The foundation of summer timeXiazhi is one of the first of China's Twenty-Four Solar Terms to be established, and does not just represent the longest day, but is an important pivot upon which the year's spiritual energy turns.
夏至是中国二十四节气中最先被确立的节气之一。它不仅代表了一年中最长的一天，还是一年中阴阳交替的重要转折点。There is a day that is celebrated, without prior agreement, in many countries of the world, considered special by people who observe the movement of the Sun. On its eve, in England, people rally to Stonehenge, a mystical ring of monoliths erected by some ancient devotees, to welcome rise of the Sun. In Latvia, people travel from the cities to the countryside to gather, eat and sing in celebration.世界上许多国家不约而同地庆祝这一天，观察太阳的人都认为这天极为特别。在英国，这天前夕，人们会聚集到巨石阵迎接太阳的升起。巨石阵是英国的史前时代遗址的神秘环型建筑，位于英格兰威尔特郡索尔兹伯里平原，由一些古老的信徒建造而成。在拉脱维亚，人们会从城市聚集到乡村，一起吃饭和唱歌来庆祝。Chinese people attach equal importance to this day, as the Summer Solstice, or Xiazhi in Chinese, which falls on Jun 21 this year, is the tenth of the traditional Twenty-Four Solar Terms.中国人同样十分重视这天，称为“夏至”，是传统二十四节气的第十节气，在今年的6月21日到来。In the Northern Hemisphere, Summer Solstice occurs when the Sun is directly over the Tropic of Cancer. It is the longest day of the year in terms of daylight. After the solstice, the subsolar point begins its migration south, and daytime gradually shrinks.在北半球，夏至发生在太阳直射北回归线的时候，是一年中白昼时间最长的一天。这天过后，太阳直射点开始南移，白昼开始逐渐变短。Despite what many might think, with it being at the height of summer, Xiazhi is not the hottest time of year. A Chinese folk saying goes: 'The summer is not hot enough until Summer Solstice'.尽管许多人认为，夏至正值盛夏，但其实不然。这并不是一年中最热的日子，中国民间有句谚语：“夏至不过不热”。After Xiazhi, the temperature will continue to increase. Just like Winter Solstice is the start of 'nine nine' — a system to record the following 81 days — in winter, this year, June 21 will mark the beginning of the nine nine of summer.夏至之后，气温逐渐升高。就像冬至是冬九九的开端（记录冬至之后81天寒天的方法），今年6月21日也标志着夏九九的开始。Chinese people used to count the days in periods of nine, and then summarize the conditions during each period in songs. One example of a summer 'nine-nine song' describes the increasingly warmer weather following the Summer Solstice before it finally starts to turn cold.中国人过去用“九”来记录天数，并把每阶段物候特征概括成口诀歌。“夏九九歌”描述的便是夏至过后气温逐渐升高到天气转凉之前的气象特征。In the first and second nine, you always need a fan in the hand. In the third nine, you can find ice water as sweet as honey. Your clothes are always soaked with sweat in the fourth nine. You can feel gentle wind blow the branch in the fifth nine. The sixth nine is a good time to relax in a cool place. During the seventh nine you need to be covered with quilt when sleeping. Don't catch a cold in the eighth nine. Everybody finds their coat in the ninth nine.Ancient Chinese believe the Summer Solstice is the time when yang energy is at its most potent, and gets weaker as the days progress, giving way to yin energy, which increases in strength. That is to say, Summer Solstice is the turning point between yin and yang, while Winter Solstice marks the reverse of that energy flow.古时，中国人相信夏至阳气极盛，之后阳气与日愈弱，让位于阴，阴气渐盛。也就是说，夏至是阳阴能量之间的转折点，而冬至则正相反。As a result, typical phenomena of Xiazhi include deer — which symbolize yang energy — shedding their antlers as yin energy starts to grow. Also because of rise of yin, cicadas start to chirp, and people start hearing them more often. Banxia, a herb strong in yin energy begins to grow, marking a point when living things with a yin energy begin to thrive, while those strong in yang energy gradually wither.中国古代将夏至分为三候：“一候鹿角解；二候蝉始鸣；三候半夏生。”鹿属阳。夏至日阴气生而阳气始衰，所以阳性的鹿角便开始脱落；雄性的知了在夏至后因感阴气之生便鼓翼而鸣；半夏，一种喜阴的药草开始茁壮生长，而阳性的生物却开始衰退了。
