Twenty-four Solar Terms (Ⅱ)

◎供稿：許林玉

上期，我們介紹了二十四節氣的起源、分類和應用等。本期，我們將逐一介紹二十四節氣與天氣變化、農業生產之間的關系。

February 4,the opening day of the 24th Winter Olympic Games,was this year’s“Lichun”,or the beɡinninɡ of sprinɡ,the first of the 24 solar terms of the traditional lunar Chinese calendar that was an1)inspirationbehind the ceremony.

The second solar term of the year is“Yushui”,or rain water.The rain is vital for the ɡrowth of crops and other flora.From that day on,the rainfall increases to2)nourishthe land.The subsolar point moves from the Southern Hemisphere close to the equator,and the Northern Hemisphere gains more sunlight and turns warmer.After the period of rain comes the third solar term“Jingzhe”,or3)awakeningof insects.As spring thunderstorms wake up hibernating insects and seeds,the arrival of“Jingzhe”marks the vitality of life.

When“Chunfen”,or spring equinox,arrives,the sun is exactly at the celestial lonɡitude of 0 deɡrees (the equator) and day and niɡht are approximately equal in length.

“Qinɡminɡ”(pure briɡhtness) and“Guyu”(ɡrain rain) are the last two solar terms of spring.Both of them describe a warmer,moister and greener land.“Qingming”is also a traditional festival when people go to the tombs of their families to sweep them and worship the ancestors.

“Lixia”,or the beginning of summer,falls on May 5 this year.As the seventh of the 24 solar terms,it marks the end of spring,4)especiallyin southern China.

1) inspiration [??nsp??re??n] n.靈感；鼓舞人心的人（或事物）

2) nourish [?n?r?? ] v.養育；滋養

3) awaken [??we?k?n] v.喚醒

4) especially [??spe??li] adv.尤其；特別

詞組加油站

be vital for 對……是至關重要的

be equal in 在某方面相等

fall on 降臨；落到

The second solar term of summer is“Xiaoman”,or grain buds.The temperature differences between north and south narrow when“Xiaoman”arrives,but the rainfall in southern China is greater than in the north.And the summer grains and crops start to fill out;hence the term can also be understood as“fullness for grains,fullness for rivers”.

The summer planting starts at“Mangzhong”,or grain in ear.Fields,wheat seedlinɡs,quiet mountains and sinɡinɡ birds offer the best interpretation of this period.

As time goes by,the sun5)eventuallyreaches its northernmost point of the year,almost directly above the Tropic of Cancer,marking the arrival of“Xiazhi”,or summer solstice,when the daytime in the Northern Hemisphere is the longest for the year.

“Xiaoshu”(minor heat) and“Dashu”(major heat) are the last two solar terms of summer.This is when the average temperature is the highest,rainfall is the greatest,and thunderstorms are most6)frequentfor most of the country.

“Liqiu”,or the beginning of autumn will arrive on August 7 this year.Even though autumn has begun,the summer heat will continue to the next solar term“Chushu”,or end of heat.

The real coolness comes with“Bailu”,or white dew,when the temperature gap between day and night gradually increases.Three days after this year’s“Bailu”is the Mid-Autumn Festival (September 10),another important7)occasionto reunite with family for Chinese people.

“Qiufen”,or autumn equinox,is the same as“Chunfen”(sprinɡ equinox)when day and night equally divide the whole day.Daytime gets shorter as the subsolar point moves from the equator to the Southern Hemisphere,and temperatures continue to drop.

5) eventually [??vent?u?li] adv.最后；最終

6) frequent ['fri?kw(?)nt] adj.頻繁地

7) occasion [??ke??n] n.場合；場景；（某事發生的）時候

“Hanlu”(cold dew) and“Shuanɡjianɡ”(frost’s descent) mean the weather is gradually reach dew point,and then to frost point.It’s an early warning of winter.

Autumn leaves,winter comes,and time flies.November 7 is this year’s“Lidong”,or the beginning of winter.

“Xiaoxue”(minor snow) and“Daxue”(major snow) reflect a sharp decline in temperatures.The ancient agriculturalists believed that snow can kill pests and nourish the soil,and there’s an old saying,“Minor Snow day falling snow,gold growing in the soil.”

“Dongzhi”,or winter solstice,sees the shortest daytime and the longest nighttime as the sun reaches its southernmost point of the year.They are followed by“Xiaohan”(minor cold) and“Dahan”(major cold),the last two solar terms.

今年2 月4 日，即第24 屆冬季奧林匹克運動會開幕式當天，正值“立春”。這是中國傳統農歷二十四節氣中的第一個節氣，北京冬奧會開幕式倒計時的靈感正是來源于此。

“雨水”是一年中的第二個節氣。雨水對農作物和其他植物的生長至關重要。從這一天起，降雨量增加，土地因此得到滋養。日下點從南半球移至赤道附近，北半球陽光更加充足，因此會變得更為溫暖。雨水期過后是第三個節氣“驚蟄”。春雷喚醒冬眠的昆蟲和種子，隨著“驚蟄”的來臨，生命的活力開始涌動。

“春分”到來之際，太陽正好位于黃經0 度（赤道），晝夜時長大致相等。

“清明”和“谷雨”是春季的最后兩個節氣。此時大地溫潤，草木蔥蘢。清明也是一個傳統節日，人們在這一天清掃墓地，祭拜祖先。

今年的“立夏”在5 月5 日。作為二十四節氣中的第七個節氣，它標志著春天的結束，尤其是在中國南方地區。

夏季的第二個節氣是“小滿”。“小滿”到來時，南北溫差縮小，但中國南方的降雨量較北方大。谷物等農作物開始變得飽滿。因此，該節氣也可以理解為“谷物飽滿，河水豐盈”。

夏季播種從“芒種”開始。田野、麥苗、幽靜的山巒和鳴唱的鳥兒，是對這一時節最好的詮釋。

隨著時間的推移，太陽最終到達一年中的最北端，幾乎位于北回歸線正上方。這標志著“夏至”的到來，此時北半球的白晝時間達到全年最長。

“小暑”和“大暑”是夏季的最后兩個節氣。此時平均氣溫最高，降雨量最大，大部分地區的雷雨天氣最為頻繁。

今年的“立秋”在8 月7 日。盡管秋天已至，但暑熱仍將持續至下一節氣——“處暑”。

到了“白露”，天氣真正涼爽起來，此時晝夜溫差逐漸加大。今年的“白露”過去三天之后（9 月10 日）便是中秋節，這是中國人與家人團聚的另一個重要時刻。

與“春分”一樣，在“秋分”這一天，晝夜平分。隨著日下點從赤道向南半球移動，白天變得越來越短，氣溫也持續下降。

“寒露”和“霜降”意味著天氣逐漸達到露點，然后達到霜點。這是冬天來臨的前兆。

時光飛逝，秋去冬來。今年的“立冬”在11 月7 日，冬季自此開始。

“小雪”和“大雪”反映了氣溫的急劇下降。古代農學家認為，雪可以殺滅害蟲，滋養土壤。俗話說：“小雪雪滿天，來年必豐年。”

“冬至”這一天，太陽到達一年中的最南端。此時白晝最短，夜晚最長。接下來是最后兩個節氣——“小寒”和“大寒”。