什么是“爱尔兰双胞胎”？

大家都知道双胞胎有同卵和异卵之分，但你知道“爱尔兰双胞胎”是什么吗？

Irish twins refer to siblings born within 12 months of each other. In other words, Irish twins are born in succession within one year.

爱尔兰双胞胎指的是出生时间相差不超过12个月的兄弟姐妹。换言之，爱尔兰双胞胎是在一年内相继出生的。

The term pokes fun at the stereotypical fertility of Irish Catholic families, which traditionally do not use birth control. In addition, it implies that the Irish lack the ability to plan ahead or control themselves, having children in quick succession rather than responsibly spacing them.

该词是对爱尔兰天主教家庭多子女传统的一种嘲笑，因为这些家庭不会采取节育措施。此外，该词还暗讽爱尔兰人缺乏提前计划或自制的能力，生孩子一个紧接一个，而不是负责任地错开时间生。

Example:

My sister and I were born 11 months apart. We were known in our family as Irish twins.

我姐姐和我出生只相差了11个月。在我们家里，我们被称为“爱尔兰双胞胎”。

（中国日报网英语点津 陈丹妮）