世界小史 第195期:原始時期

This marked the end of the Roman Empire of the West and its Latin culture,

這是西羅馬的講拉丁語的帝國的結(jié)束，

together with the long period that goes all the way back to prehistoric times, which we call "antiquity".

所以人們也把這算作從原始時期開始的、被人們稱作“古代”的整個漫長時期的結(jié)束。

So the date 476 marks the birth of a new era, the Middle Ages, given its name for no other reason than that it falls between antiquity and modern times.

從476年起，開始了一個新的時期即中世紀(jì)，它之所以這樣被人稱呼，理由很簡單：因為它處在古代和近代之間。

But at the time no one noticed that a new era had begun.

但是當(dāng)時人們絲毫也不曾察覺，一個新時代開始了。

Everything was just as confusing as before.

一切依然那樣雜亂無章地繼續(xù)進(jìn)行著。

The Ostrogoths, who had previously fought alongside the army of the Huns, had settled in the Roman Empire of the East.

從前與匈奴人的軍隊一道征戰(zhàn)的東阿特人已經(jīng)在東羅馬帝國安頓下來。

The Roman Emperor of the East, wishing to be rid of them, suggested that they might do better if they went to the Empire of the West and conquered Italy.

這時一心想擺脫他們的東羅馬皇帝心生一計，他勸他們往西羅馬帝國遷徙，占領(lǐng)意大利。

So in 493, led by their great king, Theodoric, the Ostrogoths went to Italy.

493年，東阿特人果真在其國王狄奧多里克率領(lǐng)下挺進(jìn)意大利。

There, the battle-hardened soldiers made short work of a wretched, war-torn land.

慣于征戰(zhàn)的他們，很快就占領(lǐng)了這個貧窮和被洗劫一空的國家。