[Vocabulary] [ 古罗马战争史 ]—— 翻译帖。

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Clubman （棍棒兵）
这里的CLUBMAN好象有点“自己组建的民兵”的意思

The first soldiers were local people called up for military duty in times of emergency.
如遇紧急情况，本地的百姓会被招致军中执行任务。

These temporary soldiers were commonly armed with a mace, usually a club with a stone head.
这些临时民兵大多使用棍棒（狼牙棒），通常是那种带有石头头的棍棒。（不就是榔头吗…………^_^!!）

This was an inexpensive weapon and one that could be used effectively with a minimum of training.
这是一种很廉价的武器，并且通过简单的培训便可有效使用。

Clubmen were at a disadvantage, however, when facing the better-trained and armed professional soldiers that eventually appeared to defend the early farming civilizations.
民兵并不专业，然而，当面对正规军的时候，他们还是能够表现出捍卫疆土的能力。

The mace had little practical use other than in combat against other humans.
这种榔头除了打击敌人以外，其实也没有什么实际作用。

It appeared long before the first civilizations, indicating that the roots of warfare go back far into prehistoric times.
这种榔头其实可以追溯到史前时代。

The Roman legion was the ultimate military formation of antiquity.
罗马的军团是古代异常强大的军事作战团队。

The legion was a 4200-man unit at full strength, broken down into 120-man units called maniples.
一个军团是由一个个120人编队的独立“战团”组成的，整个军团配备了4200名全副武装的军人。

Most of the maniples went into battle as separate blocks of men in a square formation that looked something like a checkerboard from above.
大多数“战团”投入战斗的时候，会独立形成一个个方阵，看上去好象一幅国际象棋棋盘的样子。

Ten maniples fought as skirmishers in loose order to the front of the first line of blocks.
十个“战团”排列成型，放置在军团的第一线。（？？这句有点疑问哦？？）

They attacked the enemy infantry line with sling stones, arrows, and javelins as the two armies closed and then fell back between gaps in the blocks.
两军接近的时候，他们用通过投掷巨石、弓箭、投标来攻击敌人然后这些人退回到兵团编队的空隙中。（还记得电影中，罗马军队里面用杠杆原理制作出来的大型投石器吗？就是那些东西！）

They may have moved to the edges of the battle to protect the Roman line and harass the enemy line.
他们会移动到战场的边缘来保卫罗马战线，同时骚扰敌方战线。

The heavy infantry blocks moved forward, throwing javelins just before the clash.
在正面交火之前，庞大的兵团会整体向前移动并投掷标熗。

Gaps in the blocks may have been filled in by a second row of blocks containing more experienced soldiers.
团队之间的缝隙会被第二行富有经验的战士所充填。

The third and final row of blocks was the smallest but contained the most experienced veterans who served as the legion's reserve.
第三行和最后一行最少，但是却拥有经验最老道的战士。他们是军团雪藏的战斗团队。

The basic legion might have attached cavalry, archers, engineers, and artillery, depending on the task before it.
根据任务需要，一个基本的团队会拥有骑兵、弓箭手、工程人员和炮兵。

At its peak, the Roman Empire had legions deployed all along its frontiers, defending against barbarians, putting down revolts, expanding the empire, and maintaining order.
在颠峰时期，罗马帝国拥有的军团遍部全境，他们用于抵抗侵略者、镇压反叛、捍卫国王并维护法律。

Axeman 斧头兵（厉害啊，周星星的《功夫》难道来源于此？）

The increasing population and wealth of the earliest civilizations made it possible to support standing armies available at all times for defense and attacking neighbors.
人丁兴旺以及不断的财富积累使得他们有足够的能力支持军队抵御外来侵略或攻击邻国。

The first professional armies were probably built in Sumeria and Egypt.
最早的正规军大抵出现在苏美尔和埃及。

These early civilizations had much to protect and were sufficiently wealthy to provide protection.
这些原住民有足够的能力和财富来进行保卫。

Sumerian artwork from around 2500 BC provides evidence of an early army, in this case lines of soldiers, possibly in formation, equipped with identical armor, helmets, and weapons.
从公元前2500年的苏美尔人艺术品上，可以找到早期军队的记录。这些记录显示当时军队装备的铠甲、头盔和武器。

Short Swordsman （短剑兵！！！）

The short sword represents an evolutionary step in infantry weapons.
短剑是步兵里面相对先进的武器了。

The spear, mace, and axe were relatively easy to manufacture and use, but somewhat cumbersome in actual hand-to-hand combat.
长矛、榔头、斧子相对来说比较容易大量的制作和使用。但是，在近身肉搏的时候可能有些笨拙。

Following the discovery of bronze, it became possible to manufacture short swords that were basically enlarged and strengthened knives.
在发现青铜之后，就可以制作比小刀更长更具有杀伤力的短剑了。

