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SakiMafundikwa_2013-_在古老的非洲字母的聪明才智和优雅_
I moved back home 15 years ago after a 20-year stay in the United States, and Africa called me back. 15年前,我回到家乡 那时已经在美国呆了20年 是非洲召唤我回去
United:adj.联合的; v.联合,团结; (unite的过去分词和过去式)
And I founded my country's first graphic design and new media college. 我建立了祖国的第一个 平面设计新媒体学院
graphic:adj.形象的;图表的;绘画似的; media:n.媒体;媒质(medium的复数);血管中层;浊塞音;中脉;
And I called it the Zimbabwe Institute of Vigital Arts. 被我命名为数位视觉艺术津巴布韦研究院
Zimbabwe:n.津巴布韦(国家名,位于非洲); Institute:v.开始(调查);制定;创立;提起(诉讼);n.学会,协会;学院;
The idea, the dream, was really for a sort of Bauhaus sort of school where new ideas were interrogated and investigated , the creation of a new visual language based on the African creative heritage . 创校理念是建成包豪斯风格的设计学院 在这里,我们审视 调研新的创意 创造基于非洲善于创造的传统 的新视觉语言
interrogated:v.审问;盘问;查询,询问;(interrogate的过去分词和过去式) investigated:v.侦查;调查;研究;(investigate的过去分词和过去式) creation:n.创造,创作;创作物,产物; visual:adj.视觉的,视力的;栩栩如生的; creative:adj.创造性的; heritage:n.遗产;传统;继承物;继承权;
We offer a two-year diploma to talented students who have successfully completed their high school education. 我们为有天赋的 高中毕业生提供一个 两年的资格教育
diploma:n.毕业证书,学位证书;公文,文书;奖状;vt.发给…毕业文凭;
And typography's a very important part of the curriculum and we encourage our students to look inward for influence . 字体排印学是我们课程中很重要的一部分 我们鼓励学生深入其中获得灵感
curriculum:n.课程;总课程; inward:adj.向内的; v.向内; n.内部; influence:n.影响;势力;感化;有影响的人或事;v.影响;改变;
Here's a poster designed by one of the students under the theme "Education is a right." 这是其中一个学生设计的海报 主题为“教育是一项权利”
poster:n.海报;巨幅装饰画;发布消息的人;
Some logos designed by my students. 这些是我的学生设计的商标
logos:n.理念;
Africa has had a long tradition of writing, but this is not such a well-known fact, and I wrote the book "Afrikan Alphabets" to address that. 非洲有历史悠久的书写传统 但鲜为人知 为此,我写了“非洲字母表”来阐述这点
well-known:adj.著名的;众所周知的;清楚明白的;
The different types of writing in Africa, first was proto-writing, as illustrated by Nsibidi, which is the writing system of a secret society of the Ejagham people in southern Nigeria. 非洲有多种文字系统 第一种是原始文 比如Nsibidi文 是尼日利亚南部的Ejagham人的一个 隐秘部落使用的文字
illustrated:v.加插图于;给(书等)做图表;说明,解释;(illustrate的过去分词和过去式)
So it's a special-interest writing system. 所以是一个特殊群体的专用文字
special-interest:adj.小众化的;特殊兴趣的;
The Akan of people of Ghana and [Cote d'Ivoire] 约400年前,加纳和科特迪瓦（象牙海岸）的
developed Adinkra symbols some 400 years ago, and these are proverbs , historical sayings, objects, animals, plants, and my favorite Adinkra system is the first one at the top on the left. 阿肯人发明了Adinkra符号 这些（Adinkra符号）代表谚语,古格言, 实物,动物,植物, 其中我最喜欢的 是左上方的第一个
symbols:n.符号;象征;标志;符号表(symbol的复数); proverbs:n.谚语;格言;(proverb的复数) historical:adj.历史的;史学的;基于史实的;
It's called Sankofa. 叫做Sankofa
It means, "Return and get it." Learn from the past. 叫做Sankofa
This pictograph by the Jokwe people of Angola tells the story of the creation of the world. 这个安哥拉Jokwe人用的象形文字 讲了创世界的故事
pictograph:n.[语]象形文字;古代石壁画;统计图表;
At the top is God, at the bottom is man, mankind , and on the left is the sun, on the right is the moon. 最上面是上帝,最下面是人类 左边是太阳,右边是月亮
mankind:n.人类;男性;
All the paths lead to and from God. 所以的路径都连通上帝
These secret societies of the Yoruba, Kongo and Palo religions in Nigeria, Congo and Angola respectively , developed this intricate writing system which is alive and well today in the New World in Cuba, Brazil and Trinidad and Haiti . 分布在尼日利亚、刚果和 安哥拉的 的约鲁巴人、刚果人及Palo教徒的神秘部落 分别创建了这复杂的文字 这种文字现在依然在古巴、 巴西、特立尼达岛和海地的新世界中使用
