大寒是中國傳統二十四節氣中的第二十四個節氣，也是農歷年中的最后一個節氣。與小寒Minor Cold對應，大寒的英語表達為Major Cold/Great Cold。于1月20日開始至2月3日結束。

The traditional Chinese lunar calendar divides the year into 24 solar terms. Major Cold/Great Cold, the 24th solar term, is the last solar term in winter and also the last solar term in the annual lunar calendar，begins this year on Jan 20 and ends on Feb 3. 
 

此時，窗外已是千里冰封，萬里雪飄，而屋內人們則開始熱火朝天地備年貨，灑掃除塵，團圓的喜氣為寒冷的冬天增添了不少暖意。

At this time, outside the house is thousands of miles of ices covering the land, thousands of miles of  snow drifting in the air, and people in the house are busy with preparation of  New Year goods, sweeping and dusting, and the joy of reunion adds a lot of warmth to the cold winter.

這一時期，雨雪冰凍天氣極大地影響了人們的生活。

In this period, snow, rain and icy cold weather exert a big influence on people's lives.

During Major Cold, as the cold current moves southward, the weather becomes bitterly cold. Although modern meteorological observation shows that in some regions of China the weather during Major Cold is not colder than Minor Cold, the lowest temperatures of the whole year still occur in the Major Cold period in some coastal areas.

大寒時節，由于寒潮向南移動，天氣變得十分嚴寒。雖然現代氣象觀測顯示，大寒時期，中國一些地區并不比小寒時寒冷。但在某些沿海地區，全年最低溫度依然出現在大寒期間。

大寒有哪些習俗呢？"TransinterpretersPus譯加"節氣文化系列課堂時間，快來和譯君一起看看有關“大寒”的知識。

四季中國 | 大寒

北京人有大寒吃“消寒糕”（年糕的一種）的習俗。消寒糕是年糕的一種，一般由糯米、紅棗、桂圓、核桃、白糖等材料制成，碳水豐富，食之可起到抗寒作用。

During Major Cold, People in Beijing have a habit of eating "dispelling cold cake", a kind of rice cake. Rice cake generally are made of glutinous rice, red dates, longan, walnut, white sugar and other materials, which is rich in carbon water and can resist cold weather. 

消寒糕的主要原料是糯米，其含糖量比大米高，可使人感到全身暖和。漢語中“年糕”和“年高”發音相同，寓意著吉祥如意、年年高升。

Sticky rice, the cake's major ingredient, contains more sugar than rice, which can make people feel warm all over their bodies. In Chinese, the word "rice cake" has the same pronunciation with the word "higher in a new year", which symbolizes good luck and continual promotion.

大寒時節經常與農歷歲末相吻合。古時除夕夜，人們將芝麻秸放在地上，讓孩子們來踩，諧音“踩歲（碎）”，有“歲歲平安”的寓意。

The cold season often coincides with the end of the lunar calendar. On New Year's Eve in ancient times, people put sesame stalks on the ground and let the children step on it. The homophonic "stomping on the old (broken)" has the meaning of "safety in every year".

在中國的一些地區，大寒時人們經常爭相去買芝麻秸，因為有句老話講：“芝麻開花節節高。”這句話常被用來描述生活水平的不斷上升或思想、學習和技能方面的穩步提升。

In some areas of China, people always fall over each other in eagerness to buy sesame straw during this period because of the old saying, "Rise joint by joint like sesame flowers on the stem." This saying is used to describe either ever-rising living standards or making steady progress in thought, studies or skills.

fall over each other：爭先恐后地

春卷包含大量春天的蔬菜，營養豐富，既可當菜，也可當作主食。在安徽安慶一帶，有大寒吃炸春卷的習俗。

Spring rolls contain a lot of spring vegetables and are rich in nutrients. They can be used as a vegetable or as a staple food. In Anqing, Anhui, there is a custom of eating deep-fried spring rolls.

人們用圓圓的熟的薄餅裹上餡料，卷成細卷，然后放入平底鍋中油炸，直至外皮金黃并浮上來。春卷的餡料包括肉類或蔬菜類，有咸和甜兩種口味。

People use a round, cooked, thin pancake to wrap stuffing in a thin roll. Then it is fried in a pan with oil until it turns yellow and floats to the top. The stuffing inside the spring roll contains meat or vegetables and the flavor can be salty or sweet.

大寒期間，用牛羊肉、紅棗等熱性食材煲湯，可起到暖身滋補的養生效果。

During the severe cold, boiling soup with hot ingredients such as beef, lamb and red dates can have a warming and nourishing health effect.

Residents in Nanjing of Jiangsu province prefer to drink stewed soup during Major Cold, which can make people feel warm from head to foot. They always stew the aged hen soup with ginseng, wolfberry and black fungus.

南京人喜歡在大寒燉湯喝，可以讓人從頭暖到腳。人們將常用人參、枸杞和黑木耳燉老母雞湯。

俗話說：“冬季動一動，少鬧一場病”。在做好保暖工作的基礎上進行適量的運動，有助于強身健體。

As the saying goes: "If you move in winter, you won't get sick." Taking some proper exercises for keeping warm will help you keep fit.

有諺云：“小寒大寒，滴水成冰。”在中國各地，大寒是開展冬季運動的最佳時節，如滑雪，滑冰和乘雪橇等。

大寒總是在農歷的年底來臨。大寒過幾天就春節了。人們忙著采購年貨。這個節氣充滿了對家庭團聚和對新開始的美好憧憬。

Around days after Great Cold, comes the Spring Festival. People get busy with buying things, salting the meat and preparing New Year goods. This solar term is consequently imbued with happy expectations of family reunions and a fresh new start.

今天大寒正好也是臘八節，今天你喝臘八粥了嗎？大寒到頂端，日后天漸暖，讓我們一起迎接中國傳統春節！

Today is the Laba Festival.Did you have Laba porridge today?Great cold reaches the topest, the day after today it will get warmer.Let us expect the tranditional Chinese New Year together!