The winter solstice festival is a festival of that dynasty.

The winter solstice originated in the Zhou Dynasty, prevailed in the Tang and Song Dynasties, and has been in use ever since. However, the winter at that time was regarded as the beginning of the new year, because it was formulated according to the Zhou Calendar of the Zhou Dynasty at that time, so some people think that the special winter festival only began after the Han Dynasty, and it was very popular in the Tang and Song Dynasties and has continued to this day. According to the Records of the Later Han Dynasty, during the winter, the imperial court will have a holiday, and shops and hotels will be closed. The winter solstice is an important node in the 24 solar terms.

After the solstice of winter, it entered a "cold day". People think that winter is a day when the sun be the spirit changes, and it is a blessing given by God. At the same time, it is also a festive day, so there is a saying that winter is as big as a year. In the past, the winter solstice was still a day of sacrifice. It is said that after the Song Dynasty, the winter solstice gradually became a day to worship ancestors and gods. In the Tang and Song Dynasties, the solstice in winter was a day to worship heaven and earth and ancestors. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, emperors held sacrificial ceremonies on the solstice of winter.

Winter solstice festival customs:

Jiangsu and Zhejiang eat more solstice meat in winter, and more solstice fish and chickens and ducks in winter. Winter solstice meat is cooked with pork and soy sauce, which is said to make you strong. The solstice fish in winter is to divide the fish into head and tail and put them in a bowl in a rice bucket, which is called "leftover food", which means to be full. This is similar to eating fish on New Year's Eve, which means "more than one year".

In some northern areas, such as Beijing and Tianjin, jiaozi or wonton is eaten in the evening from winter to Sunday. As the saying goes, "winter solstice wonton, summer solstice noodles." Folklore is to commemorate Zhang Zhongjing, a famous doctor in Henan. He opened a medicine shed on the solstice of winter, wrapped mutton and medicinal dough, and made ear-shaped "pepper" to treat people's frozen ears. In Fujian, Taiwan Province and parts of Guangdong and Guangxi, there is the custom of rubbing pills. Glutinous rice flour is kneaded into balls with water, made into solid or stuffed balls, cooked in water and sacrificed to ancestors. It is called the winter solstice round.