跨年夜为什么要亲吻？原来和德国人有关...

*本文摘录自12月30日US Today（今日美国）：Why do we kiss on New Year's Eve? The reasons behind the romantic moment（跨年夜为什么要亲吻？浪漫时刻背后的原因）

Along with resolutions, thecountdownof the final seconds of the year and the ball drop in New York City, the New Year's kiss has becomesynonymouswith the holiday as several couples, friends and even strangers share the once-in-a-year moment at midnight on Jan. 1.

与新年计划、新年倒计时以及纽约市水晶球的降落仪式一样，跨年夜之吻也已经成为这个节日的代名词。在1月1日午夜，一些情侣、朋友甚至陌生人会以此来庆祝这个一年一度的时刻。

Seen in numerous holiday movies and something nearly everycamerapersonacross the world will attempt to capture during the celebrations, the midnight kiss is a tradition seen across the world.

我们在许多节日电影中都能看到这种场景，而且几乎全世界的每一个摄影师都会在庆祝活动中抓拍下这一幕，跨年夜之吻是全世界的传统。

And it turns out the tradition is a few hundred years old, says Alexis McCrossen, professor of history at Southern Methodist University.

南卫理公会大学（Southern Methodist University）历史学教授亚历克西斯·麦克罗森（Alexis McCrossen）表示，事实证明这个传统已经沿袭了几百年。

Author of the upcoming book focusing on New Year's Day traditions in the U.S., "Time's Touchstone: The New Year in American Life," McCrossen said up until the late 1800s, new year celebrations actually took place during the day. It wasn't until electricity became more widely available that celebrations of a new year turned into celebrations ofanticipation.

即将出版的新书《时间的试金石:美国生活中的新年》的作者麦克罗森说，直到19世纪末，新年庆祝活动都是在白天举行的。直到电力普及后，新年的庆祝活动才变成了期待的庆祝活动。

"At the end of the 19th century, cities began to be illuminated at night," McCrossen told USA TODAY. "When you get people out at night and you have more public venues for parties and you have more precise timekeeping, then people begin to celebrate New Year's Eve."

麦克罗森告诉《今日美国》，“在19世纪末，城市开始在夜间被照亮。当你让人们在夜间外出，有很多公共场所可以聚会，倒计时可以更加精确时，人们便开始庆祝跨年夜。”

But before the New Year's Eve skies lit up, German tradition was celebrating the new year with a bonfire on Dec. 31. McCrossen said it was during thesebonfireswhen the kiss originated.

但在跨年夜黎明到来之前，德国的传统是在12月31日用篝火庆祝新年。麦克罗森说，正是在这些篝火活动中开始了亲吻的传统。

When numerous Germans immigrated during the 1800s, they brought the kiss along with them, which by 1900 became a nationwide way of celebrating that has remained today.

当众多德国人在19世纪移民时，他们带来了亲吻的传统，到1900年，亲吻成为一种全国性的庆祝方式，一直保持到今天。

"The funny thing about traditions is they sort of just develop over time," McCrossen said. "If you're awake at midnight on New Year's Eve and if you're with other people, kisses will likely be exchanged."

麦克罗森表示，“亲吻传统的有趣之处在于，它们随着时间的推移而发展，如果你在跨年夜和其他人在一起并且没有睡着，你们很可能会互相亲吻。”

There is no definite explanation of why the kiss was done, but McCrossen said it most likely was meant to wish good luck going into the next year.

对于为什么要亲吻，没有明确的解释，但麦克罗森说，这很可能是为了将好运带入明年。

重点词汇

countdownn. 倒计时

synonymousadj. 同意的；等同于......的

camerapersonn. 摄影师

anticipationn. 预期；期望

bonfiren. 篝火

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