中英雙語話史記 第14期:夏朝原始記載

Xia Dynasty

夏朝

Archaeological Records

原始記載

Unlike the later Shang dynasty, no direct archeological evidence exists to confirm the existence of a Xia dynasty.

與之後的商朝不同，沒有直接的考古學證據存在來證明夏朝的存在。

Archaeologists have uncovered urban sites, bronze implements, and tombs that point to the possible existence of the Xia dynasty at locations cited in ancient Chinese historical texts.

考古學家們開掘出了位於與古代中國歷史文章中提到的相同位置的城區、青銅器以及墓穴，而這些都表明了夏王朝的存在。

Most Chinese archaeologists identify the Erlitou culture as the site of the Xia dynasty,

大部分中國的考古學家把二里頭文化視爲夏朝的遺址，

while most Western archaeologists remain unconvinced of the connection between the Erlitou culture and the Xia Dynasty.

而大多數西方考古學家對於二里頭文化和夏朝之間的聯繫仍不確定。

In 1959, a site located in the city of Yanshi was excavated containing large palaces that some Chinese archaeologists have attributed as capital of the Xia Dynasty,

1959年，偃師市的一個遺址被開掘，其中包含了大型的宮殿，中國的考古學家認爲這是夏朝的都城，

though Western archaeologists are reluctant to make this claim on the grounds that no written records exist to confirm the name of the dynasty and its sovereigns.

而西方的考古學家對於這個論斷很猶豫因爲沒有書面的記錄存在來表明這個朝代的名稱和它的君主。

Radiocarbon dating places the site at about 2100 to 1800 BC, providing physical evidence of the existence of a state contemporaneous with and possibly equivalent to the Xia Dynasty as described in Chinese historical works.

放射性炭測定此遺址的年代在公元前2100年至1800年之間，這爲一個與夏朝處於同年代的甚至於就是中國歷史著作中提到的夏朝的存在提供了物證。

At a minimum, the archeological discoveries marked an evolutionary stage between the late Neolithic cultures and the typical Chinese urban civilization of the Shang dynasty.

至少，考古學的發現標誌着一個處於新石器文化末期與商朝典型的中國城市文明之間進化的階段。

Agricultural technology improved drastically with the invention of wine making and improvements in horse herding, and carriages were used.

伴隨着紅酒製造的發明，牧馬的進步以及四輪馬車的運用，農業技術飛速發展。