Three Books about Historians

以下是三本有關歷史學家的書：《時代的先行者》（台北：獨立作家，2014） 、《史家的誕生》（台北：時英，2008）及Pilgrims to the past（Leiden： CNWS，1996），用國立臺灣大學原住民族研究中心的邀請當引言。

I have been invited by Center for Indigenous Studies of National Taiwan University to talk at a session called "Crushing Waves and Chasing Dreams: International Relations from Indigenous Perspectives"（破浪、築夢：原住民觀點的國際關係）.  This session will take place on 4th of March in a cafe near my alma mater.

While this invitation honors me especially by coming from a renowned anthropologist of Taiwan and the Pacific, I am also deeply bothered by the session's focus on international relations because of two reasons.

First, despite that I was (probably still am and will be too) involved with multiple events of a diplomatic nature in different capacities for the Council of Indigenous Peoples, I have never really considered myself dedicated to international relations. As I explained in another blog post, 台灣原住民族國際事務, I was merely a vessel that contributed where she saw fit.

Second, to reorient myself back to research, I resigned my work at the International Affairs Section last April to join the newly established Indigenous Languages Research and Development Center（ILRDC）. Yes, for the past few months we had international  visitors at the center and I again performed a similar role as I was doing before; nevertheless, our purpose was straightforward and targeted. We were exchanging research experience in indigenous languages.

Therefore, what can I talk about at the session? I really wonder, and I confess it has more to do with personal preference than with which story to tell.

Anthology of Taiwan Indigenous Literature

有關《台灣原住民文學英文選集》（台北：原住民族委員會，2015）。

On Saint Valentine's Day of 2015, Council of Indigenous Peoples used the occasion of 2015 Taipei International Book Exhibition and launched the four-volume Anthology of Taiwan Indigenous Literature (Taipei; CIP, 2015). 

Volume I is 'Chronicle of Significant Events for Taiwan Indigenous Literature', which briefly reviews the development since 1951 until 2014. 

Volume II is the collection of 'Poetry and Prose', which contains 39 pieces of poem and 27 pieces of prose. Translators include Wu Shu-hwa, Hsu Pao-fang and Cheryl Robbins. 

Volume III and IV present 23 short stories in total. Translators include C.J. Anderson-Wu, Hsu Pao-fang, Tseng I-hua, Grace Gao (Atayal) and Yedda Palemeq (Paiwan).

The Columbian Exchange (1972)

This post is about Alfred Crosby's 1972 classic The Columbian Exchange: Biological and Cultural Consequences of 1492 (Originally published by Praeger).

我手邊這本是由鄭明萱翻譯，貓頭鷹書房慶祝三十周年紀念修訂新版。

讀了粉絲Mann，再回頭讀偶像Crosby，發現那其中的關係果然真的，前者在主題、寫法、觀點、關懷（生態環境）、甚至是語氣，無不有承襲後者的味道。

差異在當粉絲的Mann有：(1)全世界跑透透的田野；(2)增加新的研究資料，例如亞馬遜流域、中南美印地安文明、太平洋物流與中國；(3)修正Crosby自己在2003年再版序中也道了歉的錯誤；(4)深究Crosby沒有著墨的案例（相反地，也不贅述偶像已經談過的馬或梅毒）......等等。

至於粉絲Mann的文字是否比Crosby偶像的原文更平易近人（lay）則無法判斷，因為我讀的是翻譯本，雖然裡頭的人名和地名翻成中文後，讓我馬上落入十里霧中摸不著頭緒―我個人還是傾向在筆譯中保留原文的人名及地名―，原來熟悉的馬上變不熟悉，很想立即找回原文消除焦慮，我還是可以感覺原著Crosby有時很調皮的口吻（例如性就是「現代人不但未肯放棄，而且還一再陷溺的行為」），畢竟寫這本書的時候，教授還很年輕。

1491 (2005) and 1493 (2011)

This post is about Charles C. Mann's bestsellers 1491 (Vintage, 2005) and 1493 (Vintage, 2011).

兩本由美國記者Charles C. Mann撰寫的世界史書，用西元紀年當書名，第一本於2005年出版、2011年再版，叫《1491：前哥倫布時代美洲啟示錄》（大陸中信出版翻譯）；第二本於2011年出版，叫《1493：物種大交換丈量的世界史》（台灣衛城出版翻譯）。

兩本中間隔了對西方世界意義非凡的1492年，據說那一年一位義大利出身的航海家哥倫先生（Colon），在成功要脅取得西班牙皇室贊助下，驅艦橫越大西洋，終於「發現了新大陸」。既然這麼重要，為什麼Mann要跳過這一年？

很簡單，因為有人先寫了，其中最經典的就是美國德州大學奧斯汀分校榮譽教授Alfred W. Crosby所寫的The Columbian Exchange（《哥倫布大交換》，1972年問世，2003年再版）。這本書提供學者及讀者觀察世界史的全新視野，影響深遠，Mann就是其中一位深受感動的人。

Mann說，他根本是《哥倫布大交換》的粉絲，好不容易認識Crosby教授本人之後，非常希望教授再擴充、再繼續寫，一直盧一直盧，盧到教授後來都煩了，吼了他一句（growled at him）：「你那麼有興趣，幹嘛不自己寫？」他只好摸摸鼻子，拿出當記者的看家本領，到處讀，到處跑，到處訪問，花了好幾年時間，終於寫出兩本把偶像包在中間的書。

有趣的是，Crosby教授在70s年代完成的《哥倫布大交換》手稿根本沒有出版社想要，他自嘲以為到街上隨便丟，給路人撿到的機率都比較大。倒是Mann這兩本一出，便立即爬上全美暢銷書榜首，佳評如潮。我一邊好奇不知做偶像的如何感想，一邊也明白這並不難解釋，閱讀市場的改變、書寫的方式等等，想想也不一定要在乎，畢竟沒有偶像提出的新論點，Mann也就沒有書寫的基礎。

Itih a TaoS (Saisiyat)

介紹賽夏族作家伊替達歐索（根阿盛）的《巴卡山傳說與故事》。

I do not know itih a taoS personally as I know Rimuy Aki or paelabang danapan. In fact, when I first picked up the book, I was wondering if the author came from outside of Taiwan. Even being indigenous myself, I find his name as foreign to me as Miguel Ángel Asturias, for example. 

Not until I read the foreword and the story about the author's Chinese name that I soon realized he is the oftentime winner of indigenous literature awards here in Taiwan. 

A writer from the relatively smaller Saisiyat People found separated by Dabajian Mount Ranges in two different counties, Hsin Chu County for Northern Saisyat and Miaoli County for Southern Saisyat, itih a taoS belongs to Southern Saisiyat, whose writing again won the laureate of the category of short story in 2014 San-hai Indigenous Literature Award.