Cultural Customs of Spring Festival in Northern and Southern China

Name a few places where the customs of Spring Festival in the north and south of China may be different:

First, different eating habits.

Due to the differences in climate and geographical location, there are great differences in eating habits between the north and the south. Generally speaking, rice is the main food in the south and pasta is the main food in the north. In China's New Year's diet, the staple foods in the south and the north are different on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.

Jiaozi is a must-eat food on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day in the north, because jiaozi's homophonic symphony means "making friends when young", which indicates the end of the old year and the beginning of the new year. In addition, the shape of jiaozi is similar to that of an ingot. Eating jiaozi means making a fortune in the coming year.

The taste of dumpling stuffing varies from place to place, including sauerkraut, pork, mutton, leek, cabbage, radish, celery and so on.

In the south, the food eaten on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day is glutinous rice balls with a round shape. It means "reunion with wealth". The fillings of glutinous rice balls are also varied, including sweet, salty, meat and vegetarian. The sweet fillings are the most common, including sugar, bean paste, sesame and hawthorn.

Second, snacks are different.

In addition to the staple food, snacks are essential for the Chinese New Year. Whether it is a neighbor in the same village or a distant relative, the role of snacks should not be underestimated. Snacks can coax children, can be used as mats before cooking, and can also kill boring time.

Snacks in the north are mainly nuts, such as melon seeds and peanuts. In the north, I want to buy a big bag of melon seeds for the Spring Festival. These melon seeds disappeared unconsciously in the laughter of relatives and neighbors and the play of children.

Snacks in the south are mainly desserts, such as rice cakes and Osmanthus Jelly. New Year's cakes, which are homophonic "high every year", go up to the next level to show that they are working. New Year's cakes are essential cakes in the south.

Third, entertainment activities are different.

In the north, due to the cold climate, people usually stay at home, chat with relatives and friends and play cards during the New Year, and there are few outdoor entertainment activities.

After the spring, there were more temple fairs in the north. Visiting temple fairs is the main activity in northern spring. In some places, temple fairs begin during the New Year, and there are temple fairs during the New Year and the Lantern Festival. Our temple fair usually starts in February, February 15 in the Chenghuang Temple and March 18 in laojunmiao.

The temperature in the south is higher than that in the north, and there are many outdoor activities. Dragon dance in the south is also a form, including "lion dance, dragon dance, float, bamboo horse running and stilts walking".

On New Year's Eve, northerners usually stay at home, have dinner and watch the Spring Festival Gala. If you are in the countryside, braziers and stoves are indispensable, and fire symbolizes prosperity. On New Year's Eve, you must shine on your body and on the wall, which will not only warm your body, but also your heart.

Southerners, after dinner, the old people sit around the fire at home, chatting about the harvest of the year and the plans for next year, while the young people go out shopping to welcome the arrival of the new year.

Happy new year! Happy family!