Traditional Culture Encyclopedia - The 24 Solar Terms - Is the winter solstice the first day of winter?

Is the winter solstice the first day of winter?

Is the winter solstice the first day of winter?

Is the winter solstice the first day of winter? The winter solstice solar term is the fourth solar term in winter, a very important solar term among the 24 solar terms, and also a traditional ancestor worship festival in China. So do you know that the winter solstice is the first day of winter? Let's have a look.

Is the winter solstice the first day of winter? The winter solstice is neither the first day nor the last day of winter.

"Winter solstice" does not mean "winter is coming". Some people interpret "winter solstice" as "winter has arrived", which is a misunderstanding. Because "the winter solstice" is not a subject-predicate structure, but a partial structure, meaning "the pole of winter". This night is the longest, and then it gets shorter. Similarly, the "summer solstice" refers to the "summer pole", which reaches its peak during the day and then slowly shrinks. Zhu Dui said, "To the extreme."

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Winter solstice is one of the eight festivals in a year. Since ancient times, ancestors have had the tradition of offering sacrifices to their ancestors during the winter solstice to show filial piety and not forget their roots. Due to different local customs and habits, the forms of ancestor worship are also different. While offering sacrifices to ancestors, they also offer sacrifices to the gods of heaven and earth. The offerings mainly include three sacrifices, three teas and five wines. The solstice in winter is considered as a big holiday in winter. In ancient times, people wandering in other places had to go home for the winter festival at this time, which was called "having a home at the end of the year".

The phrase "The solstice in winter is as big as a year and never comes back" is widely circulated in some places in southern China. Winter solstice is also called "sub-year" and "off-year", which means that a year is coming, and the importance of winter solstice is expressed. When the winter solstice arrives, the New Year is just around the corner, so the ancients thought that the winter solstice was as important as the New Year. Many places still maintain the traditional custom of offering sacrifices to heaven and ancestors from the winter solstice.

Is the winter solstice the first day of winter? Is the winter solstice the first day of winter? number

The winter solstice solar term is the fourth solar term in winter. Therefore, the winter solstice cannot be the first day of winter. The first day of winter is the beginning of the winter solar term, and the beginning of the winter solar term is the first solar term in winter. Speaking of solar terms in beginning of winter, it means that winter is officially coming, and the beginning of solar terms in beginning of winter is the first day of winter. However, when the solar terms in beginning of winter are in autumn, the temperature will not be very cold.

On the custom of winter solstice

1, ancestor worship

On this day, Chaoshan people prepare three kinds of sacrifices and fruits, such as pork, chicken and fish, to worship their ancestors at the ancestral temple, and then the family sits around the table for dinner, usually before noon, and the family is reunited at lunch. But in coastal areas, such as the seamounts in Raoping, ancestors sacrificed in the early morning before fishermen went out to sea to fish, which means asking gods and ancestors to bless fishermen's fishing safety.

2, winter solstice shoes

On the solstice of winter, people have the custom of giving away shoes. "Ancient and Modern China" said: "There were embroidered mandarin ducks and embroidered shoes in the Han Dynasty, and Emperor Zhao ordered his aunt to go to the winter solstice." With the passage of time, the custom of sending shoes to uncles and aunts has gradually evolved into sending shoes and hats to nephews and nieces. In ancient times, hand embroidery was for women. Shoes are embroidered with flowers and birds, and hats are made into phoenix shapes. For men, shoe embroidery is mostly a beast, and hats are also tigers.

Step 3 Eat jiaozi

Every year, during the winter solstice of the Lunar New Year, jiaozi is an indispensable holiday feast for both the rich and the poor. As the saying goes: "On October 1st, when the solstice of winter comes, every family eats jiaozi." This custom commemorates Zhang Jingzhong, the "medical sage", who gave up medicine on the solstice of winter.

4, Jiujiu Quhan

After entering the ninth year, some literati engaged in so-called activities to cool down and keep out the cold. They chose a "September" day to meet nine people and have a drink ("wine" and "nine" are homophonic). Nine dishes and nine bowls are used at the dining table, and those who have finished the table use "nine flowers" seats to get the meaning of "September" and to cool off the heat and cold.

Is the winter solstice the first day of winter? As far as solar terms are concerned, the winter solstice is neither the beginning nor the end of winter, but the beginning of the coldest period of the year.

According to modern astronomical science, during the winter solstice, the sun moves to 270 (winter solstice), and the position where the sun directly hits the ground reaches the southernmost point of the year. The sun shines almost directly on the tropic of Capricorn (also known as the winter solstice daily line), and the sun is most biased towards the northern hemisphere. Therefore, the winter solstice is the shortest day in all parts of the northern hemisphere in a year, and the farther north, the shorter the day.

For all parts of the northern hemisphere, the winter solstice is also the day with the lowest sun height at noon all year round. North of the Arctic Circle, the sun is below the horizon all day, which is the widest day of the year in the northern hemisphere. In winter solstice, the northern hemisphere gets the least solar radiation, which is about 50% less than that in the southern hemisphere in hot summer.

Extended data:

The southernmost day of the year. After this day, the direct point of the sun began to move northward from the tropic of Capricorn, and the length of the day in the northern hemisphere began to increase gradually, and the height of the sun also increased gradually at noon.

It is worth noting that around the winter solstice, the earth is located near the perihelion, and its movement speed is slightly faster, which leads to that the time of the sun in the southern hemisphere is about 8 days shorter than that in the northern hemisphere, so the winter in the northern hemisphere is slightly shorter than that in summer.

Note: The polar axis passes through the center of the earth and connects the north and south poles, making an angle of 66 34 ′ with the orbital plane of the earth revolution and perpendicular to the equatorial plane.