Huaiji New Year customs

1. Buying New Year’s goods

In late December of the lunar calendar, people begin to buy New Year’s goods and make cakes. Some admirers make wishes, return blessings, and send Kitchen God to heaven. Activity.

2. New Year’s Eve

On New Year’s Eve (commonly known as the 30th night of the year), Huaiji people are accustomed to cooking a sumptuous family dinner and leaving leftovers for this meal. There is more than enough every year. After the reunion dinner, the whole family stayed up late and chatted. It is customary in the Xiafang area of ??Huaiji to post door couplets and "profit money" after the family reunion dinner, while in the Shangfang area it is customary to post them early in the morning on Yuan Day (i.e. the first day of the Lunar New Year).

Firecrackers are set off after midnight on New Year’s Eve, and tea, fruits, pastries and other offerings are offered to the ancestors (people in the county call this “tea service”).

3. The first day of the Lunar New Year

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, start making money. There are sounds of gongs, drums and firecrackers everywhere, and entertainment activities such as lion dances are also staged one after another (until the seventh day of the Lunar New Year), making Wei Town and the county town more lively. In addition, most areas in Huaiji eat vegetarian meals for three meals on the first day of the Lunar New Year and do not visit relatives.

On the second day of the Lunar New Year, people begin to eat meat. Early in the morning, every family cuts a capon and braises a large piece of pork to worship ancestors, heaven and earth temples, stone mothers, etc. to mark the "new year". After dinner, I started to visit relatives and friends to pay New Year greetings.

4. The fourth day of the Lunar New Year

On the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, lanterns are given to boys in the Fenggang area of ????Xiafang. On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, people in Shangfang are called "Fangma", and people generally eat "stuffed tofu" (stuffed with fish, onions and garlic, and fried tofu as the skin). From this day on, the New Year activities have basically ended.

5. The seventh day of the lunar month

On the seventh day of the lunar month, in most places, it is mainly celebrated as a festival called "Ren Day" (it is said to be the birthday of a person). After "Human Day", the festive atmosphere gradually fades.

6. Lantern Festival

On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, during the Lantern Festival, residents of the county, Wei Town and Xiafang villagers eat glutinous rice balls and kill chickens and ducks to celebrate the festival. Xiashuai Township also holds various activities to celebrate the festival. .

Huaiji County People's Government-Customs