Abstract：
Animals are a part of nature, and a significant part closely related to people’s life. During the long history, animals are always closely related with human beings, and have a deep influence on the existence and development of the mankind. This close relationship makes people love or hate animals and people may place or express their emotions by making use of animals, so there are a lot of animal idioms both in English and in Chinese. Animal idioms play an important role in English because of their abundant images, unique function and expressions. Animal idioms stem from three different aspects, including the features of animals, the ancient myths, legends and fables, as well as the Bible. They reflect different understanding of animals and different emotional attitudes towards animals in different cultures. Because of geography, history, religion and customs of life differences, Chinese and English animal idioms carry different cultural characteristics and information. They are closely linked with cultural traditions. This paper analyzes the meanings and sources of idioms and some cultural differences between Chinese and English animal idioms and discusses the reasons for these differences. By studying different meanings of animal idioms in different cultures, we can understand animal idioms in different cultures better. Besides, it can also help us further strengthen the exchange, communication and cooperation among different cultures. Undeniably, Chinese and English are two typical languages representing Eastern and Western cultures, so this research compares the cultural differences between Chinese and English animal idioms to promote communication between China and English speaking countries.

Key words：idioms; animal idioms; cultural differences; reasons for differences

摘 要：
动物是自然界的一部分，是与人类生活密切相关的重要部分。在人类历史发展的漫长进程中，动物一直与人类保持着密切联系，并对人类的生存与发展产生深刻的影响。这种亲密无间的关系使得人类对动物产生喜爱或厌恶的情感，人们也常常借动物来寄托和表达人们的情感，所以英语和汉语中都有很多动物习语。动物习语因其丰富的形象、独特的功能和其表达力在英语语言中扮演了重要的角色。动物习语来源于三个方面，其中包括动物本身的特征，古代神话、传说和语言以及圣经。它们反映了不同民族对动物的认识，体现人们对动物不同的情感态度。由于地理、历史、宗教信仰、生活习俗等方面的差异，英汉习语承载着不同的民族文化特色和文化信息。它们与文化传统紧密相连。本文分析了习语的意义和来源，阐释了英汉动物习语的文化差异并分析了这些差异产生的原因。通过研究不同文化中动物习语的不同意义，我们可以更好地理解这些不同文化中的动物习语，而且能够加强不同文化间的交流与合作。不可否认的是，汉语和英语是能代表东西方文化的两种典型语言，所以这篇文章比较了英汉动物习语之间的文化差异以促进东西方国家的交流。

关键词：习语；动物习语；文化差异；差异成因