2024 年冬至时间：2024年12月21日 ~ 2025年01月05日
24 Solar Terms: 9 things about Winter Solstice
The traditional Chinese lunar calendar divides the year into 24 solar terms. Winter Solstice (Chinese: 冬至), the 22nd solar term of the year, begins this year on Dec 21 and ends on Jan 5.
On the first day of Winter Solstice, the Northern Hemisphere experiences the shortest day and the longest night in the year, as the sun shines directly at the Tropic of Capricorn. From then on, the days become longer and the nights become shorter. The Winter Solstice also marks the arrival of the coldest season in the year.
Here are nine things you should know about Winter Solstice.
The Winter Solstice Festival
There was a saying in ancient China, "The Winter Solstice is as significant as the Spring Festival."
As early as the Zhou Dynasty (c.11th century-256 BC), people worshipped the gods on the first day of the Winter Solstice, which also was the first day of the new year. The Winter Solstice became a winter festival during the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD). The celebratory activities were officially organized. On this day, both officials and common people would have a rest.
During subsequent dynasties, such as the Tang (618-907), Song (960-1279) and Qing dynasties (1644-1911), the Winter Solstice was a day to offer sacrifices to Heaven and to ancestors.
Eating nuts
When midwinter arrives, vital movement begins to decline and calm down. In this period, eating an appropriate amount of nuts, such as peanuts, walnuts, chestnuts, hazelnuts and almonds, is good for one's body. Traditional Chinese medical science teaches that the quality of a nut is tepidity and most nuts have the function of nourishing the kidneys and strengthening the brain and heart.
Eating dumplings
During Winter Solstice in North China, eating dumplings is essential to the festival. There is a saying that goes "Have dumplings on the first day of Winter Solstice and noodles on the first day of Summer Solstice."
Eating wontons
People in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, are accustomed to eating wontons in midwinter. According to legend, during the midwinter feast 2,500 years ago, the King of Wu (one of the states during the Western Zhou Dynasty and the Spring and Autumn Period) was disgusted with all kinds of costly foods and wanted to eat something different. Then, the beauty Xishi came into the kitchen to make "wontons" to honor the king's wish. He ate a lot and liked the food very much. To commemorate Xishi, the people of Suzhou made wontons the official food to celebrate the festival.
Eating tangyuan
In places such as Shanghai, people eat tangyuan, a kind of stuffed small dumpling ball made of glutinous rice flour, to celebrate Winter Solstice.
Eating mutton and vermicelli soup
In Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui autonomous region, people call midwinter the "Ghost Festival". On that day, it is customary for people there to drink mutton and vermicelli soup and eat the dumplings in the soup. They give the midwinter soup a strange name - "brain" - and share it with their neighbors.
Eating rice cakes
During the Winter Solstice, Hangzhou residents traditionally eat rice cakes. In the past, before the approach of the winter solstice, every household would make the cakes to worship their ancestors or use as gifts for relatives and friends. Today, though fewer families eat homemade cakes, people there still buy rice cakes for the Winter Solstice Festival.
Offering nine-layer cakes to ancestors
Taiwan residents keep the custom of offering nine-layer cakes to their ancestors. People with the same surname or family clan gather at their ancestral temples to worship their ancestors in order of their ages. After the sacrificial ceremony, there is always a grand banquet.
Eating red-bean and glutinous rice
In some regions south of the Yangtze River on the first day of Winter Solstice, the whole family gets together to have a meal made of red bean and glutinous rice to drive away ghosts and other evil things.
