縱橫其中的胡同都是老北京特色建筑物。
     The Hutongs are the old traditional areas of Beijing. They are really fascinating.
     胡同是北京古老而傳統(tǒng)的地方。它們有迷人的魅力。
     Hutongs are something like lanes where very traditional Chinese houses can be seen.
     胡同就是小巷，在那兒你可以看到傳統(tǒng)的中式房屋。
     Beijing's hutongs are particularly famous however, as there are literally thousands of them.
     北京的胡同格外著名，因為它有幾千條。
     Generation after generation of children spent their childhood in the hutongs of old Beijing, playing with unique folk toys.
     在老北京的胡同里，有許多從民間滋生的玩具，陪伴著一茬又一茬孩子度過快樂的童年。
     In old times, transportation was not as convenient as today, so street vendors played a very important role in Hutong life.
     過去，交通不像現(xiàn)在這樣發(fā)達，街頭小販在胡同中起到重要作用。
     They wandered from lane to lane selling various goods or providing all kind of services.
     他們往來于胡同間，販賣各種貨品或提供各種服務(wù)。
     The main attraction of Hutong life is friendly and interpersonal communication.
     胡同生活的最大魅力在于人與人之間的友好交往。
     Children living in one courtyard play together and grow up together like one big family.
     孩子們在一起長大，如同一家人一樣。