What are the characteristics and customs of the 24 solar terms?

Characteristics of the twenty-four solar terms:

The twenty-four solar terms are beginning of spring, Rainwater, Creeping, Equinox, Qingming, Grain Rain, long summer, Xiaoman, Mangzhong, Summer Solstice, Xiaoshu, Dashu, beginning of autumn, Chushu, Bailu, Autumnal Equinox, Cold Dew, first frost, beginning of winter, Light Snow, Heavy Snow and Winter Solstice. Beginning of spring, long summer, beginning of autumn and beginning of winter represent the arrival of the four seasons.

The rainfall increases when it rains, and the day and night are distinct at the vernal equinox; The summer solstice represents the tropic of cancer, when the sun shines directly, and summer comes, which is the hottest time of the year. The summer heat represents the end of summer, and the autumnal equinox is divided equally between day and night.

The winter solstice means that winter has begun, and the severe cold is the coldest time of the year. Rain, Grain Rain, White Dew, Cold Dew, first frost, light snow and heavy snow are mainly meteorological phenomena that reflect the weather; Frightening is the beginning of spring ploughing in most areas, and the awn seed is the maturity of agricultural products.

24 solar terms customs:

There will be a "Spring Festival" ceremony in beginning of spring; Qingming Festival is a solar term and an important traditional festival, and many people will have an outing on this day. Mang said that there is a custom of eating sour plum soup; Xiao Shu has the name of dog days; The weather in first frost is getting colder this day, and everyone focuses on health preservation, so there is a custom of eating red persimmons; On the winter solstice, there is a saying that the south eats dumplings and the north eats dumplings; Great cold has the saying of "food tonic".

the origin of the twenty-four solar terms:

historically, the main political, economic, cultural and agricultural activity centers in China were mostly concentrated in the Central Plains of the Yellow River Basin, and the twenty-four solar terms were established on the basis of the climate and phenology in this area. As early as the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the working people in China had the concept of "the sun will arrive in the south" and "the sun will arrive in the north".

subsequently, people divided the year into 24 equal parts according to the natural phenomena such as the running position of the sun and the moon at the beginning and the middle of the month, the weather and the growth of animals and plants. And gave each equal part a proper name, which is the twenty-four solar terms.

by the end of the warring States period, there were eight solar terms such as beginning of spring, vernal equinox, long summer, summer solstice, beginning of autumn, autumnal equinox, beginning of winter and winter solstice, which were the most important of the 24 solar terms. Mark the change of seasons and clearly divide the four seasons of the year. By the Qin and Han Dynasties, the 24 solar terms had been completely established.