離開
進入《中英對照讀新聞》Sweden’s giant Gavle goat survives Christmas 瑞典耶夫勒巨羊撐過耶誕節
身披白雪的耶夫勒稻草巨羊。（取自耶夫勒稻草巨羊的推特@Gavlebocken）
◎魏國金
There is extra Christmas cheer in the Swedish town of Gavle this year because its annual giant straw goat has survived for more than three weeks. Last year’s goat fell victim to an arsonist on 27 November, less than 24 hours after it had been erected.
瑞典城鎮耶夫勒今年的耶誕節格外令人歡欣，因為該鎮的年度稻草巨羊已撐過逾三週。去年的羊在11月27日淪為一名縱火犯的受害者，當時它設立還不到24小時。
Standing 13 metres tall, it is the world’s biggest straw goat. Most of its incarnations have been burnt or vandalised since 1966, when the tradition began. News site The Local has compiled a list of the "weirdest attacks" on the yule goat, including an attempted kidnapping via helicopter and the time a person dressed as a gingerbread man shot it with flaming arrows.
高13公尺的巨羊是世界上最大的稻草羊。自1966年開始有這項傳統以來，大部分的稻草羊被燒毀或遭任意破壞。新聞網站「本地新聞」彙整出對該耶誕羊進行「最怪異的攻擊」事件，包括一起直升機綁架未遂行動，以及一名裝扮成薑餅人的男子以燃燒的箭射向它。
By tradition, the goat effigy goes up in Gavle, 158km north of Stockholm, on the first Sunday of Christian Advent. This year it has been standing since 3 December, and the town hopes the 3.6-tonne effigy will survive until 2 January.
根據傳統，稻草羊在基督教的待降節第一個週日，在斯德哥爾摩以北158公里的耶夫勒被建造起來。今年它從12月3日起豎立，該鎮希望這頭3.6公噸的稻草羊能撐到1月2日。
Gavle’s official tourism website says the famous effigy was invented by Stig Gavlen, a man who proposed a giant version of the straw goat ornaments that Swedes put on show at Christmas. The intention was to boost business at shops and restaurants in the area.
耶夫勒的官方觀光網站指出，有名的稻草羊是由史提格．耶夫倫所創，他提議建造一隻讓瑞典人在耶誕節展示的巨型稻草羊飾品。其動機是提振該區商店與餐廳的生意。
新聞辭典
fall victim to：被降伏、成為…的受害者。例句：He fell victim to peer pressure.（他成為同儕壓力的受害者。）
vandalise：任意破壞。例句：The buses were vandalised.（巴士被搗毀。）
go up：被建造。例句：New houses are going up all over the countryside.（鄉下到處在蓋新房子。）
