立冬是中国传统二十四节气中的第十九个节气，一起来学习一下关于立冬的英语“冷”知识。

立冬就代表着入冬吗？

立冬的英语表达很简单，即Start of Winter。

In fact, the Start of Winter is not the beginning of winter in terms of meteorology. The climate every year is different, so the beginning of winter could be quite different. And with the vast territory of China, winter time starts at different times in different areas.

事实上，从气象学上讲，立冬并非冬天的开始。每年的气候都是不一样的，因而冬天开始的时间也会有所差异。由于中国幅员辽阔，每个地区的冬季也不会在同一时间开始。

立冬的气候特征

迎冬仪式

The beginnings of the four seasons were important festivals in ancient times. Before the Start of Winter, the ancient emperor would take a shower and have no more meat. On that day, the emperor would lead his officials to the suburbs and perform the ceremony of "welcoming the winter".

古时，“四立”都是重要的节日。立冬之前，帝王会沐浴斋戒，到了节日当天，将率领百官到郊外举行迎冬仪式。

“四立”为立春、立夏、立秋、立冬

饺子的由来

A legend has it that at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD25-220), "Medical Saint" Zhang Zhongjing saved many people in Henan province from a typhoid epidemic and their ears’ from being frostbitten around Start of Winter.

传说在东汉末年(公元25—220年)，“医圣”张仲景救了许多河南人，让他们免于流行伤寒，帮助他们在初冬时耳朵免于冻伤。

He cooked mutton, hot peppers and herbs to dispel the cold and increase body heat. He wrapped these ingredients into a dough skin and made them into an ear shape. Since then, people have learned to make the food which became known as "dumpling". Today there is still a saying that goes "Eat dumplings on Start of Winter Day, or your ears will be frostbitten".

他通过煮羊肉、辣椒和一些草药来给大家驱寒，增加体温。他把这些配料包在一个面皮里，做成耳朵形状。从那时起，人们就学会了包饺子。今天仍然有一个说法，“在初冬吃饺子，否则你的耳朵会被冻伤”。

养冬

On the first day of Start of Winter, there is a custom, "nourishing the winter", in places in Southeast China such as Fujian, Guangdong and Taiwan provinces. To prepare for the oncoming cold winter, people there like to eat high-calorie food such as chicken, duck, beef, mutton, and fish, which are usually stewed with the four Chinese medicines: angelica, ligusticum wallichii, Chinese herbaceous peony and rehmannia glutinosa libosch, to enhance the effectiveness of the nourishment.

在立冬的第一天，在中国东南部的福建、广东和台湾等省份有一个习俗，叫“养冬”。为了应对即将到来的寒冷冬天，那里的人们喜欢吃高热量的食物，如鸡、鸭、牛肉、羊肉和鱼，这些食物通常与当归、川芎、芍药、地黄四味中药一起炖，以提高营养的功效。

吃团子

On the first day of Start of Winter, people in Wuxi have a custom of eating tuanzi, a kind of traditional Chinese food made with rice. At this time, the autumn grain crops have just been sold on the market, and the tuanzi made by the newly-harvested crops tastes delicious. Most rural residents make tuanzi by themselves, while urban residents buy ready-made tuanzi. The tuanzi stuffing can be sweet bean paste, radish or lard.

在立冬的第一天，无锡人有吃团子的习俗，团子是一种用大米做成的中国传统食物。此时，秋粮刚刚上市销售，新收获的作物做的团子味道鲜美。大多数农村居民自己制作团子，而城市居民购买现成的团子。团子馅可以是豆沙、萝卜或猪肉。