一年之计在于春：有关春分的小常识

　　The traditional Chinese lunar calendar divides a year into 24 solar terms. The Spring Equinox，as the fourth term of the year starts on Mar 21 and ends on Apr 4 this year.

　　传统中国农历将一年分为24个节气。春分是一年的第四个节气，今年始于3月20日，终于4月4日。

　　The Spring Equinox signals the equal length of the day and night time. On the day of the Spring Equinox, sun is directly above the equator. After the equinox, the sun moves northwards, resulting in gradually longer day time in the Northern Hemisphere and longer night in the Southern Hemisphere.

　　春分标志着昼夜时间等长。在这一天，太阳直射赤道。春分后，太阳北移，使得北半球逐渐白昼更长，南半球夜晚更长。

　　Here are 5 things you may not know about the Spring Equinox.

　　这里是关于春分你可能不知道的5件事情。

　　Swallows fly north

　　燕子北飞

　　The ancient Chinese people divided the fifteen days of the Spring Equinox into three "hou’s". As the old saying goes, swallows fly back to the North in the firsthou; thunder cracks the sky in the secondhou; lightning occurs frequently in the third hou, which vividly reveals the climate feature during the Spring Equinox.

　　古人把春分十五天分为“三候”。古语有云，一候玄鸟至;二候雷乃发声;三候始电，这生动地披露了春分时期的气候特征。

　　Egg-standing games

　　竖蛋

　　Standing an egg upright is a popular game across the country during the Spring Equinox. It is an old custom that dates back to 4,000 years ago. People practice this tradition to celebrate the coming of spring. It is believed that if someone can make the egg stand, he will have good luck in the future.

　　春分时期，竖蛋是中国一种流行的游戏。这是一个追溯至4000年前的古老风俗。人们通过这个传统庆祝春天的到来。据信，如果有人能够将蛋竖起，他就会在未来拥有好运。

　　Eating spring vegetables

　　吃春菜

　　Eating spring vegetables during the Spring Equinox is a commonly practiced custom in many regions of China. ’Spring vegetables’ refers to seasonal vegetables that differ from place to place. The ancient teachings in the Chinese classic, Huangdi Neijing, suggests that people eat seasonal foods to help preserve health and bring good luck.

　　在中国很多地方，春分吃春菜是一种风俗。“春菜”是指各地不同的季节性蔬菜。为了保持健康和带来好运，中国经典《黄帝内经》中有古训建议人们吃季节性食物。

　　Sacrifice to the Sun god

　　祭祀大明神

　　During the Spring Equinox, an old traditional practiced by Beijing locals is offering sacrifices to the Sun god. This tradition is called "Zhonghe Festival". The "Sun Cake", a round cake made from wheat and sugar, serves as the main offering.

　　春分期间，北京当地人的一项古老传统就是祭祀大明神。这一传统被称为“中和节”。“太阳饼”——一个由小麦和糖制成的圆形饼——是主要的祭品。

　　Reward farm cattle

　　奖励耕牛

　　This practice is popular in the southern area of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. As the Spring Equinox comes, farm work starts and both the farmers and the cattle start to become busy. Farmers will reward cattle with sticky rice balls to express their gratefulness. Meanwhile, people will also make sacrifice to birds, to thank them for bringing signals for farm work and to ask them not to eat grains later in the year.

　　这一做法在长江以南的南方地区十分流行。随着春分的到来，耕种开始，农民和牛开始变得忙碌。为了表达感激，农民会用汤圆回报牛。同时，人们还会祭拜鸟类，以向它们为农耕带来信号表达谢意，同时要求它们今年后期不要食用谷粒。

（编辑：何莹莹）