“中国通”傅立民：海湾阿拉伯人和东亚人（中国人） [联合国媒体]

Gulf Arabs and East Asians

“中国通”傅立民：海湾阿拉伯人和东亚人（中国人）


Gulf Arabs and East Asians
Remarks to a Seminar convened by the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington
Ambassador Chas W. Freeman
Senior Fellow, Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, Brown University
February 28, 2018,  Washington, D.C.

海湾阿拉伯人和东亚人（中国人）
在华盛顿阿拉伯海湾国家研究协会 召开的研讨会上的发言

查斯·弗里曼大使（傅立民）
布朗大学 沃森国际与公共事务研究所 高级研究员
2018年2月28日  于华盛顿特区

In July 751, Tang Dynasty troops led by the famous Korean general Gao Xianzhi suffered a decisive defeat by an Abbasid army in the battle of Talas River .  Most of the combatants on both sides were Turks but a few Chinese were taken prisoner.  It is said that this is how papermaking and other Chinese technologies found their way to the Arabs and thence to the West.  One prisoner of war (POW), Dú Huán , made it back to Guangzhou by sea in 762 and wrote a detailed description of Abbasid society as he had observed it.  His book has been lost but portions of it are included in the Tongdian , a massive encyclopedia compiled by his brother from 766 – 801.

公元751年7月，由着名高丽将领高仙芝（注：应为高句丽，老头没搞清楚高丽和高句丽的区别）带领的唐朝军队，在怛dá罗斯战役（中亚地区）中，被阿拔斯王朝（阿拉伯帝国第二个王朝，即黑衣大食，定都巴格达附近）的军队彻底打败。双方的大部分战士都是突厥人，但还是有少部分的中国人被俘虏。据说，这就是中国造纸术和其他技术，传播到阿拉伯和西方的途径。其中的一个中国战俘，名叫杜环，在公元762年坐船返回广州，他写了一本书，书中详细描述了他所观察到的阿拔斯社会。杜环着的书已经遗失，但是其中的部分内容被收录在唐代政书《通典》之中，《通典》是他弟弟（杜佑）从公元766年到801年编写的大型百科全书。

 

Dú Huán noted that, while the Arabs were now in charge, they had previously been subordinate to the Persians.  He reported that, despite this history, in Khorasan, Arabs and Persians lived together in mixed communities. He went on to write that “[Arab] men have high noses, are dark, and bearded.  The women are very fair and when they go out they veil the face. Five times daily they worship God.   They wear silver girdles, with silver knives suspended. They do not drink wine, nor use music.  Their place of worship will accommodate several hundreds of people.  Every seventh day the Caliph sits on high, and speaks to those below saying, ‘ Those who are killed by the enemy will be born in heaven above; those who slay the enemy will receive happiness.’  Therefore [the Arabs] are usually valiant fighters.  Their land is sandy and stony, not fit for cultivation….”

杜环指出：“虽然现在是阿拉伯人掌权，但阿拉伯人以前是从属于波斯人的。”他写道：“尽管有这样的历史，但在霍拉桑（伊朗东部），阿拉伯人和伊朗人在村落里混居着。”他继续写道：“阿拉伯男人，有高高的鼻子，肤色偏黑，蓄胡子。阿拉伯女人非常美丽，她们出门时会用纱巾遮住脸。每天他们要做五次礼拜去崇敬真主。他们穿着银色的腰带，腰间挂着银色的刀子。礼拜的时候，他们不喝酒，也不吹奏音乐。他们做礼拜的场所能容纳几百人。每隔七天，哈里发（伊斯兰教领袖）就会坐在高处，跟下面的人说：‘那些被敌人杀死的人，将在天堂获得重生；那些杀死敌人的人，将会收获到幸福。’因此，阿拉伯人通常都是英勇的战士。他们的土地一般都是砂子和石头，不适合耕作……”

Dú added: “Al Kufa is … their capital. … Its men and women are attractive in appearance and large in stature.  Their clothing is handsome, and their carriage and demeanor leisurely and lovely.  When women go outdoors, they always cover their faces, regardless of whether they are noble or base.  They … don’t eat the meat of pigs, dogs, donkeys and horses.”

杜环还补充道：“阿库法（巴格达南部170公里）是他们的首都。那儿的男人和女人，形貌屹立，身材高大。他们衣着英俊，他们行为举止悠闲可爱。当女人出门的时候，无论她们高贵还是卑微，她们都会遮住脸。他们不吃猪肉、狗肉、驴肉和马肉。”

By marked contrast with China, where both the emperor and parents were revered and where religious practices relaxed, Dú observes that Arabs “don’t respect the king of the country, nor their parents. … According to their customs every seventh day is a holiday, on which no trade and no cash transactions are done….”  He goes on to note that “when [Arabs] drink alcohol, they behave in a ridiculous and undisciplined way for the whole day.

