世界节假日博览 第103期:美国阵亡将士纪念日

 Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday. It commemorates¹ the American men and women who have died serving their country in the military. It holds an important place in the hearts of Americans as they remember sacrifices made for their freedom. It is observed on the last Monday of May. It first started to honour the Union soldiers who died during the American Civil War. It took on greater importance after American losses in World War I. The U.S. government decided² the day would remember American casualties in any war, conflict or military action. People visit cemeteries³ and war memorials on this day. A special ceremony takes place at Arlington Cemetery⁴ in Washington D.C. All around the country, flags fly at half-mast until lunch time.

“美国阵亡将士纪念日”为美国官方假日。以此来悼念阵亡的美军官兵。在通往自由的道路上，美士兵献出生命，该节日在美国民众心中意义重大。于5月的最后一个周一举行。起初，该节日为一战阵亡的联合士兵而设。一战后，该节日地位逐渐上升。美政府决定，“阵亡将士纪念日”将悼念所有在战争、冲突或军事行动中阵亡的美军士兵。民众前往墓地或参观战争纪念馆。在华盛顿，阿灵顿国家公墓将举行特殊仪式。中午之前，全国所有国旗降半旗。

There is quite a history to Memorial Day. A Yale University professor said it was first celebrated⁵ in 1865 by freed slaves in South Carolina. The slaves buried dozens of Union soldiers in individual graves. They all died in prison. Waterloo, New York claims to be the official birthplace of Memorial Day, observing it every year from 1868. The name “Memorial Day” came about in 1882 but was not widely accepted until after World War II. The name became official in 1967. In 1968, the U.S. Congress decided the day should be part of a three-day weekend. The last change came in 1971, when the government moved Memorial Day to the last Monday in May. It took a few years after that for all U.S. states to follow.

“美国阵亡将士纪念日”大有来头。某耶鲁大学教授表示，南卡州自由奴隶率先在1865年举行纪念活动。奴隶将数十具联军尸体各个掩埋。联军士兵均死在狱中。沃特卢，纽约均声称为“纪念日”诞生地，并从1868年开始每年庆祝。节日名称“Memorial Day”起源于1882年，但直到二战后才被人们广泛接受。1967年，“Memorial Day”成为官方名称。1968年，美国决议将“美国阵亡将士纪念日”列入三天假期。1971年，“纪念日”迎来最后一次变动，将5月的最后一个周一定为“美国阵亡将士纪念日”。全美各州逐步实施已是几年以后了。

1.be part of 成为…的一部分

例句：Business representatives should also be part of this group.

商业代表也应该是这个组的一部分。

2.federal holiday 联邦假日

例句：The occasion is a federal holiday.

这个日子是联邦公假日。

3.take place 举行

例句：When does the wedding take place?

什么时候举行婚礼?

4.military action 军事行动

例句：This is seen as an implicit⁶ warning not to continue with military action.

这被视为一个停止军事行动的含蓄警告。

1 commemorates   

n.纪念，庆祝( commemorate的名词复数 )v.纪念，庆祝( commemorate的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• A tombstone is erected in memory of whoever it commemorates. 墓碑是为纪念它所纪念的人而建的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A tablet commemorates his patriotic activities. 碑文铭记他的爱国行动。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 cemeteries   

n.（非教堂的）墓地，公墓( cemetery的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• It's morbid to dwell on cemeteries and such like. 不厌其烦地谈论墓地以及诸如此类的事是一种病态。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• In other districts the proximity of cemeteries seemed to aggravate the disease. 在其它地区里，邻近墓地的地方，时疫大概都要严重些。 来自辞典例句

4 cemetery   

n.坟墓，墓地，坟场

参考例句：

• He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。
• His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

5 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

6 implicit   

a.暗示的，含蓄的，不明晰的，绝对的

参考例句：

• A soldier must give implicit obedience to his officers. 士兵必须绝对服从他的长官。
• Her silence gave implicit consent. 她的沉默表示默许。