玛雅人并没有忘记闰年：英语精读讲义

Hello internet.

互联网上的朋友们，大家好。

A lot of you sent me this image making the rounds 習語

你们很多人给我发了这张广为流传的图片

which concerns the Mayan prediction that the world will end on December 21st, 2012.

它与玛雅人预言世界将在2012年12月21日终结有关。

The claim is that the Mayan calendar short counted the years

该说法认为，玛雅历法少算了年份

because they forgot about leap days so the world should have already ended. 語法

因为他们忘记了闰日，所以世界早就应该毁灭了。

This is followed by mind equals blown 文化背景

紧接着是“脑洞大开”的表情

which I'm not sure how to take.

我不太确定该怎么理解。

Do people think that the world forgot to have its apocalypse

人们是觉得世界忘了发生世界末日吗？

or that were it not for leap days 語法

还是觉得如果没有闰日，

we'd be already living in the future?

我们就已经生活在未来了？

Either way,

无论如何，

it's spawned many an argument that people ask me to explain 語法

它引发了许多争论，人们让我来解释一下，

which I'm happy to do

我很乐意这么做，

because my next big video was delayed by pestilence

因为我的下一个大型视频被疾病给耽搁了，

which struck me down into the depths of unproductive misery for the last few weeks. 短語動詞

这场病让我在过去几周里陷入了毫无生产力的悲惨深渊。

So, if you haven't already, 語法

所以，如果你还没看过，

please watch the related videos now as otherwise this won't make a whole lot of sense 短語搭配

请现在观看相关视频，否则这段内容你可能不太好懂，

and there are a few corrections I'd like to make.

而且我还有几个地方想要订正。

The first of these is that I shouldn't have called the Mayans Mayans. 語法

第一点，我不该把玛雅人叫作 Mayans。

Maya is the correct singular and plural noun to use 文化背景

Maya 才是正确的单复数名词形式，

in the same way that sheep is both singular and plural.

就像 sheep 这个词单复数同形一样。

Mayan is the name of the language and the adjective form of the word

Mayan 是语言的名称，也是该词的形容词形式，

as in the Mayan civilization.

例如用在 Mayan civilization（玛雅文明）中。

Secondly, I showed a picture of the Aztec calendar stone

其次，在我的 2012 视频里，我展示了一张阿兹特克太阳历石的图片，

rather than a Mayan calendar in my 2012 video

而不是玛雅历法，

which at the time I thought was okay

当时我觉得这没什么问题，

because the Aztec calendar is the same as the Mayan

因为阿兹特克历法和玛雅历法本质是一样的，

just with different names

只是名称不同罢了，

sort of like the Greek and Roman gods.

就像希腊神话和罗马神话的神灵一样。

And frankly, the Aztec one is much cooler looking

坦白说，阿兹特克的那个看起来更酷，

but I was still wrong to show it

但展示它仍然是我的错，

because despite naming it the Aztec calendar stone, 語法

因为尽管它被命名为阿兹特克太阳历石，

archaeologists don't actually think it's a calendar.

考古学家实际上并不认为它是个历法盘。

And speaking of stone, I used the term Stone Age to describe the Maya 表達脈絡

既然提到了石头（石器），我之前用石器时代来形容玛雅人，

which made many people very angry. 語法

这让很多人非常生气。

For clarity, Stone Age doesn't mean stupid.

澄清一下，石器时代不代表愚蠢。

It's the technological classification of a civilization limited to stone tools.

它是指一个文明仅能使用石制工具的技术分类。

Advanced as their astronomy and mathematics were, 語法

尽管他们的天文学和数学非常先进，

the Maya never discovered metallurgy

玛雅人从未发现过冶金术，

and thus couldn't move on to the Bronze Age 短語動詞

因此无法进入青铜时代，

then the Iron Age

接着是铁器时代，

then the Diamond Age.

还有钻石时代。

Right, enough corrections.

好了，订正得差不多了。

It's explanation time for this image which raises three questions.

现在该来解释一下这张提出了三个问题的图片了。

One, does the Mayan calendar have leap days?

