The Silk Road， regarded as the greatest East-West trade route， was first traveled by Zhang Qian when he was sent on a diplomatic task to the Western Regions in the Han dynasty （206 BC～AD 220）.

The Silk Road is not only the name of a number of roads of international trade between ancient China and other parts of the world， but also a bridge of culture between China and many other countries in history. It was named because of the Chinese silk， which was one of the most important goods in the trade.

Usually， it can be divided into three roads. The Northern Silk Road on the land started from Chang’an （now Xi’an）， an ancient capital of China， and went west to Europe. It is the most famous and we know it very well. The Southern Silk Road on the land usually started from Sichuan Province and went south to India. The Silk Road on the sea mainly started from Guangzhou， Quanzhou， Dengzhou， and then it went east to Korea， Japan and west to Europe and Africa.

丝绸之路是古代最伟大的东西方贸易之路，最初是汉朝（公元前206年～公元220年）的张骞被派遣出使西域的时候走通的。

丝绸之路不仅仅是几条连接古代中国与其他国家的国际贸易路线的总称，而且还是历史上中国和其他国家文化交流的桥梁。它是以这条路线上最重要的商品之一——中国丝绸来命名的。

通常来说，丝绸之路分为三条。北方陆路丝绸之路始于中国的古都长安（即现在的西安），往西到达欧洲。这条路线是最著名的，我们都很熟悉。南方陆路丝绸之路通常以四川省为起点，往南到达印度。海上丝绸之路主要是以泉州、广州、登州为起点，往东到达朝鲜、日本，往西则去往欧洲和非洲。

西汉时的张骞于公元前139年和公元前119年两次出使西域，正式开通了这条从中国通往欧、非大陆的陆路“丝绸之路”（the land route of the Silk Road）。这条道路以西汉都城长安（今西安）为起点，经甘肃、新疆，到中亚、西亚，并通往地中海各国。

西漢时期就有商人出海贸易，开辟了海上交通要道。海上丝绸之路（the sea Silk Route）始于秦汉，兴于隋唐，盛于宋元，明初达到顶峰，明中叶因海禁而衰落。历代海上丝路，亦可分三大航线：

1. 东洋航线由中国沿海港至朝鲜、日本;

2. 南洋航线由中国沿海港至东南亚诸国;

3. 西洋航线由中国沿海港至南亚、阿拉伯和东非沿海诸国。

丝绸之路的开辟是人类文明史上的一个伟大创举，在世界史上有重大的意义。丝绸之路是古代东西方最长的国际交通路线，它是丝路沿线各民族的共同创造，所以又称之为“友谊之路”。丝绸之路是亚、欧、非大陆的交通动脉，是中国、印度、希腊三种主要文化的交汇的桥梁;丝绸之路是横贯亚、欧、非大陆的贸易交通线，促进了亚洲、欧洲、非洲各国和中国的商贸往来。丝绸之路的开辟，有力地促进了东西方的经济、文化交流，这条丝绸之路至今仍是东西方交往的一条重要通路。

“One Belt and One Road”

“一带一路”

Now， China is planning an“One Belt and One Road” program—the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.

It will connect China with Europe through Central and Western Asia， and connect China with Southeast Asian countries， Africa and Europe. It’s welcomed by the Silk Road countries. In the past year， over 50 countries have joined in the program. We believe that it will help to realize the peace and development of this area.

“One Belt” refers to the Silk Road Economic Belt， which extends into central Asian nations. “One Road” refers to the 21st century Maritime Silk Road， which seeks to extend China’s trading power and infrastructure investment into Southeast Asian nations and to south Asia and Africa.

Great changes are taking place in the world. The world economy is recovering slowly and countries still have the hard time of their development. Building the Belt and Road is to help the poor countries along the road develop economy. It will improve world peace and development.

当今中国提出了一个名为“一带一路”的计划——“丝绸之路经济带”和“21世纪海上丝绸之路”。

这个计划将穿过中亚和西亚连接中国和欧洲，并将南亚各国以及非洲和欧洲连接起来。丝绸之路沿线的各个国家都很欢迎这个工程。过去一年中已经有50多个国家加入其中。我们相信，这对实现本地区的和平与发展有很大帮助。

“一带”是指丝绸之路经济带，范围一路延伸至中亚国家。“一路”是指21世纪海上丝绸之路计划，旨在施展中国的贸易威力，加大对东南亚国家、南亚和非洲的基础设施投资。

当今世界正发生巨大的变化，世界经济缓慢复苏，各国面临的发展问题依然严峻。共建“一带一路”旨在实现沿线的贫穷国家发展经济，这将有助于促进世界和平和发展。