1/4英国人仍和儿时挚友常联系

A quarter of Britons are still in touch with their first best friend from childhood, a new study suggested today.

One in four said they were still in contact with their closest pal from primary school, according to the friendship poll.

The survey of 1,050 adults found the average Brit only counted five of their current day acquaintances as 'close friends'.

Women were more likely to keep the same friends as they went through life, with three in 10 still close to their first best friend, compared with two out of 10 men.

But females also appeared more selective when it came to who they counted as friends, with men averaging one more close friend among their immediate circle than the fairer sex.

The study by snack maker Pom-Bear to highlight its 'Let Make Friends' campaign revealed some marked differences in friendship patterns across the country.

Four out of 10 in the North East were still close to their first best friend from school, compared with just two out of 10 people in the North West, Yorkshire and Humberside and the South West.

People living in the North West and the Midlands were found to have been the most fickle in collecting 'best friends' through their school years, with a third of respondents from each region admitting they had counted no fewer than five 'best mates' along the way.

Londoners claimed to have the largest circle of friends as adults with more than six each, compared with those in the South West who averaged less than four.

Respondents aged 18 to 34 and the over-55s claimed to have the greatest number of friends.

Roxanne Amir-Mohammadi, brand manager from Pom-Bear said: 'Even though many of us can count many more people in our wider circle of acquaintances, we are still quite choosy when it comes to defining who we consider to be our real friends.

'It also appears that the busiest years of our working lives take their toll when it comes to staying in touch with friends with people aged between 35 and 44 averaging less than four friends each.'

今日发布的一项新研究显示，四分之一的英国人仍然和童年时结交的第一个好友保持联系。

根据这项关于友谊的调查，四分之一的人称他们仍然同小学时期最亲密的伙伴保持联系。

这项涵盖了1050位成人的调查还发现，英国人现在结识的熟人当中，能算作“好友”的平均为5个。

女性更容易拥有伴随一生的朋友。十分之三的女性仍然同她们的第一位好友关系亲密，相比之下，只有十分之二的男性如此。

但是，至于将谁看作是朋友，女性似乎更为挑剔。而男性在他们最密切的交际圈内平均比女性多一位好友。

这一研究由零食生产商Pom-Bear发起，目的是为其“让我们交朋友吧”这一活动宣传造势。该研究结果揭示了英国各地交友模式之间的显著区别。

在英国东北部，十分之四的被调查者仍然同他们上学期间最先结交的好友保持亲密的关系。相比之下，英国西北地区、约克郡、亨伯赛德郡和西南地区的被调查者中仅有十分之二的人同最初的好友保持密切联系。

研究发现，英国西北地区和中部地区的人上学期间在结交“挚友”方面一直都很多变。每个地区分别都有三分之一的被调查者承认自己曾经将五个以上的人看作“挚友”。

伦敦人声称自己的朋友圈最大，每位成年人最少有六位朋友。相比之下，西南地区的被调查者平均每人拥有还不到四个朋友。

年龄在18岁到34岁之间和55岁以上的被调查者自称拥有朋友的数量最多。

Pom-Bear品牌经理罗克珊．阿米尔-穆罕默迪说道，“尽管我们中许多人会将熟人圈里的很多人看作是朋友，但是，一旦提到我们将谁看作是真正的朋友，我们依然会很挑剔。”

“而且看起来，说到同朋友保持联系，工作生涯中最忙的那些年情况比较糟，年龄在35岁到44岁之间的人平均每人拥有还不到四位朋友。”

Vocabulary:

fickle: changing often and suddenly（易变的；无常的）

take toll: 产生负面影响