1.有关英语俗语的文化内涵及其特点

英语习语是英语语言文化中不容忽视的重要组成部分。

英语习语折射着英语语言民族在地理、历史、宗教信仰、生活习俗等方面丰富的文化信息和独特的文化特色。准确掌握英语中的习语， 能帮助我们深刻理解英语词汇中的文化内涵及文化差异， 从而更加准确、传神地使用英语。

一、引言 语言是人在劳动中创造的，习语是语言特征的集中反映，它来自于普通百姓的生产劳动和生活经历，是语言的精华、语言的缩影；语言是一个任意的符号系统，习语是人在长期的语言实践中约定俗成的；语言是以交际为目的的，习语的起源就是在口头交际中使用最频繁的俚语和俗语；语言是人类智慧的表现，习语比较集中地反映出语言的修辞手段和表现手法（其中相当一部分是文学巨匠的精彩词句）；语言是为人类各种活动服务的，而习语恰好生动地反映出人类生活的方方面面。 广义的习语包含比喻性词组、俚语、格言、俗语、谚语、典故等，是语言发展的结晶。

英语语言历史悠久，包含着大量的习语，它们或含蓄、幽默、或严肃、典雅，不仅言简意赅，而且形象生动，妙趣横生，给语言增色不少。由于地理、历史、宗教信仰和生活习俗等多方面的因素决定，习语承载着英语语言民族的文化信息和文化特色，并与它们的文化传统紧密相连，不可分割。

而对英语习语的学习有助于我们掌握英语本族语者的真实语言，了解语言背后所隐藏着的丰富而有趣的文化信息。二、英语习语中隐含的历史背景 1、罗马人的痕迹 公元前49年，罗马执政庞贝和元老院共谋进攻恺撒。

当时恺撒的领地和意大利本部交界处有条小河Rubicon。恺撒不顾一切，悍然率领军队渡过此河与庞贝决战。

在渡河时他说"The die is cast."骰子已经掷下， 表明义无反顾。过了河，他还烧毁了渡船，（ burn the boats） 逼得士兵毫无退路，只好勇往直前， 打败了敌人。

就是这样一段历史故事， 在英语中留下了几个常见的习语： cross the Rubicon（ 渡过鲁比肯河） 喻意决定冒重大危险， 采取断然行动； burn one's boats（ 烧掉自己的船） 表示破釜沉舟的决心； The die is cast. （ 骰子已经掷下） 预示着事情已经决定， 再也不能改变。 2、条顿人的征服 条顿人， 即居住在西北欧的3个日耳曼部落， 他们是盎格鲁人、萨克逊人和朱特人。

约在公元449 年， 他们开始征服不列颠。他们的入侵给英语带来了极大的影响， 并最终形成盎格鲁-萨克逊语， 即现代英语的起源。

条顿人的征服对英语的影响是全面的， 起决定作用的， 从很多英语习语还可以找到条顿人征服的影子。如cut someone to the quick 意为"大伤某人的感情"， quick 这里指"皮肉"，这个解释源于古撒克逊语。

Go through fire and water是"赴汤蹈火"的意思， 源自盎格鲁- 撒克逊时期的中世纪判罪法。 3、斯堪的纳维亚风暴 公元790年开始，斯堪的纳维亚人入侵英国，并在英国大批定居，他们讲的是北日耳曼语， 是现在的瑞典语、芬兰语、挪威语和冰岛语的前身。

在此后的二百年中，许多斯堪的纳维亚各族语言（北日耳曼语）的词语渗入英语词汇。据估计，现代英语中约有900个斯堪的纳维亚各族语言的单词或构词成分。

斯堪的纳维亚各族语言对英语的渗透特别深入。最常用的习语rain cats and dogs， 来自北欧神化：古代斯堪的纳维亚人的主神是奥丁（Odin），狗（dog）和狼（wolf）象征"风"，猫（cat）象征"雨"，所以该习语喻指"狂风暴雨"。

4、诺曼底登陆 公元1066年，诺曼底公爵威廉入侵英国，并建立了诺曼底王朝。这一事件对英国的影响巨大。

它使法语成为现代英语的三大来源之一。同时，法国文化逐渐向英国社会渗透， 影响着英语及其习语。

如： return to one's mutton 原是直译自法国田园诗中的一句： 多情的男女牧羊人在牧场上谈情说爱、海阔天空，最终还得回到现实，回到自己的羊群中来。因此，这一习语比喻"回到实际问题，言归正传"。

