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The word gracht ((:ɣrɑxt)) (plural: ''grachten'') is a Dutch term that is encountered by English-speaking people when confronted with Dutch art (e.g. 17th-century town-views of ''grachten''), Dutch history (Anne Frank House on the Prinsen''gracht'') or tourism (boating tours on the ''grachten'' of Amsterdam). The word is almost untranslatable; for that reason the following terms ''kanaal'', ''vaart'', ''gracht'' and ''singel'' will be discussed here first. ==Four related terms== * A ''kanaal'' (canal) is a manmade water course, usually in the countryside, irrespective of whether it has streets along its banks. * A ''vaart'' is a canal essentially used for transport rather than, for instance, drainage. Usually in the country-side. * A ''gracht'' (city-canal) is a waterway in the city with streets on both sides of the water. The streets are lined with houses, often in a closed front. (In rare exceptions there is only one street, where on the other side of the waterway the houses border on the water; see the photograph "Example of half a gracht".) * A ''singel'' is by origin a water-filled moat which surrounds a city for defense purposes. When the city expands the singel is incorporated in the city’s structure and cannot be distinguished any more from a ''gracht'', although the name ‘''singel''’ is usually maintained. Because of their origin, ''singels'' often encircle (older) parts of the city. But in other cases regular ''grachten'' were dug in circles as well, like the famous ''grachten-gordel'' (canal-belt) of Amsterdam. There is no exact equivalent for ''gracht'' in the English language, therefore it is best left untranslated. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「gracht」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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