According to Lyu Hongjun, a scholar of the Twenty-Four Solar Terms, Xiazhi is very important since it is one of the first solar terms.根据二十四节气的学者吕宏军介绍，夏至因其是最先被确立的节气之一而十分重要。'China's Twenty-Four Solar Terms didn't appear all at once, but developed over a long period. In the Western Zhou Dynasty (c.11th century-771 BC) the two solstices and equinoxes appear. Then in the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC), the start of the four seasons were added to the system. During the Warring States Period (475-221 BC) the rudiment of the Twenty-Four Solar Terms was basically established, and their names were decided across the Qin (221-206 BC) and Han (206 BC-AD 220) dynasties,' says Lyu.“中国的二十四节气并不是一次全部出现的，而是经过了很长的发展时间。在西周时期出现了冬至、夏至、春分和秋分；春秋时期出现立春、立夏、立秋和立冬；战国时期二十四节气的雏形已初步建立。秦汉时期，各个节气的名称确定下来。”吕宏军介绍道。In Dengfeng city, Central China's Henan province, two ancient structures tell the story of the observation of the Sun by ancient Chinese, and the origin of the Twenty-Four Solar Terms. According to historical documents, Ji Dan, the Duke of Zhou, a famous politician of the Western Zhou Dynasty, established a sundial platform in Dengfeng, which at the time was considered to be the center of the earth, to observe the movement of the sun.河南省登封市的两件古文物建筑讲述了中国古人观测太阳的故事和二十四节气的起源。据史料记载，西周时期的丞相周公姬旦在当时被认为是“地中”的登封建立了一个测影台，用来观察太阳的运动。The platform is a guibiao, an ancient Chinese sundial with a gui, a horizontal scale on the ground extending to the north, and a biao, a perpendicular bar standing upright. As the sun moves, the shadow of the biao is cast on the gui, and the length of the shadow at different times helps to trace variations of the sun's movement.周公测影台是一个“圭表”，中国古代的一种晷仪。“圭”是水平放置于地面上刻有刻度以测量影长的标尺；“表”是垂直于地面的直杆。当太阳移动时，“表”的影子就会投射在“圭”上，通过观察记录不同时间影子的长短变化来追踪太阳运动的变化。'It is said that the ancient Chinese found a day where the shortest shadow cast is about 50 centimeters, and that is the start of summer's hottest period. That is how the Summer Solstice was discovered,' says Lyu, who is also director of the office of Dengfeng chronicles.“古时中国人发现，有一天，太阳投射的影长最短，大约有50厘米，据此认定这是夏季最热阶段的开始，也就有了夏至。”登封市地方志办公室主任吕宏军说。Ji's original platform was made from wood and earth, and being hard to preserve, had to be replaced many times over the years. Standing in its place today is a permanent guibiao rebuilt using stone during the Tang Dynasty (618-907), that continues to tell stories about ancient Chinese endeavors in astronomy.西周时期周公旦设置的圭表用木头和泥土制成，难以保存，多年来不得不更换多次。如今伫立在此的是在唐代用石头重建的可长久保存的圭表，继续讲述着中国古代天文学的故事。About 20 meters from Ji's platform is another observatory, built under the leadership of Chinese astronomer Guo Shoujing during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), which has a similar structure to a guibiao, but is much larger in scale.在距周公旦的圭表大约20米的位置，有另外一座测景台，是1279年前后，元代杰出天文学家郭守敬建造的测景台，即河南登封观星台。整个观星台相当于一个测量日影的圭表，但规模更大。Guo built 27 observatories throughout the Yuan territories, and the one in Dengfeng is the only one that still exists. Based on his observations over the course of two years, he developed a new calendar called Shoushi Li (Season-granting calendar), calculating a year to be 365.2425 days, just seconds off the current measurement of a year. The calendar was used for more than 360 years.郭守敬在元代当时的国土范围内搭建了27座观星台，仅有一台留存至今，在河南省登封市。郭守敬经过两年的观测，完成新历法《授时历》，其法以365.2425日为一岁，距近代观测值365.2422仅差25.92秒。