What are the origins and customs of the winter solstice?

The Winter Solstice is one of the twenty-four solar terms and an important traditional festival, which is the shortest day and the longest night of the year. The winter solstice has the richest connotations and the most numerous festivals and customs, so there are many other aliases, also known as the Winter Festival, the Longest Solstice Festival, the Shortest Solstice Festival, the He Dong Festival, the First Yang Festival, and the appellations of Yayoi, Fatty Winter, and Hei Dong.

One, ancestor worship

Ancestor worship is often customary activities in many festivals in China, the winter solstice is also one of them. The Chinese National Customs, there is a "winter solstice festival, sweeping graves, also known as the" Ghost Festival "" said. In our Chinese concept, the ancestral soul for the significance of the family, and the gods of heaven and earth for the power of the country can be completely comparable, not to be sloppy, not to be neglected. Sacrifices are made either at the family temple or at the cemetery, where good food and drink are offered to the ancestors as much as possible.

Two, eat dumplings

In most parts of our northern China, there is a winter solstice to eat dumplings holiday customs. Eating dumplings, also known as eating "pinch frozen ears", originated from a legend in the Han Dynasty. Zhang Zhongjing was an official in Changsha, and when he returned to his hometown, it was a snowy winter, and the wind was so cold that many people's ears were frozen. He was so sad that he let his disciples set up a shed in the east of Nanyang Pass and boiled lamb, chili peppers and some cold-expelling herbs in a pot, then fished them out and chopped them up, wrapped them in dough to make them look like ears, and then put them into the pot to boil them and give them to the people to eat. After everyone ate it, their ears got better, and then every winter solstice, people imitated this to do "pinch frozen ears" to eat, and later called it "dumplings".

Three, eat wontons

Winter solstice to eat wontons, first popular in the Southern Song Dynasty. Legend has it that Song Emperor Zhao Gou loved to eat wontons made by the imperial chef, because once the wontons were not cooked, someone had to send the imperial chef to the Da Lisi to be punished, but because only the imperial chef would make wontons, Zhao Gou pardoned him. Later, the production method of wontons spread to the folk, varieties and patterns more and more, every winter solstice festival, families are wrapped wontons to eat, so there is a "winter solstice wontons, summer solstice noodles," said.

Four, nine nine cold

Winter solstice, the winter solstice, into nine cold days. Starting from the winter solstice, every nine days into a "nine" **** sub-9 "nine"?, counting to 81 days, it is "nine end of the peach blossom".

Old Beijing since the Qing Dynasty, there are eat "nine nine hot pot", "nine nine wine meat" and other nine nine cold dietary customs, in the nine nine to eat ten hot pot, ten hot pot and ten different content, but are a hot pot, generally are shabu shabu lamb

These are the most popular food in the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China (R.O.C.).

Fifth, eat mutton

Legend has it that Liu Bang, the founder of Han Gaozu, ate mutton cooked by Fan Kuai on the winter solstice, and found the flavor particularly delicious and praised it. Since then, the custom of eating mutton on the winter solstice has developed in folklore for a good omen in the coming year.

Six, eat dumplings

The traditional custom of eating dumplings on the winter solstice, in the Ming and Qing Dynasties has been agreed upon. Especially in the southern part of the Yangtze River, soup dumplings, is the winter solstice necessary food, means "reunion", "complete", winter solstice to eat soup dumplings, symbolizing family harmony and good luck.

Seven, the winter solstice shoes

In the winter solstice festival, folk have the habit of giving children shoes and hats. Giving shoes and hats is mainly to hope that the children can grow up healthily. In the past, they were mainly hand-embroidered, but now most of them are purchased from the market, and the form follows the trend of the times.

Eight, eat red beans and glutinous rice

Legend has it that, **** Gong's had a son, evil, and finally died on the winter solstice this day, after death into the epidemic ghost, continue to brutalize the people. But this epidemic ghost is most afraid of red beans, so people cook red beans on the day of the winter solstice rice to eat, to drive away evil spirits, disaster prevention and relief.

Nine, Suzhou winter wine

Gusu region on the winter solstice this festival is very important, in the local circulation of a proverb: "winter solstice as a big year". Traditionally, people in Gusu would drink winter wine on the night of the winter solstice. In the cold winter, winter wine can not only drive away the cold, but also sends a Gusu people to a better life of a kind of hope.