Winter Solstice

The Winter Solstice falls between December 21 and 23. As the founding solar term, the Winter Solstice was also celebrated as the Winter Festival or Changzhi Festival, when families offered sacrifices to their ancestors. The Winter Solstice occurs when the sun is directly over the Tropic of Capricorn. It is the day with the shortest day time and the longest night time of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.

It is customary for Chinese people to eat jiaozi (stuffed dumpling) on the day of the Winter Solstice. Chinese ancients attached the same importance to the Winter Solstice as the Spring Festival. It's on this day that families in the North gather to make jiaozi, and each person performs a specific task. The whole house is warm and redolent of chat and laughters when eating jiaozi together.