三、英语习语体现自然地理环境特征 生活在不同自然环境中的人会形成不同的文化， 每种文化因其地域、气候环境的特点而具有不同的特征， 习语恰恰包含了独特的文化基因。

2.关于英汉谚语的语言特征的问题

1.Bird (1) Kill two birds with one stone. 一箭双雕；一举两得。

（2） A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. 双鸟在林不如一鸟在手。 （3） Birds of a feather flock together. 物以类聚，人以群分。

（4） It's an ill bird that fouls own nest. 家丑不可外扬。 （5） Fine feathers make fine birds. 人要衣装，马要鞍。

（6） A bird is known by its note, and a man by his talk. 听音识鸟，闻言识人。 （7） Each bird loves to hear himself sing. 鸟儿都爱听自己唱。

（自我欣赏） （8） You cannot catch old birds with chaff.（粗糠）. 用粗糠捉不住老鸟。（有经验的人难骗。）

（9） Birds in their little nests agree. 同巢之鸟心儿齐。 2. Cat (1) A cat has nine lives.猫有九条命；吉人天相。

（2） Cats hide their claws. 知人知面不知心。 （3） All cats are grey in the dark.. 黑暗之中猫都是灰色的。

（人未出名时看起来都差不多。） （4） A gloved cat catches no mice. 戴手套的猫，老鼠抓不到。

（不愿吃苦的人成不了大事业。） （5） When the weasel and the cat make a marriage, it is a very ill presage. 黄鼠狼和猫结亲，不是好事情。）

（6） Who will bwll the cat？ 谁去给猫系铃？（谁愿意为大家冒风险？） （7） The cat shuts its eyes when stealing cream. 帽偷吃奶油的时候总是闭着眼睛。（掩耳盗铃） （8） There are more ways of killing a cat than by choking it with butter. 杀猫的办法很多。

（达到目的的途径很多。） （9） Care kill a cat. 忧虑愁死猫。

3. Chicken (1) Don't count your chickens before they're hatched. 鸡蛋未孵出，先别数小鸡。（不要过早乐观。）

4. Crow (1) A crow is never the whiter for washing herself often. 江山易改，本性难移。 5. Dog (1) He who would hang his dog gives out first that it is mad. 欲加之罪，何患无词. （2） A staff is quickly found to beat a dog with. 欲加之罪，何患无词. （3） Love me, love my dog. 爱屋及乌. （4） Too much pudding will choke a dog. 布丁太多噎死狗。

（5） Every dog has his day. 人人皆有得意时。 （6） Barking dogs don't (seldom) bite. 爱叫的狗很少咬人。

（7） Let sleeping dogs lie. 勿惹事生非。 （8） Dead dogs bite not. 死狗不咬人。

（9） All are not thieves that dogs bark at. 狗见了叫的不一定都是贼。（不要以貌取人。）

（10） Every dog is a lion at home. 狗在家门口就成了狮子。 （11） Don't be a dog (lying) in the manger. 莫学狗占马槽不吃草。

（不要占着茅坑不拉屎。） （12） Dog does not eat dog. 同类不相残。

（13） Scornful dogs will eat dirty puddings. 狗再傲慢也会吃脏布丁。 （14） A son never thinks his mother ugly,and a dog never shuns its owner's home however shabby it is.儿不嫌母丑，狗不嫌家贫。

6. Frog (1) The frog in the well knows nothing of the great ocean. 井底之蛙，不知大海。 7. Fox (1) The fox may grow grey, but never good. 狐狸毛色可变灰，但是本性难移。

（2） The fox preys farthest from his hole. 狐狸捕食，远离洞府。（兔子不吃窝边草。）

（3） When the fox preaches, then take care of your geese. 每当狐狸说教，当心鹅群被盗。 （4） When the fox says he is a vegetarian, it's time for the hen to look out. 狐狸说它吃素的时候，母鸡就得注意。

英语中有关动物的谚语（下） 8. Fish (1) The best fish swim near the bottom. 好鱼常在水底游。 （2） Never offer to teach fish to swim. 不要班门弄斧。

（3） Go to the sea, if you would fish well. 不入虎穴，焉得虎子。 （4） There's as good fish in the sea as ever came out of it. 海里的好鱼多的是。

（5） It is a silly fish that is caught twice with the same bait. 智者不上两次档。 （6） If water is noisy, there are no fish in it. 咆哮的水中无鱼。