关于冬至节气的 9 个小常识
中国传统农历将一年分为二十四个节气。冬至，一年中的第 22 个节气。今年从 12 月 21 日开始，至 1 月 5 日结束。
冬至节气的第一天，由于太阳直射南回归线，北半球白昼最短，黑夜最长。冬至过后，白昼变长，黑夜变短。冬至也意味着一年最冷的时节来临。
一起来了解一下关于冬至的 9 个小常识。
冬至大如年
中国有句古话叫：“冬至大如年。”
早在周朝时期（公元前约11世纪-公元前256年），人们就在冬至这天祭拜神灵，冬至还是新年的第一天。冬至在汉朝（公元前206年-公元220年）成为一个冬季节日，在这天会举行正式的庆祝活动，官员和百姓均可休息。
在后来的朝代，比如唐朝（公元618年-907年）、宋朝（公元960年-1279年）和清朝（公元1644年-1911年），冬至成为祭天祭祖的节日。
吃坚果
当冬至来临，生命活动会开始减少并平寂下来。这时候吃适量的坚果，比如花生、核桃、栗子、榛子、杏仁，对人的身体很有好处。中医传统理论认为，坚果性温，大部分坚果都有滋养肾脏、强脑强心的功效。
吃饺子
在北方，冬至一定要吃饺子。俗语有云“冬至饺子夏至面”。
吃馄饨
苏州人有在冬至这天吃馄饨的习俗。据传，在2500年前的冬至宴席上，吴王（吴国是西周和春秋时期的一个国家）厌倦了各种名贵的食物，想要吃一些特别的东西。美女西施下厨给他做了一碗“馄饨”，满足了他的愿望。吴王吃了很多，他非常喜欢这种食物。为了纪念西施，苏州人把馄饨作为庆祝冬至节的官方食物。
吃汤圆
上海等地的人们吃汤圆来庆祝冬至的到来。汤圆是用糯米粉制成的一种有馅儿的小团子。
吃羊肉粉丝汤
在宁夏银川，人们将冬至称为“鬼节”。在这一天，人们习惯吃羊肉粉丝汤和汤饺。他们给冬至的汤起了一个奇怪的名字叫“头脑”，而且还会和邻居们一起分享。
吃年糕
杭州人有冬至吃年糕的传统。过去，每逢冬至，家家户户都会做年糕来祭祖或馈赠亲友。现在吃自制年糕的家庭没那么多了，但杭州人仍然会在冬至买年糕吃。
用九层糕祭祖
台湾人保留了用九层糕祭祖的习俗。同宗同族的人们齐聚在先祖祠堂，按年龄顺序祭拜祖先。祭拜仪式结束后，往往会举行盛大的宴会。
吃红豆糯米饭
在长江以南部分地区，人们会在冬至这天全家聚在一起享用一顿红豆糯米饭，目的是驱赶鬼魂和其他邪物。
solstice UK /ˈsɒl.stɪs/ US /ˈsɑːl.stɪs/ /ˈsoʊl.stɪs/
n. [C] 至，至点
hemisphere /ˈhem.ɪ.sfɪər/ /ˈhem.ə.sfɪr/
n. [C]（尤指地球的）半球
n. [C] 脑半球
n. [C] 球体的一半
tropic
n. [C] 回归线
the tropics [plural] 热带地区
Capricorn /ˈkæp.rɪ.kɔːn/ /ˈkæp.rə.kɔːrn/
n. 摩羯宫（黄道第10宫）;出生于摩羯宫时段（即在12月23日至1月20日之间）的人
worship /ˈwɜː.ʃɪp/
vt. 敬奉，崇拜，信仰（上帝或神）
vi. 参加宗教仪式;敬神;拜神
vt.（常指盲目地）宠爱，崇拜，崇尚
celebratory /ˌsel.əˈbreɪ.t(ə)r.i/ /ˌsel.əˈbreɪ.t̬ɚ.i/
adj. 庆祝的，庆贺的;祝贺的
subsequent /ˈsʌb.sɪ.kwənt/
ancestor /ˈæn.ses.tə(r)/ /ˈæn.ses.tɚ/
midwinter /ˌmɪdˈwɪn.tə(r)/ /ˌmɪdˈwɪn.t̬ɚ/
n. [U] 仲冬
vital /ˈvaɪ.t(ə)l/
adj. 必不可少的；极其重要的
adj. 生机勃勃的;充满生气的
adj. 生命的
