中英雙語話歷史 第4期:炎黃子孫
Shen Nong and Huang Di were the representatives of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors.
Shen Nong, also called Yan Di, lived in the Jiang River valley and his surname was Jiang.
神農又稱炎帝，居於姜水流域，以姜爲姓。He is credited with the invention of farming and medication. He invented the wooden plow and taught people the art of agriculture. By experimenting with various plants, he discovered medicinal herbs and taught people how to treat diseases.
他是農業生產和醫藥的發明者，用木製作耒耜,教人民耕種;又曾嘗百草，發現藥材，教人治病。
Huang Di , also called Xuan Yuan or You Xiong, lived in the Ji River valley, and his surname was Ji.
黃帝又稱軒轅氏、有熊氏，居於姬水流域，以姬爲姓。He is resourceful in invention as well as in war and is credited with the invention of many things, like carts and boats, clothes, houses, writing, and silkworm breeding and silk weaving.
他不但在軍事上足智多謀，而且還是個偉大的發明家。人們認爲車船、衣服、房子、文字、養蠶織布等都是他發明的。Wars urged the mixture and the assimilation of different tribes and eventually formed a tribal alliance of Huang Di and Yan Di ； Huang Di became the chief.
各部落聯盟之間的戰爭催化了部落之間的融合，最終形成了中原地區炎帝、黃帝兩大部落聯盟的統一，黃帝成爲最高領袖。Tradition has it that Chinese civilization originates from the era of Huang Di and Yan Di，for they are the ancestors of Chinese people，that is why the Chinese call themselves the descendants of Yan and Huang.
傳說中國文明起源於炎帝和黃帝時代,因此“炎帝、 黃帝”被奉爲中華民族的祖先，這就是現在中國人自稱是炎黃子孫的由來。Huang Di has been immortalized by the famous battle of Zhu Lu, where he used a compass to locate his chief enemy Chi You and defeated him. Chi You was killed in the battle, and this victory is believed to have prepared the way for a permanent Chinese settlement in the Middle Kingdom.
黃帝因涿鹿之戰而名垂千古。在作戰過程中，他用指南針找到了敵軍的首領蚩尤，並擊敗他，後蚩尤被殺。這場戰爭的勝利爲中華民族定居中原鋪平了道路。Abdication ： Hundreds of years after Sheng Nong and Huang Di, it is the period of Abdication in Chinese history.
部落聯盟領袖的禪讓制度:神農、黃帝時代數百年之後，是中國歷史上的“禪讓時代”。At that time, Yao, the chief of the tribal alliance on the central plain, was old, and he selected Shun as his successor after a careful observation. With the consent of all chieftains, Shun was placed to the throne.
當時中原地區部落聯盟領袖堯已年老,經過慎重考察，選擇舜爲繼承人，四嶽十二牧(部落領袖）同意，堯將部落聯盟領袖職務傳位給舜。Following suit, Shun passed the throne to Yu.
舜老，又得四嶽十二牧同意，傳位給禹。Abdication is the traditional election system in the time of tribal commune, historically called the Age of Abdication.
這種職位禪讓的做法乃是氏族公社選舉制的傳統，史稱“禪讓時代”。
