长江，又名扬子江(the Yangtze River)，全长6300多千米，是中国第一大河，世界第三大河。长江发源于青藏高原(the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau),流经多个省市。因富产粮食，长江中下游被称为“中华文明的摇篮” (the cradle of Chinese civilization)。长江两岸风景优美，有众多的名胜古迹。千百年来，长江在农业、工业、 运输及战争中发挥着重要的作用。然而近年来，长江遭受了工业污染和湖泊流失，并由此引发了季节性洪水。

　　表达难点

　　1.第1句包含4个短句，内容较多，仔细分析可发现，前两个短句主要介绍长江的地理概况，后两个短句说明其排名情况，可用“拆译”法将前两个短句处理为一个句子，后面的“是中国第一大河，世界第三大河”处理成

　　另一个句子。“又名”可翻译为also named，但不如直接用or表达来得简单。“第一大河”按照习惯译为the longest river，“第三大河”为避免用词重复，译为the third longest one。

　　2.在翻译第3句“因富产粮食，长江中下游被称为……”时，将原因状语“因富产粮食”后置，译作for their abundance of food produced，表达更自然、更符合英语表达习惯。

　　3.第4句“长江两岸风景优美，有众多的名胜古迹”为了强调“长江两岸风景”的美，可将前半句处理成主干，用介词短语 Along the two sides of the river 置于句首，主谓倒装，译作 Along the two sides of the river is beautiful scenery。后半句用介词短语 with many scenic spots and historical sites 来表达。

　　4.在最后一句中，并由此引发了季节性洪水”较紧密地把前后两个分句结合起来，故将其处理成前一个分句 的非限制性定语从句，译作which has brought seasonal floods。

　　参考译文

　　The Changjiang River, or the Yangtze River, has a total length of more than 6,300 km. It is the longest river in China and the third longest one in the world. It rises in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and flows through many provinces and cities. The middle and lower reaches of the river have been called the cradle of Chinese civilization for their abundance of food produced. Along the two sides of the river is beautiful scenery with many scenic spots and historical sites. For thousands of years, the river has been playing an important role in agriculture，industry, transportation, and war. But in recent years, the river has suffered from industrial pollution and loss of lakes, which has brought seasonal floods.