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全球快资讯:猫是如何被人类驯化的？

来源：时间：2023-09-12 22:09:28

　　原标题：猫是如何被人类驯化的？

　　来源：沪上英语教与学

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　　Domestication of cats

　　猫的驯化

　　Although the origin of the domesticated cat is hidden in antiquity, studies involving mitochondrial DNA suggest that there have been two lineages of Felis catus. One lineage appeared in Asia Minor possibly as early as 6,400 years ago and dispersed northward and westward into Europe. The other lineage appeared in Egypt sometime between 6,400 and 1,000 years ago before spreading throughout the Mediterranean (possibly through human introduction) along paths that paralleled the region’s trade routes. Cats of both lineages continued to breed with the African wildcat during their respective dispersals.

　　尽管猫的驯化起源年代久远，但涉及线粒体DNA的研究表明，猫有两个谱系。

　　一个谱系可能早在6400年前就出现在小亚细亚，并向北和向西扩散到欧洲。

　　另一个谱系出现在6400年至1000年前的埃及，然后沿着与该地区贸易路线平行的路径传播到整个地中海（可能是通过人类引入）。

　　这两个谱系的猫在各自的迁徙期间继续与非洲野猫繁殖。

　　The earliest known association between cats and humans dates possibly as far back as the origins of agriculture in the Middle East, about 9,500 years ago. A cat skeleton accompanying that of a human dated to that time was discovered in southern Cyprus. Although some sources note that this finding suggests that cats had undergone some degree of domestication in that location, other sources argue that cats may have domesticated themselves by choosing to live in human-altered landscapes.

　　已知的猫和人之间最早的联系可能可以追溯到大约9500年前中东农业的起源。

　　在塞浦路斯南部发现了一具与当时人类骨骼相伴的猫骨架。

　　尽管一些消息来源指出，这一发现表明猫在那个地方经历了一定程度的驯化，但其他消息来源认为，猫可能是通过主动选择生活在人类改变的环境中而被驯化的。

　　Fossil evidence found in China dating to approximately 5,300 years ago revealed that cats similar in size to modern domestic cats fed on small grain-eating animals, such as rodents, and millet in agricultural settings. Although research suggests that these cats were actually leopard cats, which were replaced by modern domestic cats before 3000 BCE, this discovery suggests that humans allowed cats to hunt mice and other rodents that threatened grain stores and possibly fed the cats or allowed them to consume leftover food.

　　在中国发现的大约5300年前的化石证据表明，与现代家猫体型相似的猫以小型的食粮动物（如啮齿类动物）以及人类耕作的小米为食。

　　尽管研究表明，这些猫实际上是豹猫，在公元前3000年之前被现代家猫取代，但这一发现表明，人类允许猫捕食老鼠和其他威胁粮食储备的啮齿动物，并可能喂养猫或允许它们吃残羹剩汁。

　　Although the cat was proclaimed a sacred animal in Egypt in the 5th and 6th dynasties, it had not necessarily been domesticated at that time. It is probable that the ancient Egyptians partnered with the cat because they realized its value in protecting granaries from rodents. Their affection and respect for this predator led to the development of religious cat cults and temple worship of cats. There are no authentic records of domestication earlier than 1500 BCE, however.

　　尽管猫在埃及第五和第六王朝被宣布为神圣动物，但当时它并不一定被驯化。

　　古埃及人之所以与猫合作，很可能是因为他们意识到了它在保护粮仓免受啮齿动物侵害方面的价值。

　　他们对这种食肉动物的喜爱和尊重导致了宗教猫崇拜和寺庙对猫的崇拜的发展。

　　然而，现今并没有比公元前1500年更早的猫被驯化的可靠记录。

　　Cats have long been known to other cultures. Wall tiles in Crete dating from 1600 BCE depict hunting cats. Evidence from art and literature indicates that the cat was present in Greece from the 5th century BCE, and tiles featuring cats appeared in China from 500 BCE. In India cats were mentioned in Sanskrit writings around 100 BCE, while the Arabs and the Japanese were not introduced to the cat until about 600 CE. The earliest record of cats in Britain dates to about 936 CE, when Howel Dda, prince of south-central Wales, enacted laws for their protection.

　　猫在其他文化中早已为人所知。

　　克里特岛的地砖可以追溯到公元前1600年，地砖上描绘的是狩猎猫。

　　来自艺术和文学的证据表明，这种猫从公元前5世纪开始出现在希腊，而以猫为特征的地砖从公元前500年开始出现在中国。

　　在印度，猫在公元前100年左右的梵文著作中被提及，而阿拉伯人和日本人直到公元前600年左右才对猫有所了解。

　　英国最早的猫记录可以追溯到公元936年左右，当时威尔士中南部的王孙豪厄尔·达颁布了保护猫的法律。

　　Even though all cats are similar in appearance, it is difficult to trace the ancestry of individual breeds. Since tabbylike markings appear in the drawings and mummies of ancient Egyptian cats, present-day tabbies may be descendants of the sacred cats of Egypt. The Abyssinian also resembles pictures and statues of Egyptian cats. The Persian, whose colouring is often the same as that of mixed breeds (although the length of hair and the body conformation are distinctive), was probably crossed at various times with other breeds.

　　无尾的曼克斯猫，就像无毛的斯芬克斯猫和卷曲的德文雷克斯一样，是一种突变。

　　波斯猫和暹罗猫的祖先很可能与其他家养品种不同，这代表着亚洲野猫的驯化。

　　事实上，目前对暹罗猫的祖先还一无所知，而且现存的亚洲猫中，也没有发现其祖先的痕迹。

　　The tailless Manx cat, like the hairless Sphynx cat and curly-coated Devon Rex, is a mutation. The ancestry of Persian and Siamese cats may well be distinct from that of other domestic breeds, representing a domestication of an Asian wild cat. In fact, nothing is known of the ancestry of the Siamese types, and there is no living species of Asian cat that could have served as ancestor.

　　尽管所有的猫在外表上都很相似，但很难追踪单个品种的祖先。

　　鉴于古埃及猫的图画和木乃伊中出现了虎斑花纹，现在的虎斑猫可能是埃及圣猫的后代。

　　阿比西尼亚人也有很像埃及猫的图画和雕像。

　　波斯猫的颜色通常与混合品种的颜色相同（尽管头发的长度和身体形态不同），可能在不同时期与其他品种杂交。