Mother Country

父母所在之地、所屬之國或自己的生身之地、所屬之國，即故土；多指本國、祖國，與“桑梓”相類。此稱呼蘊涵著基于親緣和地緣的共同體意識與家鄉(xiāng)之念相交織的天然情感，以及由此生發(fā)的愛國之心。而愛國是中華民族深厚持久的傳統(tǒng)，是中華民族精神的核心，是每一個中國人的堅定信念和精神依托。

The mother country is the country where your parents are or came from, or where you were born and belong to; it is your homeland; it mostly refers to your own country and motherland, which is similar to sangzi (桑梓 native place). This name connotes the natural emotion of intertwining the sense of community based on kinship and geography with the love for hometown, and the patriotism that arises therefrom. Patriotism is a deep and lasting tradition of the Chinese nation, the core of the Chinese national spirit, a firm belief and a source of strength for every Chinese.

引例 Citations：

◎父母之邦，所宜尊敬。（《舊唐書·苗晉卿傳》）

對于父母之邦，是應該尊敬的。

The motherland must be respected. (The Old Tang History)

◎安有父母之邦覆，而偷生茍活者?。ā睹魇贰ちx傳六·馮云路附明?！罚?/p>

哪有父母之邦已經傾覆，自己反而茍且偷生的呢！

How can one keep alive after the motherland has perished? (The History of the Ming Dynasty)

◎小人等家口產業(yè)皆在本國，世受君恩，安忍反害父母之邦？（汪寄《海國春秋》第十五回）

我的家人和產業(yè)都在本國，世代蒙受君恩，怎么可能反過來忍心害我的父母之邦呢？

My family and properties are all in my country and we have benefited from the king for generations, so how could I be willing to harm my motherland? (Wang Ji: A History of the Builders in the State of Hai)

推薦：教育部 國家語委

供稿：北京外國語大學 外語教學與研究出版社

責任編輯：錢耐安