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这两天观看了南非世界杯比赛的人们大概已经开始适应场内如蜂鸣般的那种声音了吧。那些声音就这种叫做vuvuzela的喇叭发出来的。今天，我们就给大家介绍一下这个vuvuzela的背景。
A vuvuzela is a brightly-coloured plastic trumpet, usually about a metre long, which is commonly blown by fans at football matches in South Africa. Playing the vuvuzela requires a practiced combination of lip and lung action to produce an extremely loud, monotonous sound, a bit like a foghorn.
Vuvuzela（呜呜祖拉）是一种颜色鲜艳的塑料喇叭，大约有一米长，是南非球迷在足球比赛时经常会用到的一个装备。吹vuvuzela时需要嘴唇和肺部运动协调配合，这样才能吹出音量极高、音调单一的那种声音，跟雾笛的声音有些类似。
The vuvuzela is said to be based on the Kudu horn, a tribal instrument used to summon villagers to meetings. Originally made of tin, the vuvuzela rose to popularity in South Africa at football matches in the late 1990s. Its fate was sealed in 2001, when South-African-based company Masincedane Sport began to mass-produce a plastic version, thereby making it essential kit for football supporters across the country.
据说，vuvuzela的原形来自于库杜号角，是土著部落用来召集村民开会的器具。最早的vuvuzela是用锡做的，上世纪90年代后期在南非的足球赛中逐渐流行起来。2001年，南非一家体育用品公司Masincedane Sport开始大规模生产塑料的vuvuzela，由此，vuvuzela便成了南非球迷装备中的必备品。
The origin of the word vuvuzela is uncertain. Some argue that it originates from the Zulu for 'making a loud noise'. Others maintain it relates to township slang for the word 'shower', because it 'showers people with music'.
Vuvuzela这个词的来源说法不一。有人说是来源于祖鲁语中“制造噪音”的说法。也有人说是跟当地俚语“喷洒”的意思接近，因为vuvuzela是“将音乐洒向人群”。
相关阅读
The Noisy Horn of South Africa 南非喇叭的噪音
（中国日报网英语点津 Helen 编辑）
