英闻天下——11 Mayan Descendants Mark Start of New Calendar

 　　The Guatemalan descendants of the ancient Mayan civilisation¹ have held a traditional "Last Sun" ceremony to welcome the dawning of the start of the new Mayan calendar on Friday.

 

　　December 21st marks the end of an age in the 5-thousand year-old Mayan calendar, an event which had been predicted as the end of the world or, just an excuse for a party.

 

　　The Mayan descendents have converged² on ruins in Guatemala city to pay respects to their ancient civilization.

 

　　For many, the event is an opportunity for the country's indigenous³ to unite and remember their ancestral roots and traditions.

 

　　Some are saying it is also time for humans to start looking to the ancient Maya as a model for coexistence with nature:

 

　　"Human beings have to decide if they want to continue in this situation we are in. To be a whole human being we need to respect the land, the forests, the mountains, the rivers, and the oceans. That is to say, human beings cannot exist without the existence of these elements."

 

　　The Mayans dominated today's Central American region for some 2-thousand years before mysteriously abandoning their cities around 900 CE.

 

　　They were known for building soaring temples and elaborate palaces.

1 civilisation   

n.文明，文化，开化，教化

参考例句：

• Energy and ideas are the twin bases of our civilisation.能源和思想是我们文明的两大基石。
• This opera is one of the cultural totems of Western civilisation.这部歌剧是西方文明的文化标志物之一。

2 converged   

v.（线条、运动的物体等）会于一点( converge的过去式 )；（趋于）相似或相同；人或车辆汇集；聚集

参考例句：

• Thousands of supporters converged on London for the rally. 成千上万的支持者从四面八方汇聚伦敦举行集会。
• People converged on the political meeting from all parts of the city. 人们从城市的四面八方涌向这次政治集会。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。