听力文本

Hello and welcome to the VOA Learning English program, Words and Their Stories.

Every word has its own story. Where did it come from? How did it get into the language?

Today's word in "Shenandoah."

Hundreds of years ago a Native American chief named Shenandoah lived with his tribes in what is now the state of Virginia. Little is known about Shenandoah, but in some way, the soft sound of his name was given to a river.

The Shenandoah River still flows in a deep valley between the Allegheny and Blue Ridge Mountains, just as it did when Chief Shenandoah lived. It is a slow moving river, soft and as beautiful as its name.

There are some word experts who believe the word "Shenandoah" means "spruce river" because the waters of the river run through great forests of spruce trees.

And this explanation could be correct.

However, there is an old Native American story which is far more beautiful than that of the experts.

Long ago, centuries before Europeans came to the New World, there was a great lake of sparkling blue water hidden in the mountains of Virginia. This lake was 250 kilometers long and 50 kilometers wide.

For hundreds of years, Native American tribes lived near this lake, feeding on the fish from its clean waters.

The Native Americans often climbed up the mountains and camped there during their long hunts for food. In the evenings they sat near their camp and looked down at the beautiful lake.

On a clear, starry night you could see thousands of stars shining and dancing on the water below. The Native Americans loved this lake, and because they could see the stars in it they called the lake, "Clear Daughter of the Stars."

In their language, the word for this was "Shenandoah."

One day there was a loud crashing sound at one end of the lake. The lake started to disappear. Its water ran out of the valley, through a break in the mountain side. The waters ran on and on until they joined another river which today is known as the Potomac.

At last, the lake was gone. In its place was only a river. It is this way today. The lake is gone, but the beautiful Shenandoah River runs on.

And on a clear night, anyone in the mountains can still see the stars dancing on the water.

Shenandoah National Park, a place for nature lovers

Shenandoah National Park has just over 80,000 hectares of protected lands. The park has cascading waterfalls, beautiful mountain vistas and serene woods.

Located outside of Washington, DC, the Shenandoah National Park is a popular get-away for people wanting to hike, picnic or nature-watch.

Millions of Americans have seen the Shenandoah and have talked about it.

And some years ago, someone wrote a song about it.

"Shenandoah" is perhaps one of America's most recognizable folk songs. Some say the song refers to the river. Others say it is about the daughter of Chief Shenandoah.

Regardless of what the song is about, "Shenandoah" remains an American classic.

"O Shenandoah, I love your daughter, Away you rolling river; O Shenandoah, I love your daughter, Away I'm bound to go, 'Cross the wide Missouri ..."

And that brings us to the end of this episode of Words and Their Stories. I'm Anna Matteo.

重点解析

1.in some way 在某种意义上
I believe that in some way my life is closely connected to all of humanity.
我相信在某种意义上，我的生命是与全人类紧密相连的。

2.feed on 以...为食
They come out only at night to feed on sponges and algae.
只有在晚里，它们才会出来吃些海绵和海藻。

3.at one end of 在...的一头
As he got there, he took his stand at one end of the bridge and waited.
他到了那儿以后，便站在桥的一头等着。

参考译文

欢迎收听VOA学英语《词汇掌故》节目。

每个单词都有自己的故事。它出自何处？又是如何进入语言之中的呢？

今天要说的单词是“Shenandoah”。

数百年前，一位名为仙纳度的美国印第安酋长同他的部落住在如今的弗吉尼亚州。关于仙纳度这个人我们所知甚少，但是在某种意义上，他名字这种轻柔的声音被赋予给了一条河。

仙纳度河仍然在阿勒格尼和蓝岭山脉之间的深谷中流淌，就像当年仙那度酋长生活时一样。这是一条缓慢流动的河流，轻柔，跟它的名字一样美丽。

有些词汇专家认为“Shenandoah”这个单词的意思是“云杉之河”，因为这条河流的河水流经了大片云杉林。

这种解释可能是正确的。

然而，有一则印第安人的古老故事比专家的解释更为美丽。

很久以前，在欧洲人来到新大陆的几个世纪以前，在弗吉尼亚州的群山中隐藏着一个大湖，蓝色的湖水波光粼粼，湖面长250公里宽50公里。

几百年来，美国印第安人部落都临湖而居，以湖中的鱼为食。

美国印第安人在漫长的狩猎期间经常爬上山并居住于此。到了晚上，他们坐在营地附近，低头看着这片美丽的湖泊。

在晴朗的星夜，你能看到成千上万的星星在山底下的水面上闪耀和起舞。美国印第安人深爱这片湖泊，因为他们可以在湖中看到星星，他们称这片湖为“星星的女儿”。

在他们的语言中，这个单词就是“Shenandoah”。

有一天，湖的一端发出了一声巨响。这片湖开始消失，湖水通过山边的裂缝流出山谷。湖水一直流畅，直到流入今天的波托马克河。

最后，这片湖消失了，取而代之的是一条河，就像今天这样。这片湖消失了，但是美丽的仙纳度河流淌着。

而在晴朗的夜晚，人们站在山上还是可以看到星星在水面上跳舞。

仙纳度国家公园，大自然爱好者的好去处

仙纳度国家公园拥有8万公顷的保护地。公园里有瀑布、美丽的山地景观和宁静的森林。

位于华盛顿特区郊外的仙纳度国家公园是人们远足、野炊和观察大自然的好去处。

数以百万计的美国人已经看过了仙纳度国家公园并且谈论到它。

而且多年以前，有些就其写了一首歌。

“Shenandoah”可能是美国最知名的民歌之一。有人说，这首歌是指这条河。还有人说，这首歌是关于仙纳度酋长的女儿。

无论这首歌唱的什么，“Shenandoah”仍然是美国的一首经典歌曲。

“噢，仙那多，我爱你的女儿，流淌吧，你滔滔流向远方。噢，仙那多，我爱你的女儿，启航吧，我要驾船，穿过宽阔的密苏里河......”

在歌声中我们迎来本期VOA学英语《词汇掌故》节目的结束。我是安娜·马特奥。