In northern China, off-year is mostly on the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, while in southern China, off-year is mostly on the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month, which is a traditional day of offering sacrifices to stoves in China. As soon as off-year arrives, it means that the Chinese New Year begins. In different people's memories, the time of off-year seems to be different, spanning from the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month to the 15th of the first month of the new year.

The origin of off-year

Off-year, also known as the festival of offering sacrifices to stoves and the festival of kitchen king, was formed as early as the Xia Dynasty, in order to start from a great god kitchen god respected by the people. In ancient times, the time of offering sacrifices to stoves was different in many places. Later, the time was slowly set on the 23rd and 24th of the twelfth lunar month, which is the off-year we are familiar with today.

Offering sacrifices to stoves is an important activity on the day of off-year, because the kitchen god's duty is to take charge of the stove fire and manage the diet. The belief in the god of offering sacrifices to stoves has a history of thousands of years in our country, which also reflects the pursuit of food and clothing for our people.