These were much easier to wield in hand-to-hand combat and improved the effectiveness of infantry who carried them.
这样的话，在肉搏的时候就更容易使用，并能够提高步兵的效率。

Short swords were carried as a second weapon by spearmen or pikemen, such as the Greek hoplites.
希腊的步兵——长矛兵和熗兵，会把短剑作为第二武器。

The most famous short sword of antiquity was the gladius, or Spanish sword, adopted by the Roman legions from the Spanish allies of Carthage.
古代最著名的短剑是Gladius（好象是罗马一带）或西班牙短剑。这些被罗马军队从西班牙及盟国迦太基所采用。

The gladius was especially effective in the dense legion fighting formations that pressed tightly against their opponents and restricted movement.
Gladius在人海战术上特别有一套。他们能够紧压敌人并制约其行动。

Broad Swordsman （宽剑兵）的确，古罗马军队用的剑确实很宽

The appearance of bronze short swords led to further advances in weaponry as competing cultures sought an advantage in military technology over their neighbors.
青铜短剑出现后，引领了武器装备的先进性。并且与临国相比军事技术上先进了不少。

Where the early short sword was primarily a piercing weapon, the broad sword evolved as a slashing weapon.
在短剑成为刺杀武器的同时，宽剑进化成为了砍杀的武器。

The width of the blade increased strength sufficiently to support a slashing attack that could cut into armor and break short swords designed for stabbing.
加宽的剑能够砍杀敌人并能够砍破为短剑设计的铠甲。

Long Swordsman 长剑兵（实际上中国人喜欢用长剑）

The long sword represents the culmination of infantry weapon development in antiquity.
长剑的发明将古代军事武器推向了顶峰。

It was designed for both piercing and slashing, combining the best of both the short and broad swords.
它的设计包容了砍和刺的功能，其中了短剑和宽剑的优点。

The long sword was made possible first by advances in bronzeworking and improved by the discovery of iron.
长剑的制作首先得益于青铜技术，随着铁的发现得以发展。

Some historians believe that the development of long swords by barbarian cultures was a key factor in the catastrophe of 1200 BC, when most of the civilized cultures of the Mediterranean and Middle East were overrun.
一些古人认为，在地中海文化和中东文化蔓延的时代——公元前1200年，蛮人的长剑成为灾难的一个关键性因素。（没有理顺，疑问中……）

The long sword in various forms remained an important military weapon until the advent of gunpowder.
在火药发明之前，长剑一直在军队中占据着重要的位置

centurion百夫长

The smallest tactical unit in the Roman army trusted with independent maneuver was the 120-man maniple.
在罗马军队中，最小的战术编队是由120人组成的独立战团。

Each maniple was commanded by a centurion, a veteran promoted from the ranks after demonstrating bravery, skill, discipline, and leadership.
每一个战团由一名“队长”指挥。（centurion专指罗马军队的百人队长）
这个队长是一个勇敢、有技能、训练有素并拥有领导能力的人。（其实，a veteran promoted from the ranks after demonstrating bravery, skill, discipline, and leadership这段是修饰centurion的，我上面的翻译是一种意译。）

The maniple was roughly equivalent to the modern infantry company, and the centurion was a combination of modern infantry captain and top sergeant.
这种独立战团大概类似于现代的步兵连队。“队长”也相当于现代步兵连队里面的上尉或中士的一种综合体。

Centurions were the backbone of the legions that built and defended the Roman Empire.
这些队长是罗马军团的中流砥柱，他们支持并保卫着罗马帝国。（backbone，在这里我觉得写做“中流砥柱”比较具有书面性）

Hoplite 重装备步兵

Greek infantry soldiers of the Classical Age were called hoplites, from the name of their large shields, called hoplons.
古希腊的步军战士被称作Hoplite，此名由来是因为他们那被称作hoplon的大型盾牌。

For battle they wore a cuirass (breastplate), helmet, and greaves.
战场上，他们身着重装胸甲，头盔和护胫甲。

They were armed with a long spear or pike and sword.
他们装备着长矛、长熗或剑。

Hoplite armies fought each other hand-to-hand in the dense phalanx formation that faced the enemy with a bristling wall of spear points staggered at chest level.
在正面交战的时候，他们用长矛排成齐胸高的一排，来抵御敌人。

Fighting at close range in such a formation required a commitment to training and discipline that became a way of life.
以这样的队型进行近距离的交战需要通过良好的训练来进行约束，从而演变成生存的手段。

Hoplites were the best infantry soldiers in the world for many centuries until being supplanted by the more flexible and functional Roman legionnaires.
在被更为灵活更为强大的罗马军团替代之前，这种希腊军队曾经在几个世纪里称霸于各种军队之林。