Winter Solstice 冬至

今日係傳統24節氣嘅冬至。

24節氣係根據太陽繞行地球公轉嘅位置而決定，係由一群古時代嘅農夫發明。而冬至係24節氣中，白天最短，黑夜最長嘅一日。

Today is winter solstice, it has the shortest daytime and the longest nighttime of year, being one of the 24 solar terms.

The solar terms are based on the sun’s position in the zodiac. It was created by farmers in ancient to guide agricultural affairs and farming activities.

廣東人非常重視冬至，呢一日全家人都要圍埋一齊食團圓飯，俗稱「做冬」。團聚吃飯嘅菜式都好豐富，除咗傳統餸菜之外，盆菜、火鍋都好受歡迎。「做冬」之後食湯圓都係好多家庭嘅傳統習俗，意味住「團圓」、「圓滿」，象征一家人團團圓圓，和睦幸福。

同時，食湯圓都代表住增長一歲，所謂「冬至圓仔呷落加一歲」，就係指喺冬至食咗湯圓就長大一歲。

Cantonese takes winter solstice very seriously. People often return home to reunite with their families. Other than traditional cuisine, potted dish and hotpot are also popular among us. It’s a tradition to eat Tangyuan/ tong1 jyun after our meal.

Tangyuan/ tong1 jyun represents ‘reunion’. It symbolises the reunion of the family, harmony and happiness. At the same time, eating Tangyuan/ tong1 jyun also means growing by a year of age.