冬至意味著北半球這一天白天最短，夜晚最長，而從這天之后，白天將逐漸變長，夜晚漸短。除此之外，冬至到來也標志著一年中最寒冷的時候要來到了。小編帶你盤點關于冬至你不得不知道的八件事。

　　On the first day of Winter Solstice, the Northern Hemisphere experiences the shortest day and the longest night in the year, as the sun shines directly at the tropic of Capricorn. From then on, the days become longer and the nights become shorter. The Winter Solstice also marks the arrival of the coldest season in the year。

　　冬至意味著北半球這一天白天最短，夜晚最長，而從這天之后，白天將逐漸變長，夜晚漸短。除此之外，冬至到來也標志著一年中最寒冷的時候要來到了。

　　Here are eight things you should know about Winter Solstice。

　　小編帶你盤點關于冬至你不得不知道的八件事。

　　1.The Winter Solstice Festival

　　冬至冬至

　　There was a saying that went in ancient China, "The Winter Solstice is as significant as the Spring Festival."

　　古語認為：“冬節大如年。”

　　As early as Zhou Dynasty (c.11thcentury-256BC)， people worshipped the gods on the first day of the Winter Solstice, which was also the first day of the new year. The Winter Solstice became a winter festival during the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220AD). The celebratory activities were officially organized. On this day, both officials and common people would have a rest。

　　早在周朝(公元前11世紀)人們在冬至的第一天也就是當時的新年進行祭神活動。漢朝最早把冬至當做節日來過，朝廷組織慶祝活動。這天，官府和老百姓例行放假。

　　During subsequent dynasties, such as the Tang (618-907)， Song (960-1279) and Qing dynasties (1644-1911)， the Winter Solstice was a day to offer sacrifices to Heaven and to ancestors。

　　到唐、宋、清朝時，冬至這天要祭祀天神和祖先。

　　2.Eating nuts

　　吃堅果類食物

　　When midwinter comes, vital movement begins to decline and calm down. In this period, eating an appropriate amount of nuts, such as peanuts, walnuts, chestnuts, hazelnuts and almonds, is good for one’s body. traditional Chinese medical science teaches that the quality of a nut is tepidity and most nuts have the function of nourishing the kidneys and strengthening the brain and heart。

　　冬天時戶外活動減少，在這段時期，吃一些諸如花生、核桃、栗子等堅果類食物對身體大有好處。堅果類食物有養腎強心腦的功能。

　　3.Eating dumplings

　　吃餃子

　　During Winter Solstice in North China, eating dumplings is essential to the festival. There is a saying that goes "Have dumplings on the first day of Winter Solstice and noodles on the first day of Summer Solstice."

　　冬至時吃餃子是北方必不可少的節日飯。俗話說，“冬吃餃子夏吃面”

　　4.Eating wontons

　　吃餛飩

　　People in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, are accustomed to eating wontons in midwinter. According to legend, during the midwinter feast 2,500 years ago, the King of Wu (one of the states during the Western Zhou Dynasty and the Spring and Autumn Period) was disgusted with all kinds of costly foods and wanted to eat something different. Then, the beauty Xishi came into the kitchen to make "wontons" to honor the king’s wish. He ate a lot and liked the food very much. To commemorate Xishi, the people of Suzhou made wontons the official food to celebrate the festival。

　　蘇州人在這天吃餛飩。傳說2500年前，吳王吃膩了山珍海味，想嘗試些不同的。于是美女西施為吳王準備的就是餛飩。吳王非常喜歡。為了紀念西施，蘇州百姓就把餛飩作為冬至這天必吃的食物。

　　5.Eating tangyuan

　　吃湯圓

　　In places such as Shanghai, people eat tangyuan, a kind of stuffed small dumpling ball made of glutinous rice flour to celebrate Winter Solstice。

　　上海等地人們食用湯圓來慶祝節日。

　　6.Eating mutton and vermicelli soup

　　吃羊湯

　　In Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui autonomous region, people call midwinter the "Ghost Festival". On that day, it is customary for people there to drink mutton and vermicelli soup and eat the dumplings in the soup. They give the midwinter soup a strange name: "brain" and share it with their neighbors。

　　銀川、寧夏等回族地區把這天稱作“鬼節”。在這天，人們和左鄰右舍分享羊肉湯和餃子湯。

　　7.Offering nine-layer cakes to ancestors

　　九層糕祭祖

　　Taiwan residents keep the custom of offering nine-layer cakes to their ancestors. People with the same surname or family clan gather at their ancestral temples to worship their ancestors in order of their ages. After the sacrificial ceremony, there is always a grand banquet。

　　臺灣地區的居民在這天仍保持著九層糕祭祖的習俗。同姓同宗者于冬至前后集中到祖祠中，照長幼之序一一祭拜祖先，俗稱“祭祖”。祭典之后，還會大擺宴席，招待前來祭祖的宗親們。

　　8.Eating red-bean and glutinous rice

　　吃紅豆糯米粥

　　In some regions south of the Yangtze Riveron the first day of Winter Solstice, the whole family gets together to have a meal made of red-bean and glutinous rice to drive away ghosts and other evil things。

　　長江流域的一些地區在冬至這天全家人聚在一起吃紅豆糯米粥來驅趕鬼怪。