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The U.S. Thanksgiving holiday is symbolized by its traditional food, a large bird we call a turkey.
美国感恩节的象征是它的传统食物，即一种我们称之为火鸡的大鸟。
But turkey is certainly not from Turkey.
但火鸡肯定不是来自土耳其。
In fact, its English name is based on one big mistake.
事实上，它的英文名字是基于一个大错误。
We could say it is a case of mistaken identity.
我们可以说这是一个身份错认的案例。
Let's set the record straight.
让我们把事情说清楚。
The word "Turkey" has meant "the land of the Turks" since ancient times.
“Turkey”这个词自古以来就是“土耳其人的土地”的意思。
The word "turkey" as it refers to the bird first appeared in the English language in the mid-1500s.
“turkey”这个词最早出现在英语中表示“火鸡”是在16世纪中期。
The misunderstanding over the word happened because of two similar-looking kinds of birds.
对这个词的误解是因为两种长相相似的鸟。
There is an African bird called the guinea fowl.
非洲有一种鸟叫珍珠鸡。
It has dark feathers with white spots and a patch of brown on the back of its neck.
它有黑色的羽毛，上面有白色的斑点，脖子后面有一块棕色的斑点。
Portuguese traders brought the guinea fowl to Europe through North Africa.
葡萄牙商人通过北非将珍珠鸡带到了欧洲。
This foreign bird came to Europe through Turkish lands.
这种外来的鸟经由土耳其领土来到欧洲。
So, the English thought of the bird as a "Turkish chicken."
因此，英国人认为这种鸟是“土耳其鸡”。
When Europeans came to North America, they saw a bird that looked like the guinea fowl.
当欧洲人来到北美时，他们看到了一种长得像珍珠鸡的鸟。
This bird was native to the North American continent.
这种鸟原产于北美大陆。
Orin Hargraves is a lexicographer, someone who writes dictionaries.
奥林·哈格雷夫斯是一位词典编纂者，即编写词典的人。
Hargraves explains what happened.
哈格雷夫斯解释了发生的事情。
"Some Europeans saw an American turkey, thought that it was the guinea fowl, which at that time was called the 'turkey cock,' and so gave it the same name."
“一些欧洲人看到一只美洲火鸡，以为它是珍珠鸡，当时叫‘turkey cock’，所以给它起了同样的名字。”
Hundreds of years later, we continue to call this North American bird "turkey," even though it has no connection at all with the country Turkey, or even with Europe.
几百年后，我们继续称这种北美鸟为“火鸡”，尽管它与土耳其这个国家，甚至与欧洲都没有任何联系。
But English is not the only language with interesting -- and even questionable -- names for this North American bird.
但这种北美鸟类不仅有一个有趣甚至有问题的英文名字。
The Turkish, for their part, call turkey "hindi," the Turkish name for India.
土耳其人则称火鸡为“hindi”，这是土耳其人对印度的称呼。
The reference to India probably comes from the old, wrong idea that the New World was in Eastern Asia.
引用印度可能来自一种古老的错误观念，即新大陆位于东亚。
The French call it "dinde," a name that also connects the bird to India.
法国人称它为“dinde”，这个名字也将这种鸟与印度联系在一起。
"D'Inde" means "from India" in the French language.
“D'Inde”在法语中的意思是“来自印度”。
"Turkey" has similar names in several other languages.
“Turkey”在其他几种语言中也有类似的名字。
So, what do they call this North American bird in India?
那么，这种北美鸟在印度叫什么呢？
Well, in the Hindi language, "turkey" is "tarki."
在印地语中，“火鸡”是“tarki”。
But wait, there's more.
但等等，还有更多。
In Portuguese, the same bird is called "Peru," after the South American nation.
在葡萄牙语中，这种鸟被称为“秘鲁”，以南美国家秘鲁的名字命名。
Thanks to our VOA Learning English Facebook friends, we have a few more names for "turkey" to share with you.
感谢美国之音慢速英语脸书上的朋友们，我们又多了几个“火鸡”的名字来和你分享。
The Vietnamese word for the bird is "ga tay" or western chicken.
这种鸟在越南语中被称为“ga tay”，即西方鸡。
Our Facebook friend Nguyen Duc explains that "local chicken is smaller than western chicken."
我们在脸书上的朋友阮德克解释说：“本地鸡比西方鸡小。”
A Facebook friend in Myanmar explained that the Burmese word for "turkey" is "kyat sin."
一位缅甸的脸书朋友解释说，在缅甸语中，“火鸡”被称为“kyat sin”。
The name translates to "elephant chicken" in English.
这个名字翻译成英文是“elephant chicken”。
"That animal looks like a big chicken," Zaw Myo Win explained.
梭妙温解释说：“那种动物看起来像只大鸡。”
The Dari language name for the bird, "fel murgh" also translates to "elephant chicken."
这种鸟的达里语名字是“fel murgh”，也翻译为“elephant chicken”。
Abdulla Kawer explained to us that "here in Afghanistan this name represents the size of this delicious meal."
阿卜杜拉·考尔向我们解释说：“在阿富汗，这个名字代表着美味佳肴的大小。”
He adds that he thinks the descriptive name "elephant chicken" is "better than a country name."
他补充说，他认为“elephant chicken”这个描述性的名字“比一个国家的名字更好。”
I'm Ashley Thompson.
阿什利·汤普森为您播报。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
