干货 | “立冬”为什么叫Start of Winter 而不是Beginning of Winter？

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2024-09-04

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Start of Winter, or Lidong in Chinese, is the 19th of China's 24 solar terms and the first for the winter.

立冬，中国二十四节气中第十九个节气，也是冬季的第一个节气。

立冬为什么叫“Start of Winter”，而不是“Beginning of Winter”？

有一种解释是这样的，start和beginning是近义词，但start “has the sense of being a fixed point in time（指时间上某个固定的点）”，而beginning “could possibly refer to any time between the start and the halfway point（可以指从起点到中点之间的任何时间）”。

立冬、立春、立夏、立秋，都是节气中固定的时间点，所以用start更合适。

It usually occurs on November 7-8 when the sun’s elliptical longitude reaches 225 degrees leading to decreasing solar radiation in the northern hemisphere. The surface temperature stays warm on sunny days, yet cold spells regularly hit the country with winds from the north that are often accompanied by rain and snows.

立冬的日期通常在每年11月7日至8日，此时太阳黄经达到225度，导致北半球的日照减少。在晴天，地表温度能保持温暖，然而寒冷气候常伴随着来自北方的风，裹挟着雨雪袭击我国。

Just as its name indicates, Start of Winter declares the beginning of winter in Chinese culture, yet not necessarily the meteorological winter.

正如其名称所示，在中国文化中，立冬宣告冬天的开始，但不一定是气象意义中的冬天。

A Chinese proverb describes the days after Start of Winter as the “three periods of waiting” — waiting for the water to turn ice, waiting for the earth to freeze, and waiting for the pheasants to disappear and big clam of similar colors to show up at the seaside.

中国谚语将立冬后的物候变化描述为“三候”—— 一候，水始冰；二候，地始冻；三候，雉入大水为蜃。

Worshiping ancestors

祭祀

Start of Winter used to be a big day in China. The emperor would fast for three days before its arrival and then lead a procession of officials in black dresses, black accessories, horses and flags to the suburban regions. They would perform big rituals to welcome the arrival of Winter God.

立冬在中国曾经是一个重要的日子。皇帝会在立冬到来前斋戒三天，然后带领一队身着黑色衣冠、骑着黑色骏马、擎着黑色旗帜的官员前往远郊，举行大型祭祀仪式迎接冬神的到来。

The emperor would also honor heroes who sacrificed themselves for the nation, comfort and compensate their families, pray for protection for their spirit and encourage the people to always defend the nation.

皇帝还会缅怀为国牺牲的英雄，安抚补偿烈士家属，祈求上苍保佑烈士们的魂灵，激励人民永远为国而战。

In Liaoning Province where there is a big number of Manchu residents, ancestor-worshiping rituals are held annually.

在满族人口众多的辽宁省，每年立冬这天，都会举行祭祖仪式。

Dancers dressed up as Tiger God perform in and outside the house, on the roofs, ladders and house beams.

舞者装扮成虎神，在房子内外、屋顶、梯子和房梁上表演。

Rich Manchu families with high social status cook three pigs to worship heaven, ancestors and one particular goddess; middle-class families cook 21 chickens, while ordinary households cook seven chickens.

富裕的满族贵族家庭会宰杀三口猪，分别用来祭天、祭祖、祭“歪梨娘娘”。中产阶级家庭会宰杀21只鸡，而普通家庭则会宰杀7只鸡。

Eating rich food for winter

补冬

To keep the body warm and strong in the winter cold, many people would eat foods with rich proteins, chicken, duck, fish and meat are especially popular.

为了在寒冷的冬天里让身体保持温暖、强壮，人们会多吃富含蛋白质的食物，鸡、鸭、鱼、肉尤其受欢迎。

The rich food would often be cooked along with herbs like angelica, ligusticum, peony and radix rehmanniae.

这些营养丰富的食物通常与当归、川芎、牡丹皮和生地黄等草药一起烹饪。

Mutton pot is in huge demand in many regions in China around Start of Winter. People in north China have a tradition of eating dumplings.

立冬前后，羊肉火锅在中国许多地区的需求量都很大。中国北方人有立冬吃饺子的传统。

In Yangtze River Delta region, people stuff themselves with sticky rice ball filled with sweet bean paste, turnip, lard oil and soy sauce.

在长三角地区，人们会吃包着豆沙、萝卜、猪油和酱油的糯米团子。

In Chaoshan, Guangdong Province, people believe that eating sugarcane on Start of Winter can protect teeth and reinforce body.

在广东潮汕，人们认为立冬吃甘蔗可以保护牙齿，使身体强壮。

Making winter wine

酿冬酒

Start of Winter is a good day to start making yellow wine in Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province, as the water is usually clearer around this time while the low temperature restricts the growth of germs — perfect for the flavor during the fermenting process.

