新生儿贺礼各国大不同

译/李海龙

新生儿贺礼各国大不同

译/李海龙

Baby Gift Giving Traditions Around the World

世界各国的文化不同，赠送新生儿礼物的传统也千差万别，而下面几个国家的传统尤为独特。

Here are some of the most unique baby gift giving traditions from different cultures around the world.

埃及

[2]在埃及，送给新生儿的传统礼物是带有蓝眼睛饰物的棕榈叶。人们通常会把它别在新生儿的衣服上，使他们免受“邪眼”的伤害。

Egypt

[2] In Egypt, a palm with a blue eye is traditionally given to newborn babies. It is usually attached to their clothing, giving them protection from the “evil eye1邪眼，一种迷信力量，由他人的妒忌或厌恶而生，可带来噩运或者伤病。持邪眼信仰的人们往往认为，儿童尤其是婴儿最容易招致邪眼诅咒，因为长者往往易于夸奖儿童，这便容易招致陌生人或是无子女妇女的嫉妒和恶念。.”

印度

[3]在印度，人们会把银脚镯送给刚出生的女婴。身上佩戴装饰品是印度的一大传统。人们认为银制品代表力量，赠送银饰是希望婴儿健康茁壮地成长。

India

[3] In India, baby girls are given silver ankle bracelets when they are born. Body decoration is a very popular tradition in India. It is thought that silver represents strength and brings hope that the baby will grow up to be strong and healthy.

中国

[4]在中国，人们给新生儿的传统礼物是塞了钱的红包。有的红包是全红色，有的上面写着“吉祥”或者“如意”字样。这种红包表示要带给婴儿一生的喜庆和富贵。

China

[4] In China, a red envelope fi lled with money is traditionally given to newborn babies. The envelope can be plain2plain全然；完全地。red or have the words “fortune” or “luck” written on it. This is thought to bring great joy and wealth to their life.

巴西

[5]在巴西，不少人认为准妈妈收到的第一件礼物应该是针织的红色鞋子，也有人认为新生儿出院时应该穿这样的鞋子。

Brazil

[5] Many believe that knitted red shoes should be the very first gift an expectant mother33 expectant mother孕妇；准妈妈。receives, but others believe the newborn should wear the shoes when leaving the hospital.

俄罗斯

[6]在俄罗斯，人们给婴儿的礼物是一把银匙，据说它会给新生儿的未来带来财富和好运。

Russia

[6] In Russia, babies are given a silver spoon, which is thought to bring wealth and good luck to their future.

澳大利亚

[7]在澳大利亚，人们会送给婴儿有关黄金时代的儿童故事书。书中的故事讲述了人、大地和动物之间的关系，还谈及文化价值观和文化信念。

Australia

[7] Dreamtime4dreamtime澳洲土著语alcheringa的字面意义，特指澳大利亚土著神话中的黄金时代。children’s storybooks are given to babies in Australia. The books tell stories of the relationships between people, land and animals, as well as cultural values and beliefs.

英国

[8]就婴儿礼物而言，英国文化和美国文化二者差别不大。在英国，人们经常拿来送给新生儿的礼物有首饰、摇铃、相框和纪念品盒子。

United Kingdom

[8] English culture and American culture are not that different when it comes to baby gifts. Some common newborn baby gifts in the United Kingdom include jewelry, rattles5rattle摇铃；拨浪鼓。, picture frames and keepsake6keepsake纪念品；留作纪念的小东西。boxes.

美国

[9]美国人送给婴儿的礼物包括鲜花、玩具、衣服等。最近，美国很流行的做法是给新生儿送摇钱树，希望它带给婴儿好运和福气。摇钱树有时也叫作发财树，它的历史悠久，对很多人来说更是寓意深远。□

United States

[9] American baby gifting includes flowers, toys, clothes, etc. Recently, it has become very popular in the U.S. to give newborns Money Trees7摇钱树（一种经过装饰摇动时会落下钱币的树）。to give them luck and good fortune in their lives. These trees, sometimes called Pachira8发财树；马拉巴栗。plants, have rich histories and great signi fi cance to many people.

（译者单位：浙江外国语学院）