第一，玛雅历法有闰日吗？

Two, did the Maya miscount the years?

第二，玛雅人算错年份了吗？

Three, should the world have already ended?

第三，世界是不是早就该毁灭了？

The answer to all of these is no. 表達脈絡

这些问题的答案全都是：没有。

To briefly recap, leap years exist to stop seasons from drifting out of sync with the calendar, 講解

简而言之，闰年的存在是为了防止季节与日历脱节，

a problem that vexed Pope Gregory

这个问题让格里高利教皇很头疼，

because every year Easter and Spring were getting further apart.

因为每年的复活节和春季差得越来越远。

To fix this, he introduced the modestly named Gregorian calendar 語氣意圖

为了解决这个问题，他引入了以他本人谦逊命名的格里历（公历），

with its fancy leap year rules to keep the seasons and thus the holidays together.

搭配花哨的闰年规则，让季节和假期保持一致。

But while Pope Gregory cared about the seasons,

但是，尽管格里高利教皇很在乎季节，

the ancient Maya did not

古玛雅人却不在乎，

presumably because where they lived the weather comes in only one season,

大概是因为在他们居住的地方，天气只有一种季节：

too hot and too humid.

太热和太潮湿。

So the Mayan calendar ignores seasons

所以玛雅历法忽略了季节，

in favor of accurately tracking the days since the creation of the Mayan religion. 短語搭配

转而精确追踪自玛雅宗教创立以来的天数。

This renders leap years an unnecessary complication. 語法

这使得闰年成了不必要的麻烦。

Though the Mayan calendar is no stranger to complication 習語

尽管玛雅历法对复杂性一点都不陌生，

with its cycles within cycles within cycles within cycles within cycles 表達脈絡

它有着一环扣一环、不断循环嵌套的周期，

that if you're interested,

如果你感兴趣的话，

Hank Green can tell you much more about.

汉克·格林能告诉你更多相关的内容。

But back to the miscounting claim 表達脈絡

但回到关于算错年份的说法，

which comes from our idea that leap days are extra days

这种说法源自我们的一个观念，即闰日是多出来的日子，

which of course they really aren't.

它们当然根本不是。

The Gregorian calendar doesn't give people extra days 語法

格里历并没有给人多出几天，

any more than daylight saving time gives people extra sunlight.

就像夏令时并没有给人多出阳光一样。

If you transported Pope Gregory a thousand years back in time 語法

如果你把格里高利教皇传送到一千年前

to meet the Mayan lady Xoc

去见玛雅的索克夫人，

and then made them count the days until this year's winter solstice, 語法

然后让他们数一数距离今年冬至还有多少天，

they'd agree on that number

他们数出的天数会是一样的，

because they're just counting sunrises.

因为他们都只是在数日出而已。

It's not like Pope Gregory with his clever modern calendar 語氣意圖

总不会是格里高利教皇拿着他聪明的现代历法，

would notice 500 plus days that the Lady Xoc somehow missed 語氣意圖

发现了索克夫人不知怎么漏掉的500多天，

perhaps while distracted by the pain from her thorns through the tongue routine. 文化背景

也许是因为她正忙于忍受用带刺绳索穿过舌头的常规仪式所带来的痛苦吧。

The only thing that they would disagree on is what to call that day 語法

他们唯一会产生分歧的，是如何称呼那一天，

with Pope Gregory insisting on December 21st, 2012

格里高利教皇坚持叫它 2012年12月21日，

and lady Xoc preferring the 13th baktun. 文化背景

而索克夫人更愿意称其为第13个白克顿。

So, this image is wrong

所以，这张图是错的，

because it's an apples-to-oranges comparison. 習語

因为这是拿风马牛不相及的东西在作比较。

The Mayan calendar doesn't have leap days because it doesn't need them.

玛雅历法没有闰日，因为它根本不需要。

It counts days just fine and its long cycle will finish on December 21st, 2012

它算天数算得很好，其长计历周期将在 2012年12月21日结束，

but the world will still go on. 短語動詞

但世界依然会继续运转。