appropriate /əˈprəʊ.pri.ət/
walnut /ˈwɔːl.nʌt/ /ˈwɑːl.nʌt/
n. [C or U] 胡桃，核桃;胡桃树，核桃树;胡桃木，核桃木
chestnut US plural also chestnut
n. [C] 栗树；栗子，板栗
n. [C] 栗色马;红棕马
n. [U] 栗色，红褐色，红棕色
hazelnut /ˈheɪ.z(ə)l.nʌt/
n. [C] 榛子
almond /ˈɑː.mənd/ /ˈɑːl.mənd/
n. [C] 杏仁;扁桃树
tepidity /tɪ'pɪdɪtɪ/ /tɪ'pɪdətɪ/
n. 微温，微热; 温热
kidney /ˈkɪd.ni/
n. [C] 肾，肾脏
n. [C or U]（可食用的动物）腰子
wonton /ˌwɒnˈtɒn/ /ˈwɑːn.tɑːn/
n. [C] 馄饨
accustom yourself to something
使习惯于
accustomed /əˈkʌs.təmd/
adj. 习惯的；适应了的
adj. 一贯的；惯常的
feast /fiːst/
n. [C] 盛宴;宴会
n. [S]（感官）享受
n. [S] 令人喜爱的事物
n. [C]（宗教）节日
disgusted /dɪsˈɡʌs.tɪd/
adj. 反感的，厌恶的，憎恶的
costly
adj. 昂贵的，值钱的
adj. 造成重大损失（或破坏）的
commemorate /kəˈmem.ə.reɪt/
vt. （尤指举行公开仪式或竖立雕塑或专门建筑）纪念，缅怀
stuffed /stʌft/
adj. 有填料的，有馅儿的
adj. 填制的，填充以保持形状的
adj. [after verb] [informal]（人）吃饱的，吃撑的
glutinous
(Cambridge)
/ˈɡluː.tɪ.nəs/ /ˈɡluː.t̬(ə)n.əs/
(Oxford)
/ˈɡluːtənəs/
adj. 黏的（同 sticky）
flour /flaʊə(r)/ /ˈflaʊ.ɚ/
n. [U]（谷物磨成的）粉;（尤指）小麦粉
vt. 在…上撒面粉
vermicelli /ˌvɜː.mɪˈtʃel.i/
n. [U] 细面条;线面，意大利细面
n. [U] (UK)（蛋糕上的）巧克力装饰线条
traditionally
(Cambridge)
/trəˈdɪʃ.(ə)n.(ə)l.i/ /trəˈdɪʃ.(ə)n.(ə)l.i/
(Oxford)
/trəˈdɪʃənəli/
household /ˈhaʊs.həʊld/
n. [C, + sing/pl verb] 一家人，一户，家庭
surname /ˈsɜː.neɪm/
n. [C] (mainly UK)
(US usually last name); (UK also second name)
姓，姓氏
clan /klæn/
n. 家族，氏族;（享有共同利益的）群体，集团
n. [C, + sing/pl verb]（尤指苏格兰的）宗族，氏族
ancestral /ænˈses.trəl/
adj. 祖先的，祖传的
sacrificial /ˌsæk.rɪˈfɪʃ.(ə)l/ /ˌsæk.rəˈfɪʃ.(ə)l/
adj. 献祭的，用作祭品的
ceremony /ˈser.ɪ.mə.ni/ /ˈser.ə.mə.ni/
n. [C or U] 典礼;仪式
n. [U] 礼节;礼仪;客套
banquet /ˈbæŋ.kwɪt/ /ˈbæŋ.kwət/
n. [C]（正式的）宴会
Yangtze /'jæŋzɪ/
n. 扬子江，长江
