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Chinese Literature
Beihulu 北戶錄 "Records from a Northern Household"

Duan Gonglu's 段公路
Chapters of the Beihulu
Exemplarious translation:

〈鸚鵡瘴〉 廣之南新勤春十州呼為南道多鸚鵡.翠衿丹觜巧解人言有鳴.曲子如喉轉者但小不及於隴右.每飛則數千百頭.食木葉、榕實.凡養之俗忌以手頻觸其背.犯者即多病.顫而卒土,人謂為鸚鵡瘴.愚親驗之咸通十年,夏初三木舶將五色鸚鵡至者.雖繡羽錦衣而病其胡語.昔天監年交州有獻能歌鸚鵡者,詔亦不納. The parrot disease In the south of the region of Guang(dong), the ten prefectures of Xinqinchun, called the southern circuit, there live lots of parrots. During the years of reign motto Tianjian ("Heavenly Supervision"; 502-519), the prefecture of Jiaozhou (modern Vietnam) presented parrots that were able to sing, but the court (of the Liang Dynasty) did not accept it.

Translated by Ulrich Theobald.

  © 2000 ff · Ulrich Theobald · Mail