The Chinese zodiac, explained | ShaoLan

Translator: Nika Smotlak Reviewer: Nika Kotnik

Have you ever been asked by your Chinese friend,

Vas je vaš kitajski prijatelj kdaj vprašal:

"What is your zodiac sign?"

"Katero je tvoje astrološko znamenje?"

Don't think they are making small talk.

Ne mislite, da samo malo klepetajo.

If you say, "I'm a Monkey,"

Če rečeš: "Sem opica,"

they immediately know

bodo takoj vedeli,

you are either 24, 36, 48 or 60 years old.

da si star 24, 36, 48 ali 60 let.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

Asking a zodiac sign is a polite way of asking your age.

Vprašanje o astrološkem znamenju je vljudno vprašanje o tvoji starosti.

By revealing your zodiac sign, you are also being evaluated.

Razkritje tvojega astrološkega znamenja, pomeni tudi, da boš ovrednoten.

Judgments are being made about your fortune or misfortune,

Sodili bodo o tvoji sreči in nesreči,

your personality, career prospects

o tvoji osebnosti, kariernih možnostih

and how you will do in a given year.

ter kakšno bo zate določeno leto.

If you share you and your partner's animal signs,

Če jim poveš svoje in partnerjevo znamenje,

they will paint a picture in their mind about your private life.

si bodo ustvarili sliko o tvojem zasebnem življenju.

Maybe you don't believe in the Chinese zodiac.

Mogoče ne verjameš v kitajski horoskop.

As a quarter of the world population is influenced by it,

Glede na to, da četrtina svetovne populacije je pod njegovim vplivom,

you'd be wise to do something about that.

bi bilo pametno, da nekaj narediš glede tega.

So what is the Chinese zodiac, exactly?

Torej, kaj natačno je kitajski horoskop?

Most Westerners think of Greco-Roman zodiac,

Večina zahodnjakov pomisli na grško-rimski horoskop,

the signs divided into 12 months.

kjer so znaki razdeljeni na 12 mesecev.

The Chinese zodiac is different.

Kitajski horoskop je drugačen.

It's a 12-year cycle labeled with animals,

Je 12-letni cikel označen z živalmi,

starting with a Rat and ending with a Pig,

ki se začne s podgano in konča s prašičem

and has no association with constellations.

in nima nikakršne povezave z ozvezdji.

For example, if you were born in 1975, you are a Rabbit.

Na primer, če si bil rojen leta 1975, si zajec.

Can you see your zodiac sign there?

Vidiš tu svoje znamenje?

Our Chinese ancestors constructed a very complicated theoretical framework

Naši kitajski predniki so ustvarili zelo zapleteno teoretično ogrodje,

based on yin and yang, the five elements and the 12 zodiac animals.

ki je osnovano na notranjem jangu, petih elementih in 12 živalih horoskopa.

Over thousands of years,

Skozi tisoče let

this popular culture has affected people's major decisions,

je ta popularna kultura vplivala na najpomembnejše odločitve ljudi,

such as naming, marriage, giving birth and attitude towards each other.

kot je poimenovanje, poroka, rojevanje in odnos do drugih.

And some of the implications are quite amazing.

In nekatere izmed posledic so osupljive.

The Chinese believe certain animals get on better than the others.

Kitajci verjamejo, da se nekatere živali med sabo razumejo boljše kot druge.

So parents choose specific years to give birth to babies,

Posledično starši izbirajo specifična leta za rojevanje otrok,

because they believe the team effort by the right combination of animals

ker verjamejo, da skupinski trud za dobro kombinacijo živali

can give prosperity to families.

lahko privede do družinske blaginje.

We even refer to the zodiac when entering into romantic relations.

Na horoskop se zanašamo tudi, ko vstopamo v romantično zvezo.

I'm a Pig; I should have perfect romance with Tigers, Goats and Rabbits.

Jaz sem prašič; morala bi imeti odlično romanco s tigri, kozami in zajci.

Chinese people believe some animals are natural enemies.

Kitajci verjamejo, da so nekatere živali naravne sovražnice.

As a Pig, I need to be careful with a Snake.

Kot prašič moram biti previdna s kačo.

Raise your hand if you are a Snake.

Dvignite roke, če ste kača.

Let's have a chat later.

Pozneje se bova pogovorila.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

We believe some animals are luckier than the others,

Verjamemo, da so nekatere živali srečnejše od drugih,

such as the Dragon.

na primer zmaj.

Unlike the Western tradition,

Za razliko od zahodnjaške tradicije

the Chinese Dragon is a symbol for power, strength and wealth.

je kitajski zmaj simbol oblasti, moči in bogastva.

It's everyone's dream to have a Dragon baby.

Vsi si želijo imeti dojenčka zmaja.

Jack Ma's parents must have been very proud.

Jack Majevi starši so najverjetneje bili ponosni.

And they are not the only ones.

