Bamboo in Chinese Culture 　中國文化里的竹子

China is known as the Kingdom of Bamboo because it has the most bamboo of any country in the world. More than 400 species of bamboo， one third of all known species in the world， grow in China. The areas that produce the most bamboo are south of Yangtze River.

中國是世界上竹子最多的國家，有“竹子王國”的美稱。中國種植著超過400種竹子，占世界上已知竹子種類的三分之一。竹子產量最多的地區位于長江以南。

Bamboo was closely connected with the daily lives of people in ancient China. Su Dongpo， a literary giant of the Song Dynasty， said that people could not live without bamboo， and people of the time used bamboo as firewood and to make tiles， paper， rafts， hats， rain capes， and shoes.

在中國古代，竹子與人們的日常生活密切相關。宋朝的大文學家蘇東坡曾說：不可居無竹。當時的人們用竹子作為柴火，做竹片、紙、竹筏、帽子、雨篷和鞋。

ln the Han Dynasty， bamboo was used for papermaking because it produced high-quality paper and was inexpensive： three tons of bamboo could yield one ton of paper pulp. And bamboo is still an important raw material for papermaking today. Some 1，600 years ago， people wrote with brushes on xuan paper made from young bamboo， and xuan paper is still popular for Chinese calligraphy and paintings.

在漢代，竹子被用于造紙，因為用它可以生產高質量的紙張，而且價格低廉：3噸竹子可以生產1噸紙漿。竹子仍是當今造紙的重要原料。大約1600年前，人們就用毛筆在嫩竹子做的宣紙上寫字，而宣紙至今在中國的書法和繪畫中仍然很受歡迎。

Tall and graceful with luxuriant foliage， bamboo is an ideal plant for household courtyards and parks. It tolerates the heat of summer and the cold of winter， and it regenerates after being cut.

竹子高挺優美，枝葉繁茂，是家庭庭院和公園的理想植物。它能忍受夏季的炎熱和冬季的寒冷，被砍伐后又能再生。

Throughout the centuries， bamboo has inspired the imagination of artists， while men of letters have written poetry and prose to express their admiration for the purity and elegance of bamboo. They compared the qualities of bamboo to those of man， and Su Dongpo attributed his literary inspiration to bamboo. Bamboo was also a favorite subject of noted Chinese painters of past dynasties.

近千年以來，竹子激發了藝術家們的想象力，而文人則通過寫詩和散文來表達他們對竹子的純潔和優雅的欽佩。他們將竹子的品質與人類的品質進行了比較。蘇東坡將他的文學靈感歸因于竹子。竹子也是中國古代著名畫家喜愛的題材。

Word Bank

yield /ji?ld/ v. 出產（作物）；產生（效益）

The research has yielded useful information.

inspire /?n'spa??（r）/ v. 激勵；鼓舞

The actors enthusiasm inspired the kids.

attribute /?'tr?bju?t/ v. 把……歸因于；認為……是由于

She attributes her success to hard work and a little luck.