Yuan Dynasty
元朝
Social Economy and Culture
社会经济与文化
As in other periods of alien dynastic rule of China, a rich cultural diversity developed during the Yuan dynasty.
正如中国其他时期的不同年代一样，丰富的文化多样性在元朝得以发展。
The major cultural achievements were the development of drama and the novel and the increased use of the written vernacular.
文化上的主要成就在于戏剧和小说的发展以及对于本地文字书写的增多。
Given the unified rule of central Asia, trades between East and West flourished.
统治了整个中亚之后，东西方的贸易交往得到了振兴。
The Mongols’ extensive West Asian and European contacts produced a fair amount of cultural exchange.
蒙古国与西亚和欧洲的广泛联系创造了一定的文化交流。
Western musical instruments were introduced to enrich the Chinese performing arts.
西方的乐器传入中国，丰富了国内的表演艺术。
From this period dates the conversion to Islam, by Muslims of Central Asia, of growing numbers of Chinese in the northwest and southwest.
从这个时代开始，由于中亚的穆斯林，越来越多的西北和西南部的中国人转而信奉伊斯兰教。
Nestorianism and Roman Catholicism also enjoyed a period of toleration.
景教和天主教同样得到了一段时间的默许。
Lamaism (Tibetan Buddhism) flourished, although native Taoism endured Mongol persecutions.
尽管传统道教受到了蒙古人的迫害，喇嘛教（藏传佛教）却繁荣发展。
Confucian governmental practices and examinations based on the Classics, which had fallen into disuse in north China during the period of disunity, were reinstated by the Mongols in the hope of maintaining order over Han society.
为了保持对于汉人的统治，在分裂时期被北方弃用的儒家政策和以儒家经典为基础的科举制在元朝时期得到了恢复。
Advances were realized in the fields of travel literature, cartography， and geography， and scientific education.
旅游文学、制图学、地理学和科学教育领域取得了进步。
Certain key Chinese innovations, such as printing techniques, porcelain production, playing cards, and medical literature, were introduced in Europe, while the production of thin glass and cloisonne became popular in China.
当薄玻璃制造和法蓝瓷工艺在中国兴起时，一些核心的中国发明例如印刷术、瓷器制造、纸牌以及医药文学传至欧洲。

The first records of travel by Westerners date from this time.
西方人的第一部游记追溯到这个时期。
The most famous traveler of the period was the Venetian Marco Polo, whose account of his trip to “Cambaluc” the Great Khan’s capital (now Beijing)，and of life there astounded the people of Europe.
这个时代最著名的旅者是威尼斯人马可波罗，他对于自己到元朝都城“堪巴禄克”（今北京）的旅行以及那里人们的生活震惊了欧洲人。
The Mongols undertook extensive public works. Road and water communications were reorganized and improved.
蒙古人还广泛进行公共工程的建设。
To provide against possible famines, granaries were ordered built throughout the empire.
道路和水陆交通得到了整顿和改进。
The city of Beijing was rebuilt with new palace grounds that included artificial lakes, hills and mountains, and parks.
为了对抗可能发生的饥荒，国家的每个地方都建立了粮仓。
During the Yuan period, Beijing became the terminus of the Grand Canal, which was completely renovated.
北京城被重建，新建了包括人工湖、假山和花园在内的皇家建筑。
These commercially oriented improvements encouraged overland as well as maritime commerce throughout Asia and facilitated the first direct Chinese contacts with Europe.
元朝时期，经历了全面翻修，北京成为了大运河的终点。
Chinese and Mongol travelers to the West were able to provide assistance in such areas as hydraulic engineering, while bringing back to the Middle Kingdom new scientific discoveries and architectural innovations.
这些贸易导向型的发展不仅鼓励了陆路贸易还激励了贯穿亚洲的海上贸易，并促进了中国与欧洲的首次直接联系。
Contacts with the West also brought the introduction to China of a major new food crop—sorghum—along with other foreign food products and methods of preparation.
中原和蒙古前往西方的旅者可以再水利工程方面提供帮助，同时为朝廷带回新的科技发现与建筑创造。
与西方的联系还为中国带来了一种新的主要粮食作物——高粱以及其他一些国外的食物和制作工艺。