In niso edini.

In 2012, the Year of the Dragon,

Leta 2012, v zmajevem letu, se je stopnja rodnosti na Kitajskem,

the birthrate in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan

v Hong Kongu in Tajvanu

increased by five percent.

povečala za pet odstotkov.

That means another one million more babies.

To pomeni še en milijon več dojenčkov.

With a traditional preference to baby boys,

S tradicionalno naklonjenostjo do fantkov

the boy-girl ratio that year was 120 to 100.

je bilo razmerje med fantki in punčkami enako 120 proti 100.

When those Dragon boys grow up,

Ko bodo zmajevi fantki odrasli,

they will face much more severe competition in love and job markets.

se bodo soočili z večjo tekmovalnostjo v ljubezni in na trgu dela.

According to the BBC and the Chinese government's press release,

Po sporočilu za javnost, ki sta ga izdala BBC in kitajska vlada,

January 2015 saw a peak of Cesarean sections.

je število carskih rezov doseglo vrh januarja 2015.

Why?

Zakaj?

That was the last month for the Year of the Horse.

To je bil zadnji mesec leta konja.

It's not because they like horses so much,

Pa ne zato, ker imajo Kitajci tako radi konje,

it's because they try to avoid having unlucky Goat babies.

ampak se skušajo izogniti nesrečnim kozjim dojenčkom.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

If you are a Goat, please don't feel bad.

Če si koza, se, prosim, ne počuti slabo.

Those are Goat babies.

To so kozji dojenčki.

They don't look like losers to me.

Osebno se mi ne zdijo ravno neke zgube.

(Laughter)

(Smeh)

Tiger is another undesirable animal,

Tiger je druga nezaželena žival

due to its volatile temperament.

zaradi njegovega muhastega značaja.

Many Chinese regions saw a sharp decline of birthrate

V mnogih kitajskih regijah se je v tistih letih stopnja rodnosti izrazito zmanjšala.

during those years.

Perhaps one should consider zodiac in reverse,

Morda pa bi bilo dobro razmisliti o horoskopu z druge plati.

as those Tiger and Goat babies will face much less competition.

Tigrovi in kozji otroci bodo imeli veliko manj konkurence.

Maybe they are the lucky ones.

Morda so oni srečneži.

I went through the Forbes top 300 richest people in the world,

Šla sem skozi Forbesov seznam 300 najbolj bogatih oseb na svetu

and it's interesting to see

in je zanimivo videti,

the most undesirable two animals, the Goat and Tiger,

da sta najbolj nezaželeni živali, koza in tiger,

are at the top of the chart,

na vrhu lestvice,

even higher than the Dragon.

celo višje od zmaja.

So maybe we should consider,

Zato bi morda morali razmisliti,

maybe it's much better to have less competition.

da je veliko boljše imeti manj konkurence.

One last but interesting point:

Še zadnja, a zanimiva točka:

many Chinese people make their investment decisions

veliko Kitajcev sprejema svoje investicijske odločitve

based on the zodiac sign index.

na osnovi horoskopskega indeksa.

Although the belief and tradition of the zodiac sign

Čeprav sta bili verovanje in tradicija horoskopskih znamenj

has been over thousands of years,

razširjeni skozi tisoče let,

the trend of using it in making major decisions

se je trend njihove uporabe pri sprejemanju glavnih odločitev

did not really happen until the past few decades.

pojavil šele v zadnjih desetletjih.

Our ancestors were very busy surviving poverty, drought,

Naši predniki so bili zelo zaposleni s preživetjem revščine, suše,

famine, riot, disease and civil war.

lakote, izgredov, bolezni in državljanske vojne.

And finally, Chinese people have the time, wealth and technology

In končno imajo Kitajci čas, bogastvo in tehnologijo

to create an ideal life they've always wanted.

za ustvarjanje idealnega življenja, ki so si ga vedno želeli.

The collective decision made by 1.3 billion people

Skupna odločitev, ki jo sprejme 1,3 milijarde ljudi,

has caused the fluctuation in economics and demand on everything,

povzroča nihanje v ekonomiji in povpraševanju po vsem,

from health care and education to property and consumer goods.

od zdravstva do izobrazbe, nepremičnin in potrošnih dobrin.

As China plays such an important role in the global economy and geopolitics,

Ker ima Kitajska pomembno vlogo v globalni ekonomiji in geopolitiki,

the decisions made based on the zodiac and other Chinese traditions

odločitve osnovane na horoskopu in drugih kitajskih tradicijah

end up impacting everyone around the world.

močno vplivajo na cel svet.

Are there any Monkeys here?

So tu prisotne kake opice?

2016 is the Year of the Monkey.

2016 je opičje leto.

Monkeys are clever, curious, creative and mischievous.

Opice so inteligentne, radovedne, kreativne in nagajive.

Thank you.

Hvala.

(Applause)

(Aplavz)