respectively:adv.分别地;各自地,独自地; intricate:adj.复杂的;错综的,缠结的; Brazil:n.巴西(拉丁美洲国家); Haiti:n.海地;
In the rainforests of the Democratic Republic of Congo, in the Ituri society, the men pound out a cloth out of a special tree, and the women, who are also the praise singers, paint interweaving patterns that are the same in structure 在刚果民主共和国的雨林 在伊图利部落 男人猛击一种特殊树木制成这布料 然后由女人,一边唱赞美诗, 一边画出这些交织的图形 这图形的结构就像她们
rainforests:n.(热带)雨林; Democratic:adj.民主的;民主政治的;大众的; interweaving:n.交织性;v.使交织;使混杂(interweave的ing形式); structure:n.结构;构造;建筑物;vt.组织;构成;建造;
as the polyphonic structures that they use in their singing -- a sort of a musical score, if you may. 歌中用的复调结构 你可以称它为一种乐谱
polyphonic:adj.多音的;(标音字)可以发多种音的;[乐]复音的;复调的; structures:n.结构; v.建造(structure的第三人称单数形式);
In South Africa, Ndebele women use these symbols and other geometric patterns to paint their homes in bright colors, and the Zulu women use the symbols in the beads that they weave into bracelets and necklaces . 在南非,恩德贝勒族的女人 把这些符号和几何图形 亮丽地涂在她们的家里 祖鲁女人把这些符号 用在她们串 手镯和项链的珠子里
geometric:adj.几何学的;[数]几何学图形的; Zulu:n.祖鲁人;祖鲁语;adj.祖鲁人的; beads:n.(有孔的)珠子;(玫瑰)念珠;(液体的)小滴;(bead的复数) weave:v.编,织;(用…)编成;编造(故事等);n.织法;编法;编织式样; bracelets:n.手镯;手链(bracelet的复数); necklaces:n.项链(necklace复数);
Ethiopia has had the longest tradition of writing, with the Ethiopic script that was developed in the fourth century A.D. 埃塞俄比亚曾拥有最悠久的文字传统 埃塞俄比亚语的文字体系 在公元四世纪就形成
Ethiopia:n.埃塞俄比亚; script:n.剧本;电影剧本;笔迹;广播(或讲话等)稿;v.为电影(或戏剧等)写剧本;
and is used to write Amharic, which is spoken by over 24 million people. 现在还在用来写 逾2400万人使用的阿姆哈拉语
King Ibrahim Njoya of the Bamum Kingdom of Cameroon developed Shü-mom at the age of 25. 喀麦隆前巴姆穆(Bamum)王国的国王Ibrahim Njoya 在25岁的时候发明Shü-mom
Cameroon:n.喀麦隆(西非国名);
Shü-mom is a writing system. Shü-mom是一种文字
It's a syllabary . It's not exactly an alphabet. 它是一种音节文字,不完全是符号系统
syllabary:n.音节表;假名表;
And here we see three stages of development that it went through in 30 years. 这是它30年中经过的 三个发展阶段
The Vai people of Liberia had a long tradition of literacy before their first contact with Europeans in the 1800s. 在19世纪利比里亚的Vai人与欧洲人接触前 他们就已经有很长的文字史
Liberia:n.利比里亚(西非国家); literacy:n.读写能力;精通文学; contact:n.接触,联系;v.使接触,联系; Europeans:n.欧洲人(European的复数);
It's a syllabary and reads from left to right. 它是一种从左读的音节文字
Next door, in Sierra Leone , the Mende also developed a syllabary, but theirs reads from right to left. 在邻近的塞拉利昂共和国,曼地人 也发明了一种音节文字 但他们的是从右读
Sierra:n.(尤指西班牙和美洲的)锯齿状山脉; Leone:n.利昂(塞拉利昂货币单位);
Africa has had a long tradition of design, a well-defined design sensibility , but the problem in Africa has been that, especially today, designers in Africa struggle with all forms of design because they are more apt to look outward for influence and inspiration. 非洲曾有很长的设计文化 具有非常清晰的设计感 但是,尤其是在当今,非洲的问题是 非洲的设计者 在各种设计形式中挣扎 因为他们更倾向于追求外界（非洲以外） 的影响潮流和灵感
well-defined:adj.定义明确的;界限清楚的; sensibility:n.感情;感受能力;鉴赏力; especially:adv.尤其;特别;格外;十分; apt:adj.恰当的;有…倾向的;灵敏的; outward:n.外表; adj.表面的; v.同"outwards.outwardandhomeward";
The creative spirit in Africa, the creative tradition, is as potent as it has always been, if only designers could look within. 如果设计者可以认真审视 他们会发现非洲一直都拥有自己的创新精神, 并且这种创新的力量和精神可以像过去一样有影响力
potent:adj.有效的;强有力的,有权势的;有说服力的;
This Ethiopic cross illustrates what Dr. Ron Eglash has established : that Africa has a lot to contribute to computing and mathematics through their intuitive grasp of fractals . 这个埃塞俄比亚图腾便阐释了 Ron Eglash 博士曾经提出的观点: 非洲对于分形的直观理解 对计算数学有很大贡献
