二十四节气 · The Twenty-Four Solar Terms

在zài钟表zhōngbiǎo和hé日历rìlì出现chūxiàn以前,yǐqián中国人Zhōngguó rén用yòng二十四个èrshísì ge节气jiéqì来lái分辨fēnbiàn时间。shíjiān

Before clocks and calendars existed, Chinese people distinguished time by twenty-four solar terms.

它们tāmen把bǎ一年yì nián切成qiē chéng二十四段,èrshísì duàn每一段měi yí duàn大约dàyuē十五天。shíwǔ tiān

They cut the year into twenty-four segments, each about fifteen days.

这些zhèxiē名字míngzi本身běnshēn就jiù像xiàng诗:shī立春、lìchūn惊蛰、jīngzhé清明、qīngmíng芒种、mángzhòng霜降、shuāngjiàng大寒。dàhán

The names themselves read like poetry: Beginning of Spring, Waking of Insects, Clear and Bright, Grain in Ear, Frost's Descent, Great Cold.

惊蛰jīngzhé的de意思yìsi是,shì春雷chūnléi响了,xiǎng le冬眠dōngmián的de虫子chóngzi被bèi惊醒。jīngxǐng

Waking of Insects means the spring thunder has sounded and the hibernating creatures are startled awake.

清明qīngmíng前后,qiánhòu种瓜zhòng guā点豆,diǎn dòu农民nóngmín知道zhīdào该gāi下地xià dì了。le

Around Clear and Bright one sows melons and beans; the farmer knows it is time to go to the fields.

芒种mángzhòng是shì最忙zuì máng的de时候,shíhou要yào收shōu麦子,màizi又yòu要yào插秧。chā yāng

Grain in Ear is the busiest time: the wheat must be reaped and the rice seedlings transplanted.

霜降shuāngjiàng之后,zhīhòu天气tiānqì转冷,zhuǎn lěng树叶shùyè开始kāishǐ落下。luò xià

After Frost's Descent the weather turns cold and the leaves begin to fall.

每一个měi yí ge节气jiéqì都dōu对应着duìyìng zhe天上tiān shàng的de位置wèizhi和hé地上dì shàng的de农事。nóngshì

Every solar term corresponds to a position in the sky and a task on the ground.

古人gǔrén没有méiyǒu精密jīngmì的de仪器,yíqì靠kào的de是shì一代代yí dài dài的de观察guānchá和hé记忆。jìyì

The ancients had no precise instruments; they relied on generations of observation and memory.

他们tāmen把bǎ太阳tàiyáng走过zǒu guò的de路,lù变成biàn chéng了le可以kěyǐ背诵bèisòng的de句子。jùzi

They turned the path the sun travelled into sentences that could be recited.

今天jīntiān大多数人dà duōshù rén不再bú zài种地,zhòng dì节气jiéqì似乎sìhū离lí生活shēnghuó远了。yuǎn le

Today most people no longer farm, and the solar terms seem remote from daily life.

可是kěshì每到měi dào冬至,dōngzhì北方人běifāng rén还是háishi会huì包bāo饺子。jiǎozi

Yet whenever Winter Solstice comes, northerners still wrap dumplings.

每到měi dào清明,qīngmíng人们rénmen仍旧réngjiù会huì去qù给gěi祖先zǔxiān扫墓。sǎomù

Whenever Clear and Bright comes, people still go to sweep their ancestors' graves.

天气预报tiānqì yùbào比bǐ节气jiéqì准确zhǔnquè得多,de duō但dàn节气里jiéqì lǐ有yǒu别的bié de东西。dōngxi

Weather forecasts are far more accurate than the solar terms, but the terms hold something else.

它tā提醒tíxǐng我们,wǒmen时间shíjiān不是bú shì数字,shùzì而是ér shì风、fēng雨yǔ和hé光guāng的de变化。biànhuà

They remind us that time is not a number but the changing of wind, rain and light.

二零一六年,èr líng yī liù nián二十四节气èrshísì jiéqì被bèi列入liè rù了le世界shìjiè非物质fēi wùzhì文化遗产。wénhuà yíchǎn

In 2016 the twenty-four solar terms were inscribed as world intangible cultural heritage.