在中国，皇帝和父母都备受尊敬，宗教习俗也很自在。但在阿拉伯地区，与中国形成鲜明对比，杜环观察道：“阿拉伯人不尊敬国王，也不尊敬他们的父母。……根据他们的习俗，每隔七天就有一天假期，那一天，没有人做买卖……”。杜环接着写道：“当阿拉伯人喝酒的时候，他们整天的行为都会变得荒谬和散漫。”

Twelve and a half centuries have passed but  a few things haven’t changed.  Cultural differences between East and West Asians remain significant.  The Koreans are still part of the interaction between them.  Notwithstanding the alleged hadith advising everyone to “seek knowledge even as far away as China”, the Chinese have put more effort into studying the Arabs and Persians than either have put into studying the Chinese.  Mohammed ibn Battuta has been translated into Chinese.  Dú Huán has not been translated into Arabic.  The technology flow is still almost entirely from the East to the West.

十二个半世纪过去了，但是有几件事情没有改变。东亚和西亚，在文化方面还是存在着很大的差异。高丽人在两个地区的互动中，仍然扮演着角色。尽管在所谓的穆罕默德言行录中，圣训劝诫每个人要“寻求知识，甚至远至中国”，但是中国人已经加大了对阿拉伯人和波斯人的研究力度，而不是他们去研究中国人。《伊本·白图泰游记》已经被翻译成了中文。杜环的游记还没有被翻译成阿拉伯文。科技的流向，几乎完全是从东方流向西方。

But interactions between the Gulf Arabs and East Asians — not just Chinese, but Japanese, Koreans, Filipinos, Indonesians, Malaysians, and Thai — are intensifying.  The relationships are driven by more than the fact that Chinese like to make things and Arabs like to buy things.  They represent the high-volume exchange of oil and gas for goods and services but they also signal geopolitical change.

海湾阿拉伯人在与东亚人的互动中，不仅仅包括中国人，也包括日本人、韩国人、菲律宾人、印度尼西亚人、马来西亚人和泰国人等，他们之间的关系也在增强。这种关系的驱动力，已经超越了“中国人喜欢造东西、阿拉伯人喜欢买东西”这个层面。它们不仅代表着石油和天然气与商品和服务的大量交换，也代表着地缘政治的变化。

These interactions are taking place as both Western dominance of world affairs and American global hegemony fade.  World powers can influence but no longer control what happens in the world’s regions.  Instead, strong regional powers are emerging to exercise global influence and to reach out to other regions.  We are witnessing the birth of a multipolar world

这些互动的发生，正值西方渐渐失去全球事务的主导权和美国全球霸权衰退之际。在各区域中，世界大国可以影响一个国家，但是再也难以控制一个国家了。相反，强大的区域力量正在形成，想要发挥全球影响力，并想将影响力扩展到其他地区。我们正在目睹一个多极化世界的诞生。

It is in this context that the Gulf Arabs are developing comprehensive, mature relations with East Asians.  The ties between the two regions include all normal aspects of trade, investment, construction services, technology transfer, tourism, and cultural exchange.  As East Asians produce more sophisticated weapons systems, the arms trade is becoming part of this.  West Asia’s evolving interactions with East Asia are an important element in the shifting balances of global and regional power.  To now, these have reflected the Arab interest in diversifying dependence on great powers more than they have a Chinese fascination with the Gulf.  But that may not be the case in the future

在这种背景下，海湾阿拉伯人正在与东亚人发展一种全面、成熟的关系。这两个地区之间的纽带，包括贸易、投资、建筑服务、技术转让、旅游和文化交流等所有常规领域。随着东亚人生产更为复杂的武器系统，军火贸易也正成为其中的一部分。西亚地区展开的与东亚地区的互动，是全球性和区域性力量平衡转移的一个重要因素。到目前为止，这些事情反映出，阿拉伯人对大国依赖多元化的兴趣，远远超过中国人对波斯湾的迷恋。但未来的情况可能并非如此。

I commend the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington for convening this discussion and thank President Marcelle Wahba for including me in it.  I look forward to hearing from the other participants and to an active exchange of views with them.

华盛顿阿拉伯海湾国家研究协会召开的这次讨论，我表示赞扬，感谢马塞尔主席的邀请。我期待听取其他与会者的发言，并会跟他们积极交换意见。