Winter solstice schedule in 2023

The winter solstice festival in 2023 is 65438+ 1 1: 23 on February 22, 2023 in Gregorian calendar, and it is Friday 1 1 0 in lunar calendar.

The winter solstice is the 22nd of the 24 solar terms, and the longitude of the sun reaches 270. In China, the winter solstice is the shortest day and the longest night, so it was called "short day" in ancient times. The ancients believed that when the cathode arrived, the yang began to grow, the sun turned south, the day was short and the shadow was long, so it was called "winter solstice day", also commonly known as "winter festival", "long festival" and "sub-year".

One of the twenty-four solar terms from the winter solstice and one of the eight astronomical solar terms, opposite to the summer solstice. Since the Xia Dynasty, people have regarded the winter solstice as the starting point of solar terms, the beginning of a year and the flood season of life germination. According to the legend of China, the winter solstice is the New Year's Day of the Zhou Dynasty in history, which is a very important solar term and a traditional festival of the China lunar calendar. Up to now, there are still many places where the winter solstice festival is held.

The custom of winter solstice

As early as 2500 years ago, during the Spring and Autumn Period, China determined the winter solstice by observing the sun through the soil, which was the earliest of the 24 solar terms. The sun starts when it reaches 270 degrees of the yellow meridian, and the time is between 65438+February 2 1 or 23. On the solstice of winter, there is a custom of offering sacrifices to heaven and ancestors, which has existed for many years.

Although many people no longer believe in God, this custom has remained. Every family will prepare some sacrifices and make sacrifices on this day. There are many rules when offering sacrifices, which are quite grand. During the winter solstice, people in different areas will eat some local special foods. For example, jiaozi usually eats in the northeast, pumpkin pie in Hefei, glutinous rice balls in Chaoshan, and some mutton soup in Tengzhou.