illustrates:v.阐明;举例说明(illustrate的三单形式);给…加插图; established:adj.已确立的;著名的;v.建立;创立;设立;(establish的过去分词和过去式) contribute to:有助于;捐献; computing:n.计算;计算机技术;信息处理技术;v.计算;求出;(compute的现在分词) mathematics:n.数学;数学运算; intuitive:adj.直觉的;凭直觉获知的; grasp:n.抓住;理解;控制;v.抓住;领会; fractals:n.碎形;分形学(fractal的复数);
Africans of antiquity created civilization , and their monuments , which still stand today, are a true testimony of their greatness . 古代非洲人创造了人类文明 他们现存的遗迹 就是他们伟大贡献的见证
antiquity:n.古代;古老;文物;古迹; civilization:n.文明;文明社会;文明世界;(特定时期和地区的)社会文明; monuments:n.遗迹;纪念物;不朽的功业;有永久价值的作品(monument的复数形式); testimony:n.[法]证词,证言;证据; greatness:n.伟大;巨大;
Most probably, one of humanity's greatest achievements is the invention of the alphabet, and that has been attributed to Mesopotamia with their invention of cuneiform in 1600 BC, followed by hieroglyphics in Egypt, and that story has been cast in stone as historical fact. 字母表的发明可以说是 人类最伟大的发明之一 这要归功于美索不达米亚 他们在公元前1600年发明了楔形文字 然后是埃及的象形文字 这个故事作为历史真相被刻在石头上
attributed:v.归于(attribute的过去式,过去分词);属性化; cuneiform:adj.楔形的;楔形文字的;楔状骨的;n.楔形文字;楔状骨; hieroglyphics:n.[语]象形文字;难以辨认或理解的文字(hieroglyphic的复数形式); cast in stone:最后决定,板上定钉;
That is, until 1998, when one Yale professor John Coleman Darnell discovered these inscriptions in the Thebes desert on the limestone cliffs in western Egypt, 直到1998年, 耶鲁教授John Coleman Darnell 在埃及西部底比斯沙漠 石灰岩悬崖上发现了这些碑文
inscriptions:n.铭文;碑文;题字(inscription的复数); limestone:n.[岩]石灰岩; cliffs:n.(常指海洋边的)悬崖,峭壁;(cliff的复数)
and these have been dated at between 1800 and 1900 B.C., centuries before Mesopotamia. 它们被确认为是公元前18到19世纪 在美索不达米亚文明之前的古迹
Called Wadi el-Hol because of the place that they were discovered, these inscriptions -- research is still going on, a few of them have been deciphered , but there is consensus among scholars that this is really humanity's first alphabet. 被叫做恐怖峡谷字母 由他们被发现的地方命名 关于这些碑文的研究还在进行 一小部分已经被解码 但研究者已达到共识 这确实是人类第一个字母表
Wadi:n.[地理]干河床;溪流;[地理]干谷; deciphered:n.密电译文;vt.解释;译解; consensus:n.一致;舆论;合意; scholars:n.学者们(scholar的复数);
Over here, you see a paleographic chart that shows what has been deciphered so far, starting with the letter A, "ālep," at the top, and "bêt," in the middle, and so forth. 这是一个古体文字表 显示了至今已经被解码的文字 从字母A,最上面的“ālep”,开始 B,中间的 “bêt”,依此类推。
It is time that students of design in Africa read the works of titans like Cheikh Anta Diop, 现在非洲的设计学学生应该要 读这些伟人的作品,像Cheikh Anta Diop（人名）,
titans:n.泰坦巨神;(美)大力神Ⅱ型洲际导弹(Titan的复数); Anta:n.[建]壁角柱;壁端柱;
Senegal's Cheikh Anta Diop, whose seminal work on Egypt is vindicated by this discovery. 塞内加尔的Cheikh Anta Diop, 他关于埃及的开创性的研究就是 被这一发现证实。
seminal:adj.种子的;精液的;生殖的; vindicated:v.维护;证明…无辜;证明…正确;
The last word goes to the great Jamaican leader 最后来说一下伟大的牙买加领导人
Jamaican:adj.牙买加的;牙买加人的;n.牙买加人;
Marcus Mosiah Garvey and the Akan people of Ghana with their Adinkra symbol Sankofa, which encourages us to go to the past so as to inform our present and build on a future for us and our children. 马科斯·加维（Marcus Mosiah Garvey） 和加纳的阿肯人 他们的Adinkra文字Sankofa 鼓励我们以古为鉴 用之于今 来为我们和我们的孩子建立未来
Garvey:n.加维驳船(美国新泽西州沿海的一种小船); inform:v.通知;告诉;报告;告发;告密;
It is also time that designers in Africa stop looking outside. 非洲的设计者也 不该再只向其他文化借鉴
They've been looking outward for a long time, yet what they were looking for has been right there within grasp, right within them. 他们已经向外学习很长时间了 然而他们要从找寻的 其实就在触手可及的地方,就在他们自己身上
Thank you very much. 非常感谢
(Applause) （掌声）