（夸夸其谈者无真才实学。）。

9. Hare (1) You cannot run with the hare and hunt with the hounds（猎狗）. 不能既和野兔一起跑又和猎狗一起追。（人不应两面讨好。）

（2） The tortoise wins the race while the hare is sleeping. 兔子睡懒觉，乌龟跑赢了。 10. Horse (1) You can take a horse to the water, but you can't make him drink. 带马到河边容易，逼马饮水难。

（2） Don't ride the high horse. 勿摆架子。 （3） A good horse cannot be of a bad colour. 好马不会毛色差。

（4） A horse may stumble on four feet. 马有四条腿，亦有失蹄时。 （5） A running horse needs no spur. 奔马无需鞭策。

（6） Don't put the cart before the horse. 不要将大车套在马前面。（处理问题应按先后次序，不要本末倒置。）

（7） The common horse is worst shod. 公用之马，掌子最差。 （8） Lock the barn door after the horse is stolen. 失马之后锁马厩。

（亡羊补牢） （9） Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. 馈赠之马，勿看牙口。 （10） Hair by hair you will pull out the horse's tail. 一根一根拔，拔光马尾巴。

（水滴石穿） 11 . Mouse (1) It is a poor mouse that has only one hole. 狡兔三窟。 （2） The mouse that has but one hole is quickly taken. 只有一个洞的老鼠，很快就被抓住。

（3） A speck of mouse dung will spoil a whole pot of porridge. 一粒老鼠屎，坏了一锅粥。 12. Sheep (1) If 。

3.谚语的特点

谚语是民间集体创造、广为口传、言简意赅并较为定型的艺术语句，是民众丰富智慧和普遍经验的规律性总结。根据内容，可以分为三类：

(1)认识自然和总结生产经验的谚语：如“长虫过道，大雨要到”、“东北有三宝：人参、貂皮、乌拉草”。

(2)认识社会和总结社会活动经验的谚语：如“人敬富的，狗咬破的”、“放虎归山，必有后患”。

(3)总结一般生活经验的谚语：如“寒从脚起，病从口入”、“早晨起得早，八十不觉老”。

谚语有多种： 有英语谚语、气象谚语、经典谚语、农业谚语

、卫生谚语、社会谚语、学习谚语等……

4.英语谚语和寓意

A friend in need is a friend indeed.

患难见真情。

A penny saved is a penny gained.

省下一分钱等于得到一分钱。

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

只工作不娱乐使人愚钝。

Honesty is the best policy.

诚实为上策。

In for a penny, in for a pound.

一不作，二不休。

It takes two to make a quarrel.

一个巴掌拍不响。

Let a sleeping dog lie.

莫惹事生非。

Let bygones be bygones.

既往宜不咎。

Money is a good servant but a bad master.

金钱可以成为很好的仆人，却绝对是最坏的主人

Where there is a will,there is a way.

有志者，事竟成。

5.关于英汉谚语的语言特征的问题

1.Bird (1) Kill two birds with one stone. 一箭双雕；一举两得。

（2） A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. 双鸟在林不如一鸟在手。 （3） Birds of a feather flock together. 物以类聚，人以群分。

（4） It's an ill bird that fouls own nest. 家丑不可外扬。 （5） Fine feathers make fine birds. 人要衣装，马要鞍。

（6） A bird is known by its note, and a man by his talk. 听音识鸟，闻言识人。 （7） Each bird loves to hear himself sing. 鸟儿都爱听自己唱。

（自我欣赏） （8） You cannot catch old birds with chaff.（粗糠）. 用粗糠捉不住老鸟。（有经验的人难骗。）

（9） Birds in their little nests agree. 同巢之鸟心儿齐。 2. Cat (1) A cat has nine lives.猫有九条命；吉人天相。

（2） Cats hide their claws. 知人知面不知心。 （3） All cats are grey in the dark.. 黑暗之中猫都是灰色的。

（人未出名时看起来都差不多。） （4） A gloved cat catches no mice. 戴手套的猫，老鼠抓不到。

（不愿吃苦的人成不了大事业。） （5） When the weasel and the cat make a marriage, it is a very ill presage. 黄鼠狼和猫结亲，不是好事情。）

（6） Who will bwll the cat？ 谁去给猫系铃？（谁愿意为大家冒风险？） （7） The cat shuts its eyes when stealing cream. 帽偷吃奶油的时候总是闭着眼睛。（掩耳盗铃） （8） There are more ways of killing a cat than by choking it with butter. 杀猫的办法很多。

