Ah, December, that time of year when storefronts are festooned with holiday decorations, and another year is reaching its close. If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, December might mean pulling off your boots so you can curl up with your smartphone and read Dictionary.com (hey, we can dream).

　　啊，12月，每年的这个时候，商店的门面都挂满了节日装饰品，又一年就要结束了。如果你住在北半球，12月可能意味着脱下靴子，这样你就可以蜷缩在智能手机前阅读Dictionary.com(嘿，我们可以做梦了)。

　　But, what does December mean in the Dictionary? And, where did the 12th month of the year get its name?

　　但是，在字典里十二月是什么意思呢?那么，一年中的第十二个月是如何得名的呢?

　　December has marked the end of the year and the coming of winter since the ancient Romans established their first calendar. As its etymology indicates, December is formed from the Latin root decem- which means “ten” … but December is our twelfth month.

　　自从古罗马人建立了他们的第一个日历，12月就标志着一年的结束和冬天的来临。十二月的词源表明，它是由拉丁词根decem构成的，意思是“十”，但是十二月是我们的第十二个月。

　　The strange numbering discrepancy is also present for the months of September, October, and November, which mean “seven,” “eight,” and “nine,” even though they’re our ninth, tenth, and eleventh months.

　　奇怪的编号差异也出现在9月、10月和11月，这意味着“7”、“8”和“9”，尽管它们是我们的第9个、第10个和第11个月。

　　Why? Well, the ancient Roman calendar only had ten months in the year, beginning with the month of March. January and February were eventually added after December to the end of the year.

　　为什么?嗯，古罗马的日历一年只有十个月，从三月开始。1月和2月最终在12月之后添加到年底。

　　But, by the time the Julian calendar was established in 45 B.C., January and February appeared at the beginning of the year, which bumped all of the original months (and their originally assigned names) back by two.

　　但是，到公元前45年儒略历建立的时候，1月和2月出现在年初，将所有原来的月份(以及它们最初指定的名称)都向后推迟了两个月。

　　Old names for December

　　12月的旧名

　　Before December entered Old English, the terms for December were Ǣrra Gēola or Gēolmōnað, meaning “yule month.” The early Germanic people celebrated the mid-wintery season during a time that was called yuletide, a two-month period that spanned December and January.

　　在12月进入古英语之前，12月这个词是Ǣrra Gēola或Gēolmōnað，意思是“圣诞月”。早期的日耳曼人在一个叫做“圣诞季”的时候庆祝隆冬季节，这是一个横跨12月和1月的两个月的时期。

　　With the rise of Christianity, the yule was condensed and adopted into the liturgical year under the Christian name Christmastide, which begins on Christmas day and lasts a total of 12 days—the 12 days of Christmas.

　　随着基督教的兴起，yule被浓缩并以基督教的名字Christmastide被采纳为礼拜年，从圣诞节开始，共持续12天——即圣诞节的12天。

　　Our memory of the yule may be limited to yule logs, but every time Santa is described as “jolly,” remember the fact that jolly may have derived from the same Old Norse root that brought us yule.

　　我们对圣诞节的记忆可能仅限于耶诞材，但每次圣诞老人都被描述为“jolly”，记住这个事实，jolly可能来自于带给我们yule的古斯堪的纳维亚词根。

　　Even if we no longer call it the “yule month,” the association we have with December and holidays hasn’t diminished. If you’re facing another cold winter, celebrating the Winter Solstice, Hanukkah, Christmas, or New Year’s Eve is sure to lift your bah humbug spirits!

　　即使我们不再叫它“圣诞月”，但我们与十二月和假期的联系也没有减少。如果你正面临着寒冷的冬天，庆祝冬至、光明节、圣诞节或除夕夜一定会让你振奋起来!