中英双语话节气·立夏|春意藏，夏日长

The24 Solar Terms·Beginning of Summer | Spring Fades out,Summer Fades in

1 气候 布谷声中夏令新

北京时间5月5日8时10分将迎来立夏节气。立夏，标志着夏天来临。古汉语中，“夏”有大的意思，春日播种的植物此时已直立长大。

古人将立夏分为三候。一候蝼蝈鸣。二候蚯蚓出。三候王瓜生。

Weather: summer arrives with the call of cuckoo birds

At 8:10 on May 5th Beijing time comes the Beginning of Summer, marking the arrival of summer. In ancient

Chinese, “Xia”(summer) has a meaning of big, and the plants sown in spring have grown up at this time.

Ancients divided the Beginning of summer into three phases: in the first phase, frogs croak; in the second phase, earthworms dig; in the third phase, cucumber vines climb.

2 农事 谷雨麦怀胎，立夏麦吡牙

农谚云“谷雨麦怀胎，立夏麦吡牙”，农人们对天气的期待和需求已细致到温度、湿度和连续性等各个方面。

此时，山东大地的麦穗上，谷壳一排排整整齐齐，犹如牙齿，胡须一般的麦芒也逐渐长出。

Farming: wheat ears prepare to grow during the Grain Rain and come out during the Beginning of Summer

As the agricultural proverb goes, “wheat ears prepare to grow during the Grain Rain and come out during the Beginning of Summer”, farmers’ expectations and needs for the weather have been detailed in various aspects such as temperature, humidity, and continuity.

At this time, on the wheat ears nurtured on the farmlands in Shandong, rows of husks are neatly arranged as teeth, and wheat awns like beard are gradually growing.

3 习俗 立夏吃蛋

为迎接炎热的夏季，人们在立夏之时已做足准备。山东民间在这天的习俗基本围绕“驱邪祛病，祈愿健康”的主题，如秤人、吃蛋、吃立夏饭等习俗。

立夏这天，山东不少地区还要煮立夏蛋，正所谓“立夏吃了蛋，热天不症夏”。相传立夏吃蛋养心，吃了蛋能使心气精神不受亏损。

Custom: eat eggs at the Beginning of Summer

To welcome the hot summer, people have made sufficient preparations at the Beginning of Summer. The folk customs in Shandong on this day are mainly about the theme of “expelling evil spirits and dispelling diseases, praying for health”, such as weighing oneself, eating eggs, and eating five-colored rice.

On the day of the Beginning of Summer,people in many areas of Shandong also cook eggs, because people believe “eating eggs at the Beginning of Summer helps keep the summer disease away”. It is said that eating eggs on this day can nourish the heart and prevent the damage of heart Qi and energy.

4 赏景 槐夏午荫清

“麦天晨气润，槐夏午荫清。”与“麦天”同时成入夏关键词的是“槐夏”。

“每年在春夏之交的时候，我一出门向西走，总是清香飘拂，溢满鼻官。抬眼一看，在流满了绿水的荷塘岸边，在高高低低的土山上面，就能看到成片的洋槐，满树繁花，闪着银光；花朵缀满高树枝头，开上去，开上去，一直开到高空，让我立刻想到在新疆天池上看到的白皑皑的万古雪峰。”山东老乡季羡林先生如此感叹初夏的馈赠。

Scenery: in the early summer under the shadow of lush locust trees, the weather is still cool at noon

“In the season of wheat ripening, the morning breeze is moist; in the early summer under the shadow of lush locust trees, the weather is still cool at noon.” “Wheat ripening season” and “lush locust trees days” are both keywords for the arrival of summer.

“Every year at the turn of spring and summer, when I go out and walk westward, the fragrance always wafts and fills my nose. Looking up, on the bank of the lotus pond filled with green water, and on the high and low mountains, I can see groups of locust trees, full of flowers, shining with silver light. Flowers adorn high branches, they bloom, and bloom all the way up to the sky, reminding me immediately of the white snow capped peaks that I have seen by the Tianchi Lake in Xinjiang.” Writer Ji Xianlin, a native of Shandong, exclaimed at the gift of early summer.

作者：卢昱 沈静 李洪翠

翻译：毕淑雅

策划：姚广宽 刘江波

美编：杨秀秀 马立莹 唐亚迪