China's oracle¹ bone scripts, an ancient type of Chinese characters inscribed² on animal bones or turtle shells, have successfully entered the UNESCO's Memory of the World Register, according to the Chinese Ministry³ of Education.

据教育部表示，我国的甲骨文--一种刻在动物骨头或龟壳上的古汉字，成功入选了联合国教科文组织《世界记忆名录》。

So far, China has 11 pieces of documentary files on the list, including the documents of the Nanjing Massacre⁴.

截至目前，我国已有包括《南京大屠杀档案》在内的11份文书档案载入该名录。

The characters inscribed on the bones and shells have contributed greatly to Chinese civilization, enabling Chinese culture to be passed on from generation to generation and become the only civilization to last up to the present.

甲骨文对我国文化做出了巨大的贡献，使得我国文化得以代代相传，成为唯一流传至今的文明。

However, in the past 100 years since being discovered, only about 2,000 characters from the oracle bone scripts have been decoded⁵. There are at least 3,000 more remaining to be deciphered.

不过，在甲骨文被发现后的100年中，被释读出来的甲骨文仅约有2000字，至少仍有3000字有待释读。

According to published materials, there are about 150,000 pieces of unearthed⁶ oracle bone scripts, and about 100,000 were preserved in the Chinese mainland, 30,000 in Taiwan and the other 20,000 were scattered⁷ across the world.

根据已出版的资料，大约有15万份出土的甲骨文，其中有10万份保存在中国大陆，3万份位于台湾，另外2万份分布在全世界。

It is expected that by entering the Memory of the World Register, the archaeological⁸ study of the ancient characters could be encouraged.

预计入选《世界记忆名录》后，这项针对古文字的考古研究将受到鼓励。

"It is only a new beginning," said Song Zhenhao, director of the Oracle Bone Scripts Study Center of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, hoping that the new achievement could inject a vigor⁹ into the ancient study.

中国社会科学院甲骨文研究中心主任宋镇豪表示：“这只是一个新的开始。”他希望这项新成就可以为古代研究注入活力。