（达到目的的途径很多。） （9） Care kill a cat. 忧虑愁死猫。

3. Chicken (1) Don't count your chickens before they're hatched. 鸡蛋未孵出，先别数小鸡。（不要过早乐观。）

4. Crow (1) A crow is never the whiter for washing herself often. 江山易改，本性难移。 5. Dog (1) He who would hang his dog gives out first that it is mad. 欲加之罪，何患无词. （2） A staff is quickly found to beat a dog with. 欲加之罪，何患无词. （3） Love me, love my dog. 爱屋及乌. （4） Too much pudding will choke a dog. 布丁太多噎死狗。

（5） Every dog has his day. 人人皆有得意时。 （6） Barking dogs don't (seldom) bite. 爱叫的狗很少咬人。

（7） Let sleeping dogs lie. 勿惹事生非。 （8） Dead dogs bite not. 死狗不咬人。

（9） All are not thieves that dogs bark at. 狗见了叫的不一定都是贼。（不要以貌取人。）

（10） Every dog is a lion at home. 狗在家门口就成了狮子。 （11） Don't be a dog (lying) in the manger. 莫学狗占马槽不吃草。

（不要占着茅坑不拉屎。） （12） Dog does not eat dog. 同类不相残。

（13） Scornful dogs will eat dirty puddings. 狗再傲慢也会吃脏布丁。 （14） A son never thinks his mother ugly,and a dog never shuns its owner's home however shabby it is.儿不嫌母丑，狗不嫌家贫。

6. Frog (1) The frog in the well knows nothing of the great ocean. 井底之蛙，不知大海。 7. Fox (1) The fox may grow grey, but never good. 狐狸毛色可变灰，但是本性难移。

（2） The fox preys farthest from his hole. 狐狸捕食，远离洞府。（兔子不吃窝边草。）

（3） When the fox preaches, then take care of your geese. 每当狐狸说教，当心鹅群被盗。 （4） When the fox says he is a vegetarian, it's time for the hen to look out. 狐狸说它吃素的时候，母鸡就得注意。

英语中有关动物的谚语（下） 8. Fish (1) The best fish swim near the bottom. 好鱼常在水底游。 （2） Never offer to teach fish to swim. 不要班门弄斧。

（3） Go to the sea, if you would fish well. 不入虎穴，焉得虎子。 （4） There's as good fish in the sea as ever came out of it. 海里的好鱼多的是。

（5） It is a silly fish that is caught twice with the same bait. 智者不上两次档。 （6） If water is noisy, there are no fish in it. 咆哮的水中无鱼。

（夸夸其谈者无真才实学。）。

9. Hare (1) You cannot run with the hare and hunt with the hounds（猎狗）. 不能既和野兔一起跑又和猎狗一起追。（人不应两面讨好。）

（2） The tortoise wins the race while the hare is sleeping. 兔子睡懒觉，乌龟跑赢了。 10. Horse (1) You can take a horse to the water, but you can't make him drink. 带马到河边容易，逼马饮水难。

（2） Don't ride the high horse. 勿摆架子。 （3） A good horse cannot be of a bad colour. 好马不会毛色差。

（4） A horse may stumble on four feet. 马有四条腿，亦有失蹄时。 （5） A running horse needs no spur. 奔马无需鞭策。

（6） Don't put the cart before the horse. 不要将大车套在马前面。（处理问题应按先后次序，不要本末倒置。）

（7） The common horse is worst shod. 公用之马，掌子最差。 （8） Lock the barn door after the horse is stolen. 失马之后锁马厩。

（亡羊补牢） （9） Don't look a gift horse in the mouth. 馈赠之马，勿看牙口。 （10） Hair by hair you will pull out the horse's tail. 一根一根拔，拔光马尾巴。

（水滴石穿） 11 . Mouse (1) It is a poor mouse that has only one hole. 狡兔三窟。 （2） The mouse that has but one hole is quickly taken. 只有一个洞的老鼠，很快就被抓住。

（3） A speck of mouse dung will spoil a whole pot of porridge. 一粒老鼠屎，坏了一锅粥。 12. Sheep (1) If one sheep leaps over the ditch, all the rest will follow. 榜样的力量是无穷的。

