西班牙牧羊人带领2000只羊群横穿马德里

2013-10-09 11:44:38来源：网络

西班牙牧羊人带领2000只羊横穿马德里.jpg

　　MADRID (AP) — Shepherds led a flock of 2,000 sheep through Madrid on Sunday in defense of ancient grazing, droving and migration rights increasingly threatened by urban sprawl and modern agricultural practices.

　　马德里(美联社)——随着城市化日益扩张和现代农耕技术的发展，为了保护传统的放牧、游牧生活不被破坏，本周日西班牙牧羊人带领一个2000只的羊群横穿马德里。

　　Tourists were surprised to see downtown traffic cut to permit the ovine parade to bleat — bells clanking — across some of Madrid's most upmarket urban settings.

　　游客们被眼前的景象惊呆了：市内交通全部暂停为羊群让路，等待着咩咩叫的羊群穿过最繁华的街道。

　　Since at least 1273, shepherds have had the right to use droving routes that wind across land that was once open fields and woodland before Madrid mushroomed to the great metropolis it is today.

　　至少从1273年起，在马德里变为国际大都市之前，牧羊人就有使用开阔土地，例如旷野和森林，作为游牧路线的权利。

　　Every year, a handful of shepherds defend that right in Spain's capital city. Following an age-old tradition, they paid 25 maravedis — coins first minted in the 11th century — to city hall officials to use the 125,000 kilometers crossing.

　　每年都有少量的牧羊人在西班牙首都进行维权。按照古老的传统，，牧羊人向市政厅官员支付25个西班牙铜币作为过境的费用。

　　Shepherds have a right to use around 78,000 miles (125,000 kilometers) of ancient paths for seasonal livestock migrations from cool highland pastures in summer to warmer and more protected lowland grazing in winter.

　　牧羊人有使用78000英里(125，000公里)的古街道进行季节性家畜迁徙的权利。他们在夏天将牲畜迁徙到两双的高山牧场，在冬天将牲畜迁徙到相对温暖的低地牧场。

　　The movement is called transhumance and in Spain up until recently involved close to 1 million animals a year, mostly sheep and cattle.

　　这项运动被称为季节性迁移放牧，现在在西班牙每年大约有100万只动物进行迁徙，主要是羊和牛。

　　Modern farming practices and the use of faster road transport are increasingly confining animals to barns or trucks, because shepherding is costly and time-consuming, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, which has promoted the colorful annual Transhumance Fiesta in Madrid since 1994.

　　根据农业部的报告，越来越多的人使用现代的农耕方式和公路运输，将动物关在畜棚内或使用卡车运输，因为放牧的事成比较大并且浪费时间。农业部从1994年开始在马德里推行丰富多彩的年度季节性迁徙嘉年华。

　　Spaniards are proud of their centuries-old sheep rearing traditions and hold the native Merino breed of sheep in high esteem.

　　西班牙人对他们几个世纪以来的羊群饲养传统非常自豪，并对本土美利奴羊表现出极高的尊重。

　　Merinos have gone on to form the backbone of important wool industries in places such as Australia and South America.

　　美利奴羊现在已经成为澳大利亚和南美羊绒产业的重要支柱。

　　Madrid became an important urban center when King Philip II chose it as the capital of his vast empire in 1561. Some paths have been used for more than 800 years and modern-day Madrid has sprawled to engulf two north-south routes. One that crosses Puerta del Sol — Madrid's equivalent of New York's Times Square — dates back to 1372.

　　从1561年，国王菲利普二世定都马德里开始，马德里变成了重要的城市中心。一些游牧干道已经使用了800年，随着马德里的不断扩张，它已经吞并了两个贯穿南北的游牧主干道。一条能追溯到1372年的主干道穿过太阳门广场——它在马德里的地位相当于纽约的时代广场。

　　相关词汇：

　　Shepherd：牧羊人

　　Graze：放牧;擦伤

　　modern agricultural practice：现代的农耕方式

　　livestock：家畜，牲畜

　　pasture：草地;牧场;牧草

　　transhumance：季节性迁移放牧

　　metropolis：大都市

　　backbone：支柱;脊柱

　　equivalent：等价物

本文关键字: 牧羊人马德里