天津的路为什么是斜的？

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你们天津这马路怎么就没有正南正北的呢？

Why don't the roads of Tianjin go as they do in most other cities?

每当被外地朋友这么问，作为一个土生土长天津人，心中都感觉。。。

Whenever asked about that, I am always annoyed, as anybody else who grows up in Tianjin would be.

正南是哪面儿？

Where is due south?

我哪儿分的清什么东南西北！

We rarely use east, west, north, and south,

我就知道前后左右！

We only say forward, backward, left, and right,

难道分辨东南西北会比分清前后左右容易吗？

Isn't it easier to tell where left is?

天津人生来方向感就不强，我们指路的方式一向都是“往左拐”“往右拐”，尤其是在老城里一带，甚至是天津市区，基本就没有什么人说“往东往西”，这就像两套互不兼容的系统，根本切换不过来。

When asked for directions, local people, especially those who live in the old district, tend to say 'left' or 'right' instead of 'east' or 'west'.

为什么会这样？这还得从天津的道路谈起

Why is that? We have to start with Tianjin's roads.

翻看天津地图，如今还能保持正南正北的路就只有老城厢一带，当年拆了天津老城墙修出来的东马路、西马路、南马路、北马路。

When you look at a map, you will find that the roads which go due south, north, east or west are basically found around the formerly walled downtown area, and they were built after the city wall was removed.

除此之外，天津很难找出来其他正南正北，甚至是一个弯儿不拐就能走到头儿的路了。

Besides them, you can hardly find any roads that run due south or north. Moreover, roads along which you can go straight to the end are sparse. 

这也就是为什么天津人不愿用“东南西北”来指路的原因——即便我说了东南西北，你也不一定走的到，走着走着就走偏了……

This is why Tianjin people are reluctant to tell directions. Even if they use a compass, you are likely to get lost, because you might head in the wrong direction while walking along the road.

天津的路为什么会是斜的？这个锅还得让“海河”和“租界”来背……

Why aren't the roads of Tianjin straight? This is because of the Haihe River and the foreign concessions in Tianjin.

天津和其他“古都”不同，我们也就有600多年的历史，而且从开始也就只是个“卫城”。

Tianjin is different from many other historic Chinese cities. With a history of 600 years, it was mainly built to defend the capital, Beijing.

驻军的地方和住皇上的地方当然不能相提并论，皇权所谓的中、正，在老百姓那儿就不是那么讲究了，所以从最早的规划开始，天津城就没有那么“方”。

The city where the garrison lived was not comparable to the one where the emperor lived. The latter featured a square design whereas the former didn't have a particular layout.

Beijing

Xi'an

最早的天津老城建在海河西岸，紧邻三岔河口，并没有和海河水系直接交汇。而随着人口的增加，百姓的居住范围逐渐由城内向城外扩张，漕运、海运的发展使得人们逐水而居，老百姓靠水吃水，城市的规划也得按着海河的“意思”来。

The old city of Tianjin was built originally on the west bank of the Haihe River, next to the intersection of the South Canal, the North Canal and the Ziya River. But the residents at that time did not live directly along the Haihe River system. When the population increased, people began to live by the water, and the city had to develop to fit in with the Haihe River.

早期的聚居区不但要考虑生活便捷，还要远离水患，因此也呈现出不规则的发展。

People in those early settlements had to consider not only convenience but also the dangers of flooding, so the city developed in irregular patterns.

Tianjin

所以现在看看天津的道路，基本都是和海河垂直交汇或是平行的。

Therefore, Tianjin's roads mainly run parallel or perpendicular to the Haihe River.

另外，从1860年开始，天津海河沿岸逐渐沦为租界，最高峰时有9国租界。各国在自己的租界地面上规划道路，各自为政，其结果也就是如今天津道路的雏形。

In the late 1800s, the areas along both banks of the river gradually became concessions. At its peak, nine countries had concessions in the city. Foreign countries planned the roads in their concessions as they saw fit. This is why the roads are not straight.

这里就不得不提一下解放北路，这条穿过租借的道路两旁建筑物造型丰富，哥特式、罗马式、罗曼式、日尔曼式、俄罗斯古典式等西洋建筑。

Here we have to mention Jiefang North Road. The buildings along this road are rich in style: Gothic, Romanesque, Germanic, Russian, and other Western architectural styles. 

最后，要说的是——

Finally, I want to say that

我们天津人不是没有方向感

we Tianjin people do have a sense of direction.

我们只是没有东西南北的概念

We just do not have to tell directions in this city.

仅此而已

That's it.

Source: 掌上天津

Photos: 掌上天津

Translated by ITianjin

监制：田晓璇、廖媛

编辑：沈奕伽

实习生：汪清、何季霖