井底之蛙，这个出自两千多年前《庄子·秋水》“井蛙不可以语于海者，拘于虚也”、中国人妇孺皆知的中文成语，西方人还以为是日本、韩国、印度或其他亚洲国家的成语，这不能不说是一件让中国人觉得可笑甚至遗憾的事情。

在互联网上，不难搜索到以下例子：

1、Finally, to quote a Korean proverb; it is undesirable and limiting to be like a frog in a well. （我们）可引用一个韩国谚语作为（本文的）结尾：做个井底之蛙既不可取，也限制了（我们思想的进步）。

2、There is a story often told by Srila Prabhupada of a frog in a well. The well is three-feet wide and the frog was born there and has spent all his life at the bottom of this well...圣帕布帕德（印度有名的精神领袖——作者注）经常讲到井底之蛙的故事。那口井只有3英尺宽，青蛙出生于那里并在井底生活一辈子……

3、Yet he still refers to himself as a "frog in a well," a Korean expression for a person who knows nothing about the outside world. 可是他还是把自己比做“井底之蛙”，这个韩国成语比喻的是那种对外部世界一无所知的人。

从上述三个例子我们可以注意到：井底之蛙这个成语已经和我们中华民族没什么关系了！

作为一个有一点点英文基础的中国人，我觉得有一种义务尝试用英语来解释这个成语的origin及美国知名汉学家华森（Burton Watson，1925－）翻译的《庄子全译本》中的段落加以佐证，希望尽可能帮助那些不懂这点知识的外国人士能够及早意识到自己的错误。同时也希望译言的广大译友在此贡献各自的外文智慧，让更多老外提高对中华文化的认识水平。

【成语】井底之蛙(jing3 di3 zhi1 wa1)：形容见识短浅的人。

【英译】1. (as a noun): a well frog; a wellfrog; a well-frog; a frog in a well：a Chinese metaphore indicating a close-minded.
2. (as an adjective): of or related to someone like a well frog; short-sighted; unthinking.

【Origin】from Qiushui ("Autumn Water")by Zhuangzi,(Chuang Tzu, or Chuang-tse, 369-286 B.C.E), an ancient Chinese philosopher.

【Referrence】Jo of the North Sea said, "You can't discuss the ocean with a well frog - he's limited by the space he lives in. You can't discuss ice with a summer insect - he's bound to a single season. You can't discuss the Way with a cramped scholar - he's shackled by his doctrines. Now you have come out beyond your banks and borders and have seen the great sea - so you realize your own pettiness. From now on it will be possible to talk to you about the Great Principle. 北海若曰：“井蛙不可以语于海者，拘于虚也；夏虫不可以语于冰者，笃于时也；曲士不可以语于道者，束于教也。尔出于崖涘，观于大海，乃知尔丑，尔将可与语大理矣。” --from The Complete Works Of Chuang Tzu, Translated by Burton Watson (1965)

【用法举例】（希望译者同行多提供一些，以壮大我们的声威）

1. When I entered the college from the small town where I was born, I was taken by my classmates as a frog in a well because I knew so little about city life.

2. You had better learn as much as you could if you wish you had not been such a well frog.

3. A wellfrog teacher tends to urge his or her pupils do just what he or she asks them to do.

4. Once I was almost a financial well frog who had been spending far more than I could earn.

相信还有不少精彩的说法，大家都来贡献一点，如何？