The summer solstice coincides with the harvest of crops. Since ancient times, it has been the custom to celebrate the harvest and offer sacrifices to ancestors at this time in order to pray for a good year. Therefore, the summer solstice, as a festival, was included in the ancient ritual of offering sacrifices to the gods. In some places, a grand "Summer Wheat Festival" is held, which is the remains of the ancient "Summer Festival" activities. Summer and shelter: On the summer solstice, women give each other folding fans, powder and other things.

2. "Summer solstice" food

"Wheat Zongzi" and "Summer solstice cake": Jiangnan food customs, generally including wheat Zongzi, corn millet, plums, wonton, noodle soup and so on. "Wujiang County Records": "On the summer solstice, make wheat dumplings. When the sacrifice is finished first, you will pay for it." Not only eat "wheat dumplings", but also give "wheat dumplings" as gifts to each other.

On the day of the summer solstice, farmers also roll pancakes, bake them, add vegetables, pods, tofu and bacon, and eat them after ancestor worship, which is commonly called "summer solstice cake" or give them to relatives and friends. There is a folk saying that "eating noodles on the summer solstice makes a day shorter".

Expanding information on the custom of the winter solstice

There are different customs in different places during the winter solstice, and most places in northern China have the custom of eating jiaozi during the winter solstice. After thousands of years of development, the winter solstice has formed a unique seasonal food culture. Eating jiaozi has become the winter solstice custom of most northern China people. Of course, there are exceptions, such as the custom of drinking mutton soup on the day of the winter solstice in Tengzhou City, Shandong Province, which means driving away the cold.

1, Shandong Tengzhou mutton soup

The custom of eating mutton on the winter solstice is said to have started from the Han Dynasty. According to legend, Liu Bang, the Emperor Gaozu, ate mutton cooked by Fan Kuai on the winter solstice, which made him feel particularly delicious and full of praise. Since then, the custom of eating mutton on the winter solstice has been formed among the people. On the winter solstice, people eat mutton and various nourishing foods one after another, in order to have a good omen for the coming year.

Now in Tengzhou, Shandong Province, this day is called Jiujiu. Before the festival, gifts such as mutton will be given to elders, and every family will drink mutton soup, which is a good sign for individuals, elders and families.

2. Jiangnan rice

In Jiangnan water town, there is a custom that the whole family get together on the night of the winter solstice to eat red beans and glutinous rice. According to legend, * * * Gong's was a gifted scholar who did many evils and died on the winter solstice. After his death, he became an epidemic ghost and continued to harm the people. However, this epidemic ghost is most afraid of red beans, so people cook red bean rice on the winter solstice to ward off the epidemic ghost and prevent and cure diseases.

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