双语传播 | 用英文领略李时珍本草纲目之光彩

讲述中医药故事，传播中医药文化，分享跨文化交流的精彩，本网与外国语学院联合推出的“双语传播”栏目开栏了！首期，让我们从一场精彩纷呈的英语翻译大赛说起......

湖北中医药大学·李时珍铜像

博而不繁，详而有要，综核究竟，直窥渊海。兹岂禁以医书觏哉，实性理之精微，格物之通典，帝王之秘箓，臣民之重宝也。

——《本草纲目》原序

伟大的医药学家李时珍撰写的《本草纲目》，被誉为“中国古代的百科全书”。在明代文学家王世贞的序言中，这部巨著的魅力和光彩熠熠生辉。如果要用英语翻译这段文字，你会如何表达？当博大精深的中医药文化遇上英语，又会碰撞出怎样的火花？（文末附有参考译文）

近日，湖北中医药大学举办了一场特别的活动，吸引众多英语爱好者现场比拼实力，表达对中医药文化的热爱。

Recently, a special activity held in Hubei University of Chinese Medicine caught the eye of many English enthusiasts to compete on the spot and showcase their passion for TCM(Traditional Chinese Medicine) culture.

7月11日，中国中医药报2版以“湖北中医药大学举办中医药英语翻译大赛”为题对活动进行了报道。

On July 11, China News of Traditional Chinese Medicine published a special report on the second page with the title “TCM Translation Contest Held by Hubei University of Chinese Medicine”.

大赛自4月启动，共收到来自全国各地1006份笔译作品，55位选手入围决赛。

Since its launch in April, 1006 translation works from all over the country were received, and 55 contestants entered the final round.

决赛题目选自《李时珍<本草纲目>500年大事年谱》，考验选手的中医功底和英语水平。

The original text of the Final was selected from A 500-year Chronicle of Compendium of Materia Medica to test their grasp of TCM knowlege and language expertise.

经过角逐，湖北中医药大学学生万冰霜获特等奖，中铁大桥科学研究院（武汉）有限公司职工张妮、福建省闽江学院学生黄鸿杰获一等奖。

After fierce competition, Wan Bingshuang, a student from Hubei University of  Chinese Medicine, won the special award. Zhang Ni from China Railway Bridge Science Research Institute (Wuhan), and Huang Hongjie, a student from Minjiang College of Fujian Province, won the first prize.

赛后，外国语学院教师毛和荣为参赛选手作专题讲座，探讨中医药英语翻译规范。

After the event, Mao Herong, associate professor of School of Foreign Languages, delivered a lecture for the contestants to discuss the translation standards for TCM.

据悉，此次大赛优秀选手已获推荐参加世界中医药翻译大赛、武汉军运会翻译工作等机会。

It is reported that outstanding contestants have been granted the opportunities to participate in the World TCM Translation Competition and the 7th CISM Military World Games in Wuhan.

外国语学院院长刘娅表示，希望通过每年举办一届翻译大赛，提高英语爱好者对中医药英语的学习热情，领略中医药文化的独特魅力，传承弘扬李时珍精神。

Liu Ya, Dean of School of Foreign Languages, hopes to evoke the enthusiasm of English lovers for TCM through holding such an event every year, as a way to appreciate the unique charm of TCM culture and to carry forward the great spirit of Li Shizhen.

大赛以李时珍的全球影响和《本草纲目》在世界各地的传播为主题，以下为大赛试题和参考译文。

李时珍（1518-1593），字东璧，号濒湖山人，明代蕲州城（今湖北省蕲春县蕲州镇）人。

Li Shizhen（1518-1593）, courtesy-named Dongbi and art-named Recluse of Binhu (Bin Hu Shan Ren), came from Qizhou City of the Ming Dynasty, now Qizhou Town, Qichun County of Hubei Province.

李时珍“岁历三十稔，书考八百余家，稿凡三易”，编著成划时代科学巨著《本草纲目》。

To successfully compile the epoch-making scientific masterpiece Compendium of Materia Medica (Ben Cao Gang Mu), Li Shizhen had devoted over 30 years to the textual researches on more than 800 classics and had the draft manuscript revised totally three times.

在前人药物研究的基础上，通过纠正过去许多药物性能及各种病因的错误说法，“缺者补之”，李时珍进一步发展了药物学。实际上，《本草纲目》预示着现代药物学研究的到来。

On the basis of his predecessors’ achievements in the pharmacological studies, Li contributed further by supplementing the unrecorded and rectifying many past mistakes and misconceptions as regards the nature of many medicinal substances and causes of various illnesses. The Compendium of Materia Medica in fact heralds the dawning of modern pharmacological studies.

在中医药的发展历史上，《本草纲目》是最全面最完备的医药学著作。书中列举、分析和描述了所有动植物、矿物和其他具有药物特性的物质。

The Compendium of Materia Medica is the most complete and comprehensive medical book ever written in the history of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). It lists, analyses and describes all the plants, animals, minerals and other objects that were believed to have medicinal properties.

《本草纲目》的成就不仅局限于药物学，它还涉及植物学、动物学、矿物学、物理学、天文学、化学、冶金学、地质学、气象学等诸多领域。

As for the achievements, the Compendium of Materia Medica is not merely confined to the province of pharmacology, but also covers (discussion on topics such as) botany, zoology, mineralogy, physics, astronomy, chemistry, metallurgy, geology, meteorology, etc.

《本草纲目》全书共52卷，2011年成功申遗的版本由当时的金陵书商胡承龙于1596年刻印而成。因此，“金陵本”被认为是后世海内外各种版本的“祖本”。

The book is a 52-volume compilation. The edition successfully nominated for the Memory of the World Register was carved and block-printed (earliest of its kind) in 1596 by bookseller Hu Cheng-long from Jinling (now Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province). Therefore, the “Jinling Edition” is the source document for all its later versions both in China and the world.

从18世纪到20世纪，《本草纲目》被全译或节译为包括法语、英语、德语、俄语在内的多种文字，并远播到世界各国。

From the 18th to 20th century, the compendium was either completely or partly translated into many languages, including French, English, German and Russian, and distributed all over the world.

英国生物学家，《物种起源》的作者查尔斯&middot;达尔文称《本草纲目》为“中国古代的百科全书”。

Charles Darwin, the British biologist and author of Origins of Species, acknowledged the book as an “ancient Chinese encyclopedia”.

可以说，《本草纲目》是世界文化最好的见证之一。

The Compendium of Materia Medica may be counted among the first-rate testimonies of world culture.”

湖北中医药大学连续多年主办海峡两岸李时珍医药文化与产业合作发展论坛

学习到这里，你是否对开篇评价《本草纲目》的序言有了更深的理解，一起来看看这段序言怎么翻译吧！

“Broad and elaborate as it is in content, this monumental work is neatly organized and selectively highlighted. It’s just like roaming the vast sea of medicines for he has comprehensively investigated into the nature of them. Should it be only treated as a medical book? Definitely, no! It’s actually an epitome of human reasoning and an encyclopedia of principle inquiry (into all medicinals). It’s really a secret document for the monarchs and a cherished trove for His Majesty’s subjects.”

湖北中医药大学&middot;李时珍广场

传承李时珍精神

弘扬中医药文化

湖北中医药大学

走在新时代推动中医药振兴发展的路上

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