【博览中国】Minor Snow 小雪

The traditional Chinese solar calendar divides the year into 24 solar terms. Minor Snow, (Chinese: 小雪Xiǎo xuě), the 20th solar term of the year, begins this year on Nov 22 and ends on Dec 6.

Minor Snow refers to the time when it starts to snow, mostly in China's northern areas, and the temperature continues to drop.

小雪，是二十四节气中的第20个节气，冬季第2个节气，今年从11月22日开始，12月6日结束。

“小雪”意味着中国北部大部分地区有初雪飘落，温度持续走低。

An ancient Chinese book about plants explains that "in Minor Snow, the weather is cold and it is going to snow, while the earth is not frozen enough and the snow is light." The temperature in most areas in the north drops to zero degrees and below. Meanwhile, in the lower and middle reaches of the Yellow River, the average time of the first snow falls during the Minor Snow solar term. The snow is light and frozen at night, but melts quickly during the day.

据《群芳谱》记载：“小雪气寒而将雪矣，地寒未甚而雪未大也。”北方大部分地区的气温下降到零度及以下。与此同时，在黄河中下游地区，第一场雪往往在小雪节气期间降临。雪花轻盈，晚间凝结，但白天迅速融化。

In China, starting in Minor Snow, the wind blows from the northeast a lot. Because it's still not bitterly cold, many people do not wear hats or scarves yet. In fact, according to an old Chinese saying, "the head is the place where all passages of the body gather". It's sensible to keep one's head warm.

在中国，自小雪起，常常刮起东北风。因为此时天气并非极寒，许多人便没有戴帽子和围巾。事实上，中国有句古话：“头为诸阳之首（头是经脉汇集的地方）。”谨防头部受寒是明智的。

During Minor Snow, indoor heating begins to work, which means the air indoors is dry and most people might find their nose and mouth feels a bit dry. According to practices in traditional Chinese medicine, this accumulation of "inner heat" in one's body can cause problems, including oral ulcers and breakouts. The solution is to drink more hot soup, such as cabbage and bean curd soup, spinach and bean curd soup, and mutton and radish soup.

小雪期间，室内供暖开始了。暖气给人带来惬意享受的同时，也容易导致干燥上火。由于室内空气干燥，大部分人可能会感到鼻腔和口腔都很干燥，内热无法排出。这样就会出现一些症状，包括口腔溃疡或脸上起疹子等。解决这些问题的办法是多喝热汤，比如白菜豆腐汤、菠菜豆腐汤和羊肉萝卜汤。

In some areas of South China, people have glutinous rice cakes around Minor Snow. In ancient times, glutinous rice cakes were a traditional festival offering to the bull god.

糍粑是流行于南方的小吃。寒冷的冬天，来一口又甜又糯的糍粑，绵软而温暖。在古代，糍粑是农民献给牛神的祭品。

After Minor Snow, the temperature declines sharply and the air becomes dry. It is the best time to start making preserved pork, which by the Chinese Spring Festival would be ready to enjoy. In the past, when storage conditions were poor, people developed many ways to store food and preserved pork is one such example. So even in the bitter winter, the whole family could enjoy meat. Some even say preserved pork tastes more delicious than fresh meat.

“冬腊风腌，蓄以御冬。” 小雪过后，温度陡降，空气变干，正是制作腊肉的最佳时机。腊肉会在春节前腌制、风干完毕，之后人们就可以围炉享用美食了。在过去，存储条件有限，人们发明了多种保存食物的方式，腌制肉是其中的一种。这样一来即便在严寒的冬天，全家都可以足不出户吃上肉了。有些人甚至认为，腊肉尝起来比鲜肉更美味。

For thousands of years, the people of Nanjing, Jiangsu province, have welcomed Minor Snow with pickled vegetables made in different ways.

Nanjing is known for its pickled vegetables. In the past, due to inconvenient transportation, vegetables sold in Nanjing were few and expensive. Thus people there made pickled vegetables for the winter.

一直以来，江苏南京一带的居民都会采用不同的方式制作咸菜，以迎接小雪的到来。南京的咸菜十分有名。在过去，由于交通不便，南京售卖的蔬菜量少且贵。因此当地人会做咸菜来度过冬天。

On cold days, people may crave some hot and spicy food to keep warm. Experts say it's wise not to eat overly spicy food, since that will increase your inner heat.

寒冷日子里，人们想吃一些辛辣的食物来保暖。专家认为，不宜食用太辣的食物，那样会加重内火。