Little New Year is coming. It's quite a spring festival. Do you know these customs of little year?

 

近些年來，關(guān)于小年到底是哪一天，其討論熱度不亞于端午節(jié)吃咸粽子還是甜粽子。其實，對于小年到底是哪天，各地有不同的概念和日期。在我國北方地區(qū)小年是臘月廿三，部分南方地區(qū)是臘月廿四，江浙滬地區(qū)把臘月廿四和除夕前一夜都稱為小年。

In recent years, the discussion about the day of Little New Year is as hot as the discussion about whether to eat salty or sweet Zongzi on the Dragon Boat Festival. As a matter of fact, different places have different concepts and dates on which day the new year is. In northern China, the Lunar New Year is December 23, and in some southern regions, it is December 24. In Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai areas, the Lunar New Year's Eve and the night before it are called the Lunar New Year's Eve.

小年，是民間祭灶的日子。民間傳說，“上天言好事，下界保平安”，每年臘月廿三，灶王爺都要上天向玉皇大帝稟報這家人的善惡。于是，小年這天人們會擺一些糖瓜、灶糖在灶王像前，為的就是讓灶王爺在玉帝面前多說好話。

Little New Year is a day for people to sacrifice to the kitchen. According to the folklore, "Heaven says good things, and the lower world keeps peace." every year on the 23rd of December, the kitchen god reports the good and evil of his family to the Jade Emperor. Therefore, on New Year's day, people will put some sugar melons and kitchen sweets in front of the kitchen King statue, in order to let the kitchen King say more good things in front of the Jade Emperor.

過了臘月廿三，家家戶戶就開始貼窗花了。以前，窗花一般都是自己剪，手巧的老人帶著孫子孫女一起剪漂亮的窗花貼上。如今，多數(shù)人都是去買窗花，似乎會少了一絲喜悅和年味兒。

After December 23, every household began to paste window decorations. In the past, the window decorations were usually cut by themselves. The skillful old man and his grandchildren cut beautiful window decorations and pasted them together. Nowadays, most people are going to buy window decorations, which seems to be a little less joy and new year's taste.

在很多地方，小年就開始貼春聯(lián)，算是比較早進入春節(jié)了。比較傳統(tǒng)的人家，還習慣請寫字好的人來書寫春聯(lián)。一般用最普通的紅紙黑墨，簡樸卻年味兒十足。

In many places, the Spring Festival couplets have been pasted since the beginning of the new year, which can be regarded as the early spring festival. Compared with traditional families, they are also used to inviting people with good handwriting to write Spring Festival couplets. Generally use the most common red paper black ink, simple but full of flavor.

小年時，還要掃灰塵，北方人稱“掃房”，南方人稱“撣塵”。

這一習俗可追溯到三千多年前，當時為驅(qū)疫鬼、祈安康的宗教儀式。后“塵”與“陳”諧音，掃塵也寓意把陳舊的東西一掃而光，既指庭院內(nèi)的陳年積垢，也指舊歲中遇到的不快。

On little New Year, people have to sweep the dust, which was called "house sweeping" in the north and "dusting" in the south.

This custom can be traced back to more than 3000 years ago, when it was a religious ceremony to drive away the ghosts and pray for health. After the "dust" and "Chen" homonym, sweep dust also means to sweep away the old things, not only refers to the courtyard of the old dirt, but also refers to the old year in the face of unhappiness.

過了臘月廿三，漢族民間認為諸神上了天，百無禁忌，娶媳婦、聘閨女不用擇日子。因此直至年底，舉行結(jié)婚典禮的都會特別多。

After the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month, the Han people believed that the gods had gone to heaven, and there was no taboo. There was no need to choose the right day to marry or hire a daughter-in-law. So until the end of the year, there will be a lot of wedding ceremonies.

糖瓜、飴糖、麻糖等吃食本為給灶王爺嘴上抹得吃食，逐漸演變成了小孩小年必吃的零食。晉西北有“二十三吃麻糖，吃不上麻糖啃指頭”的俗話。

Sugar gourd, malt sugar, sesame sugar and other foods were originally for the kitchen god to wipe on his mouth, and gradually evolved into snacks that children must eat when they are young. There is a saying in Northwest Shanxi that "on the 23rd day, you can eat sesame candy, but you can't eat sesame candy and chew your fingers.".

北方小年晚上習慣吃餃子，意為給灶王爺送行，取意“送行餃子迎風面”。一家人坐在一起，吃著熱乎乎的餃子，其樂融融，很有年味兒。

The northern Chinese New Year used to eat dumplings in the evening, which means to see off the kitchen god. The whole family sat together and ate hot dumplings. They were very happy and young.

 

Source: Hebei news network