This Day in History March 13歷史上的今天 3月13日

Uncle Sam is a cartoon character that was created to represent the US. The first time people heard of Uncle Sam was during the War of 1812. Uncle Sam was first shown to the public in the March 13, 1852, issue of the New York Lantern. However, the famous image we now know as Uncle Sam wasn't created until later by Thomas Nast. His design showed a serious-looking elderly man with a beard similar to Abraham Lincoln and clothes that looked like they were made out of the US flag. These days, Uncle Sam is commonly seen on posters that encourage Americans to join the military.

「山姆大叔」是創造來作為美國象徵的漫畫角色。人們第一次聽到「山姆大叔」這個名字是在 1812 年的美英戰爭期間。「山姆大叔」於 1852 年 3 月 13 日那一期的《紐約之燈》中，第一次出現在世人面前。但是，我們今日所熟悉的「山姆大叔」卻是後來由湯瑪斯．納斯特所創造出來的人物造型：一個貌似林肯總 統，蓄著鬍子、神情嚴肅的老先生，身上穿的衣服看起來則像是用美國國旗裁製而成。現在，山姆大叔常常出現在鼓勵美國人從軍的海報上。