（2） A la。

6.浅谈英语谚语的文化价值

语言是文化的表现形式。谚语同文学作品、诗歌一样是语言的精华。英语谚语是富于色彩的语言形式，一般具有生动形象、喻义明显、富于哲理的语言特征。在一定程度上，英语谚语反映了英语民族的文化特点。因此，翻译英语谚语时，仅仅以语言之间词汇的同义性（等价性）为前提，寻求对等的表现是不够的。译者须较多运用汉语的表现手段，力求能再现英语谚语的语言风格和丰富内涵。只有多注意英语谚语字面以外所特有的语言内涵色彩，才能使译文讽喻得当，宜于说理，又不失原来谚语所具有的语言形象。

某些英语谚语和汉语成语、俗语在表现形式和含义方面是一致的或基本一致的。汉译这些英语时，可惜用与其喻义相同或相近的成语或谚语及俗语直接对译。这样不但可以比较好地保持原文的神韵和形式，又使译文易于为读者或听者接受。

7.急

ARCHER TAYLOR THE ORIGINS OF THE PROVERB*关于英语谚语起源与发展的文章！ THE definition of a proverb is too difficult to repay the undertaking; and should we fortunately combine in a single definition all the essential elements and give each the proper emphasis, we should not even then have a touchstone. An incommunicable quality tells us this sentence is proverbial and that one is not. Hence no definition will enable us to identify positively a sentence as proverbial. Those who do not speak a language can never recognize all its proverbs, and similarly much that is truly proverbial escapes us in Elizabethan and older English. Let us be content with recognizing that a proverb is a saying current among the folk. At least so much of a definition is indisputable, and we shall see and weigh the significance of other elements later. The origins of the proverb have been little studied. We can only rarely see a proverb actually in the making, and any beliefs we have regarding origins must justify themselves as evident or at least plausible. Proverbs are invented in several ways: some are simple apothegms and platitudes elevated to proverbial dignity, others arise from the symbolic or metaphoric use of an incident, still others imitate already existing proverbs, and some owe their existence to the condensing of a story or fable. It is convenient to distinguish as "learned" proverbs those with a long literary history. This literary history may begin in some apt Biblical or classical phrase, or it may go back to a more recent source. Such "learned" proverbs differ, however, in only this regard from other proverbs. Whatever the later history may be, the manner of ultimate invention of all proverbs, "learned" or "popular," falls under one or another of the preceding heads. It is not proper to make any distinction in the treatment of "learned" and "popular" proverbs. The same problems exist for all proverbs with the obvious limitation that, in certain cases, historical studies are greatly restricted by the accidents of preservation. We can ordinarily trace the "learned" proverb down a long line of literary tradition, from the classics or the Bible through the Middle Ages to the present, while we may not be so fortunate with every "popular" proverb. For example, Know thyself may very well have been a proverb long before it was attributed to any of the seven wise men or was inscribed on the walls of the temple of Delphic Apollo. Juvenal was nearer the truth when he said it came from Heaven: "E caelo descendit " (Sat., xi, 27). Yet so far as modern life is concerned, the phrase owes its vitality to centuries of bookish tradition. St. Jerome termed Don't look a gift horse in the mouth a common proverb, when he used it to refer to certain writings which he had regarded as free will offerings and which critics had found fault with: "Noli (ut vulgare est proverbium) equi dentes inspicere donati." We cannot hope to discover whether the modern proverb owes its vitality to St. Jerome or to the vernacular tradition on which he was drawing. St. Jerome also took The wearer best knows where the shoe wrings him from Plutarch, but we may conjecture that this proverb, too, was first current on the lips of the folk. Obviously the distinction between "learned" and "popular" is meaningless and is concerned merely with the accidents of history. PROVERBIAL APOTHEGMS Often some simple apothegm is repeated so many times that it gains proverbial currency: Live and learn; Mistakes will happen; Them as has gets; Enough is enough; No fool like an old fool; Haste makes waste; Business is business; What's done's done. Characteristic of such proverbs is the absence of metaphor. They consist merely of a bald assertion which is recognized as proverbial only because we have heard it often and because it can be applied to many different situations. It is ordinarily difficult, if not impossible, to determine the age of such proverbial truisms. The simple truths of life have been noted in every age, and it must not surprise us that one such truth has a long recorded history while another has none. It is only chance, for example, that There is a time for everything has a long history in English,--Shakespeare used it in the Comedy of Errors, ii, 2: "There's a time for all things,"--and it is even in the Bible: "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven" (Omnia tempus habent, et suis spatiis transeunt universa sub caelo, Eccles. iii, I), while Mistakes will happen or If you want a thing well done, do it yourself have, on the contrary, no history at all. The full text of this article is published in 。