立冬是浙江绍兴人开始酿造黄酒的好日子，因为此时水更清澈，同时低温限制了细菌的生长——是酿造美味的绝佳时机。

The 120 days from Start of Winter to the Start of Spring is believed to be the best time for making yellow wine. The Shaoxing locals call it “winter brew.”从立冬到立春的120天，是酿造黄酒的最佳时间。绍兴当地人称这段时间为冬酿。
那么形容特别特别冷，英语中有哪些说法呢？一起来学习一下吧~

chilly

chilly意为“寒冷的，凉飕飕的”，

可以用来形容天气、房间或人体：

The bathroom gets chilly in the winter.

冬天浴室变得很冷。

I felt a bit chilly so I put on a jacket.我觉得有点冷，所以就穿了件夹克衫。

a chilly October day10月寒气袭人的一天
chilly还可以表示“冷淡的，不友好的”。

I went to see the sales manager but got a rather chilly reception.

我去见销售经理，可是却受到了冷遇。

chilly的词根是chill，可以做动词表示“使寒冷，变冷”，作名词表示“寒冷，寒意”，也可以作形容词，比如a chill wind（一股寒风），a chill greeting（冷冰冰的问候）。
chilling 则有另外一层意思：令人不寒而栗的，令人毛骨悚然的。

a chilling tale

令人毛骨悚然的故事

The monument stands as a chilling reminder of man's inhumanity to man.

纪念碑耸立着，寒气逼人，提醒着人们人类对自己同类的惨无人道。

freezing/frozen
freezing是freeze的现在分词，意为“extremely cold”（极冷的），可以用来形容人或人的身体部位，也可以用来形容其他事物。固定用法“It’s freezing” 可以用来指天气或当时所处环境的寒冷。

After walking through the snow, my feet were freezing。

从雪地里走过后，我的脚冷得要命。

I had to wait for hours on the freezing cold station platform.

我得在极度寒冷的站台上等几个小时。

frozen是freeze的过去分词，frozen或者frozen stiff 意为“冻僵了”，专门用来形容人或人的身体部位。

I'm frozen- could you close the window?

我太冷了，你能关上窗户吗？

I got frozen stiff waiting at the bus stop.

在公交车站等车，我都冻僵了。

arctic
arctic表示“北极的，寒带的；极其寒冷的”。作为名词时，the Arctic指“北极，北极地区”。不过要注意，北极熊不是arctic bear，而是polar bear哦~
The North of England has been experiencing Arctic conditions these past few days.过去的几天里，英格兰北部天气极其寒冷。
biting
biting多用来形容寒风刺骨的、凛冽的。也可以用来形容说话刻薄、辛辣。

a biting wind 刺骨的寒风

biting cold 严寒

He made some biting remarks about the whole occasion.

他对整个事件作了尖锐的评论。

bitter
“bitter”常用意思是“苦的”，也可以表示天气严寒，尤其指那种极度的、令人不舒服的寒冷（extremely cold and unpleasant）。“bitterly cold”也可以表达相同的意思。

a bitter wind 刺骨的寒风

Wrap up warmly - it's bitter outside.

穿暖和些——外面特别冷。

frosty
frosty表示“严寒的；霜冻的”，也可以指“（某人或其行为）冰冷的，冷淡的”。

The frosty air stung my cheeks.

冰冷的空气刺痛了我的双颊。

He gave me a frosty look.

他冷冷地看了我一眼。

nippy
nippy意为“（天气或空气）寒冷的”，其动词nip本身意为“捏、掐”，作为名词，a nip (in the air)可以用来表示“寒冷，严寒”。

It's a little nippy today - you might need a coat.

今天有点冷——你可能得加件外套。

You can tell winter's on its way - there's a real nip in the air in the mornings.

你可以感觉到冬天即将来临——早晨颇感寒气袭人。

brass monkeys
brass monkeys可不是字面上的“铜猴子”，而是来自于英式英语中的“brass monkey weather”。俚语brass monkey起源于一句话：“It's cold enough to freeze the tail off a brass monkey。”（冷到能把铜猴子的尾巴冻掉）
在维多利亚女王时代，黄铜制作的猴子小雕像是客厅和起居室里非常流行的小摆设，通常三只猴子为一套，各自摆出不同的造型：一位双手捂眼做惨不忍睹状，一位双手捂嘴做噤若寒蝉状，一位双手捂耳做置若罔闻状。这三只猴子代表着古训“see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil”，即“非礼勿说、非礼勿视、非礼勿听”。
冷得把铜像的尾巴都冻掉了，自然就是非常冷了！

It's brass monkey weather today. You'd better wrap up warm!

今天真是冷得要命，你最好穿暖和点。

本文来源：维克多英语

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