1637 年，英國人約翰‧ 威德爾 (John Weddell, 1583–1642) 率領 商船隊到澳門和廣州試圖進行貿易，結果造成武裝衝突，擾攘了半 年才勉強完成買賣離開。對於這次中英第一次正式接觸的歷史事 件，史家有不少的論述，但卻忽視了問題的核心：翻譯—特別是 譯者—在事件中所扮演的角色，以致無法真正全面準確理解事件， 原因是這次虎門事件所出現的翻譯問題不只限於溝通上的困難，而 且涉及一名來自中方的通事李葉榮從中營私舞弊。這不但嚴重地扭 曲了雙方的溝通和了解，更讓整個事件變得複雜。本文重點不在討 論這次虎門事件本身，而是希望同時利用和對比中英雙方的原始資 料，集中察看翻譯人員在這次事件中所扮演的角色。

In 1637, John Weddell’s trade fleet arrived in Macao and tried to trade with the Chinese in Guangzhou, the first attempt of its kind by the British. Unfortunately, there were serious miscommunication problems, and a number of minor hostilities broke out between the two parties. It took the British six months to complete a small number of transactions, with a pledge made by Weddell that he would not step on Chinese soil again. This so-called Bogue Incident has attracted the attention of the historians, for it was the first direct contact between Britain and China. Although there are a number of studies on the incident, none pays attention to the issue of translating/interpreting. This is lamentable because in the incident the translator/interpreter from the Chinese side, a linguist bearing a Portuguese name, Paulo Norette, played a critical role in shaping the course of events. The present paper, by consulting first hand material in Chinese and English, examines the role of the translator in this important event in the history of Sino-British relations.