中英雙語話中國民風民俗 第149期:爆竹的演變
The Evolution of Firecrackers
爆竹的演變Setting off firecrackers is a practice handed down from the remote past,when burning bamboo stems were burnt. Bamboo stems have joints and are hollow inside. When they are burnt,the air inside expands after being heated,and the stems themselves burst open and make a loud cracking sound. Later on, people placed gunpowder in the bamboo stems and thus invented firecrackers. Still later, paper rolls replaced bamboo stems. By the close of the Qing Dynasty,there were already special workshops in China making all kinds of firecrackers.
燃放鞭炮是從遙遠的過去流傳下來的傳統，當燃燒竹筒被燃燒後。竹子的有莖結且內部中空。當它們被燒燬，空氣被加熱後內部膨脹，而莖會突然爆開，發出很大的碎裂聲。後來，人們把火藥放置在竹莖內，從而發明了鞭炮。再後來，紙卷代替竹莖。臨近清代，在中國就已經有製作各種鞭炮的工作坊。
