What do Chinese people do during the winter solstice?

2024.12.21

Winter Solstice, also known as Sunanzhi, Winter Festival, and Sub-Year, has both natural and humanistic connotations. It is not only an important solar term among the 24 solar terms, but also a traditional festival for ancestor worship in China. Winter Solstice is one of the four seasons and eight festivals, and is regarded as a major festival in winter. In ancient times, people said that "Winter Solstice is as important as New Year". Winter Solstice customs vary from region to region, and there are differences in the content or details of the customs. In southern China, there is a custom of worshipping ancestors and feasting on the Winter Solstice. In northern China, there is a custom of eating dumplings on the Winter Solstice every year.

The winter solstice is the 22nd solar term of the "24 solar terms". The Big Dipper points to Zi, and the sun's ecliptic longitude reaches 270°. It falls on December 21-23 of the Gregorian calendar every year. The winter solstice is the extreme point of the sun's direct southward movement. On this day, the sun's rays directly hit the Tropic of Capricorn. The sun's rays are most inclined to the Northern Hemisphere, and the solar altitude angle is the smallest. It is the day with the shortest daylight and the longest night in all parts of the Northern Hemisphere. The winter solstice is also the turning point for the sun's direct northward movement. After this day, it will "go back", and the sun's direct point will start to move northward from the Tropic of Capricorn (23°26′S). The daylight in the Northern Hemisphere (China is in the Northern Hemisphere) will increase day by day.

In the past, the most important ritual of the Winter Solstice was to worship ancestors. With the changes of the times, although people still retain the custom of worshipping ancestors on the Winter Solstice, it has been simplified to burning paper money, which is intended to pay tribute to the ancestors. [31] In the past, the Winter Solstice ancestor worship was as grand as the Spring Festival ancestor worship. The most special offering was silver carp, which meant to comfort the ancestors and to have continuous fireworks at home. After worshiping the ancestors, the altar table should be placed facing the front door to worship the heaven and earth. Nanjing people call it "receiving winter."

Eating glutinous rice balls is a traditional custom during the winter solstice, which is especially popular in the south of the Yangtze River. "Glutinous rice balls" are a must-have food during the winter solstice, and "round" means "reunion" and "perfection". Eating glutinous rice balls during the winter solstice is also called "winter solstice dumplings". There is a saying among the people that "eating glutinous rice balls makes you one year older".

In many areas of northern China, there is a custom of eating dumplings on the winter solstice every year. Dumplings are eaten on this day in northern China because they are meant to "get rid of the cold." There is still a folk proverb that goes, "If you don't eat dumplings on the winter solstice, your ears will freeze off and no one will care."

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