Xiaonian Festival - Minor New Year

Little New Year, Xiao Nian (7 days before Spring Festival)

小年”一般可译为 Little New Year，也可以用拼音 Xiaonian表示。小年比农历新年早一个星期，也称祭灶节。灶神是监督每个家庭道德品质的神。

Little New Year (Xiaonian), usually a week before the lunar New Year. It is also known as the Festival of the Kitchen God, the deity who oversees the moral character of each household.

祭灶王：

“小年”最具特色的风俗就是“祭灶王”，具体来讲就是将旧的灶王像烧掉，送“灶王”上天禀报这家人过去一年的善恶。大年三十的晚上，要在灶台旁贴一张新的灶王像，也就是“接灶”。这样，来年“灶王爷”就能继续监督并庇佑这一家人。

In one of the most distinctive traditions of the Little New Year is the burning of a paper image of the Kitchen God, dispatching the god's spirit to Heaven to report on the family's conduct over the past year. The Kitchen God is then welcomed back by to the home through the pasting of a new paper image of him beside the stove. From this vantage point, the Kitchen God will oversee and protect the household for another year.

人们还会在祭灶时给灶王爷摆上多种甜点做贡品，认为这会堵住灶王爷的嘴，让他上天汇报时只说好话。

Most of the offerings are sweets of various varieties. It is thought that this will seal the Kitchen God's mouth and encourage him to only say good things about the family when he ascends to heaven to make his report.

扫尘土：

从腊八到小年这段时间，中国大部分家庭都会彻底清扫房屋，“辞旧迎新”。

Between Laba Festival, on the eighth day of the last lunar month, and Little New Year, on the twenty-third day, families throughout China undertake a thorough house cleaning, sweeping out the old in preparation for the New Year.

根据中国民间习俗，鬼魂和神灵都要在腊月选择返回天上还是留在人间。为了保证“他们”及时离开，人们必须彻底进行清扫，包括个人卫生和住所，抽屉和碗柜的犄角旮旯也都要打扫干净。

According to Chinese folk beliefs, during the last month of the year ghosts and deities must choose either to return to Heaven or to stay on Earth. It is believed that in order to ensure the ghosts and deities' timely departure people must thoroughly clean both their persons and their dwellings, down to every last drawer and cupboard.

沐浴、理发：

Both adults and children need to bath and cut their hair at this time. One of the old saying goes, with or without money, cutting hair to celebrate the new year.

大人、小孩都要洗浴、理发。汉族民间有“有钱没钱，剃头过年”的说法。这天傍晚，婆姨汝子都用开水洗脚。不懂事的女孩子，大人们也要帮她把脚擦洗干净，不留一点污秽。汉族民间传有“腊月二十七，婆姨汝子都洗脚。一个不洗脚，流脓害水七个月”的俗语。