What are the customs on New Year’s Eve?

What are the customs on New Year’s Eve and what to do on New Year’s Eve

Introduction to New Year’s Eve

Refers to the twelfth month of the Chinese lunar year (also known as The common name of the twelfth lunar month) twenty-eight. Han folk songs about the twenty-eighth of the twelfth lunar month include "On the twenty-eighth of the twelfth lunar month, make noodles", "On the twenty-eighth of the twelfth lunar month, make cakes, steam buns and applique flowers", "On the twenty-eighth of the twelfth lunar month, steam jujube flowers", "On the twenty-eighth of the twelfth lunar month, wash away the filth" , "Don't panic, don't be busy, there will be another event on the 28th (a saying in the countryside to go to the market to buy new year's goods)." From this we can see that on the twenty-eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, whether it is making noodles or making steamed buns, every household will begin to prepare staple foods.

On this day, every household retains the traditional customs of pasting New Year pictures, washing dirt, pasting Spring Festival couplets, making dough, making cakes and steaming buns.

Posting New Year pictures

New Year pictures are a unique painting genre in my country. They are named New Year pictures because they are posted during the New Year. Traditional New Year pictures are mostly woodcut watermarks with bright colors, lively scenes and simple lines. The main themes include bumper harvests, spring cows, landscapes, flowers and birds, and some feudal superstitions. Among them, the door god is one of the very important themes in New Year pictures. It is a deity that guards the door in common folk beliefs in the old days. People stick its statue on the door to ward off evil spirits, protect the home, protect the peace, help utilitarianism, bring good luck, etc. It is the most popular among the people. One of the patron saints.

Wash off the filth

"On the 28th of the year, wash off the filth" is a traditional custom of the Cantonese people. What is the meaning of the word sloppy? Some people interpret it to mean filthy and filthy. On the 28th of the twelfth lunar month, the Mandarin saying for cleaning up sloppiness is "cleaning on the 28th of the twelfth lunar month". However, this sentence in Cantonese also has another meaning, which means that to wash away the filth, you also have to sweep out all the bad luck and mold along with the filthy garbage. After all the bad things of this year are swept away, people can enjoy a brand new environment and bathe in the auspicious atmosphere during the New Year. There is no need to clean up on the festival day, otherwise the good luck will be swept away.

Making Noodles

It is said that there is a pair of sisters-in-law, one is very lazy and the other is very diligent. One year on the twenty-eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, my mother-in-law asked the two of them to make some noodles and prepare some steamed buns and steamed buns for guests. The eldest sister-in-law was lazy and lied about feeling unwell, so that her younger brother-in-law could make excuses. The honest sister-in-law made excuses for herself many times, but the eldest sister-in-law who was standing aside laughed at her. In the second year, the life of the younger sister-in-law's family became more and more prosperous, but the eldest daughter-in-law's family became poorer and poorer.

The eldest daughter-in-law was not convinced and went to the City God to inquire. Later, the City God said that the reason why the life of the younger sister-in-law's family became more and more prosperous was because of the appearance of flour on the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month.

Although this is just a legend, "fa" reflects people's desire to get rich and prosperous in the coming year.

According to old rules, from the first day to the fifth day of the lunar month, you cannot steam buns or stir-fry vegetables. The homophone sounds like a quarrel. For the happiness and beauty of the year, people prepare the food for the next few days before the new year. Then they only need to heat it up and then eat it, so they deliberately mix the food that sounds like it. Avoid anything that seems disharmonious.

Steamed jujube flowers

On this day, people in Taiyuan will steam "cakes, steamed buns and two bamboo baskets"; people in Hebei will "steam jujube flowers" to prepare for New Year's Eve sacrifices to their ancestors. People in Henan also "steam buns and fry the buns on the 28th." Only Beijingers are slow to "steam the buns" on this day, and wait until the 29th to "steam the buns."

Posting couplets and hanging lanterns

The 28th day of the twelfth lunar month can basically be said to be the New Year. So in these two days, I will make all the couplets and lanterns at home to make the home full of joy.

Dried fish pond

This custom is only found in rural areas. Many ponds in rural areas are public. In the spring, some fish fry are put in, and then during the Chinese New Year, the fish are dried and divided, and the New Year is celebrated lively.