Mr Bissell skillfully organizes historical insights and cultural references, making his tale a well-rounded picture of Uzbekistan, seen from Western eyes. His judgment and references are decidedly American, as well as his delicate stomach. As the author explains, this is neither a travel nor a history book, or even a piece of reportage. Whatever it is, the result is a fine and vivid description of the purest of Central Asian traditions.

有人将cultural references 翻译成“文化背景”，但reference没有背景的意思吧！

也有人将cultural references 翻译成“文化参照”，但这不符合汉语习惯吧？

到底如何理解和翻译比较好呢？请教专家老师！谢谢！