【英文合同翻译要点5】英文合同的构成

下列句子是简略后的英文合同开头。

This AGREEMENT, made and entered into on [date], by and between ABC Corporation having its principal office at [address] and XYZ Company having its principal office at [address] WITNESSETH THAT:

当笔者第一次接触到这种风格的英文合同时，很疑惑为什么用的是This AGREEMENT, made…而不是This AGREEMENT is made…，想必有很多人和我有一样的疑问。

实际上，made以后的都是修饰句(modifier)，从历史角度出发，英文合同的这个示例中，将made以后的被修饰的this agreement作为主语，WITNESSETH（witness的第三人称单数现在时的古形）作为动词描述THAT以后的内容后，以末尾的关系副词句IN WITNESS WHERE OF来结尾，形成了一整个长句“This Agreement witnesses that … , in witness of which the parties have executed this Agreement”，长久以来，这种书写方式来已经成为了一种传统。

开头不是This AGREEMENT is made…而是This AGREEMENT, made… 也是因此而来。现在往往不再使用witnesses that式的语法，而是以This Agreement is made作为合同的开头。