该历法后来沿用了360多年。Both the sundial platform and observatory are part of the site Historic Monuments of Dengfeng in 'The Center of Heaven and Earth', which was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2010.2010年8月1日，包括周公测景台、登封观星台在内的登封“天地之中”历史建筑群被列为世界文化遗产。Due to such history, local people in Dengfeng highlight the Summer Solstice and celebrate its arrival with a big festival featuring various activities, including paying tribute to Ji, watching the shadow cast by the sun on the guibiao, and art performances.有着这样的历史，登封当地人每年都会以盛大的节日迎接夏至的到来，节日上有各种活动，包括祭祀、观察太阳在圭表上的影子和艺术表演等。According to Lyu, such celebrations, especially those paying tribute to Ji, has been held since ancient times, both in an official and folk capacity. After the end of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), official-level celebration was suspended, but the people have never forgotten it and folk events continued.据吕宏军介绍，这样的庆祝活动，特别是祭祀周公旦，民间和官方都自古已有。清王朝结束后，官方的活动暂停了，但人们没有忘记，民俗活动仍在继续。'People want to express their gratitude for Ji, who is believed to have been the founder of the Twenty-Four Solar Terms, which has played a huge role in guiding agricultural production as a standard farming timetable. It promoted the development of agriculture, and has helped feed the nation,' says Lyu.“人们想向周公旦表达感谢，他们认为周公旦是发明二十四节气的人。二十四节气是农业生产的标准时刻表，对指导农业生产起到了巨大作用。它促进了农业的发展，孕育着诺大的国家民族。”While in modern China, Xiazhi is simply known as one of the solar terms, in ancient times it was a major festival. In the Song Dynasty (960-1279), the festival offered officials a holiday of three days. A grand sacrificial ceremony, led by the incumbent emperor, was also held on the Summer Solstice during the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing dynasties.在现代中国，夏至仅被认为是节气中一个，在古代则是个重大的节日。在宋朝，夏至日官员放假三天。明清两朝时，还会由皇帝主持盛大的祭祀仪式。According to Guo Wenbin, a scholar of traditional culture, many customs from the ancient Summer Solstice festivals, including dragon boat races, are now celebrated as part of events, such as Dragon Boat Festival, or Duanwu Festival.中国传统文化学者郭文斌介绍，许多来自古代夏至日的习俗，包括赛龙舟，现已成为如端午节这样的传统佳节的庆祝活动。'We often believe Duanwu was created to commemorate patriotic poet Qu Yuan of the Warring States Period, who committed suicide on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. But, actually, before the death of Qu, Chinese people already celebrated Duanwu, which often fell between Grain in Ear, the ninth solar term, and Summer Solstice. Many customs of Duanwu we follow now are related to those two solar terms,' says Guo.“我们总认为端午节是纪念战国时期爱国诗人屈原的节日，屈原在农历五月初五投汨罗江自尽，为纪念屈原，端午节逐渐流传下来。但实际上，在屈原去世之前，中国人已开始在芒种，第九个节气和夏至间庆祝“端午”。如今我们遵循的很多端午节习俗都和这两个节气有关。”A folk saying goes: 'After eating Summer Solstice noodles, daylight will become shorter day by day'. Since the Summer Solstice is often a time when people harvest wheat, it's a tradition to eat noodles. The Summer Solstice festival in Dengfeng includes an activity whereby nearly a thousand people eat noodles together.中国有句谚语：“吃了夏至面，一天短一线。”因为人们在夏至日丰收，吃面条成为传统。在登封，夏至时有近千人一起吃面条的活动。As Summer Solstice represents the longest day, some environmental advocates have encouraged the switching off of lights for a couple of hours as a symbolic, and practical way, of saving energy. Related activities have been held in many cities across China and the world. This June 21, maybe even more people will 'see the light' and take the initiative to go outside and enjoy an extra few hours of sunshine.夏至是世界上白昼最长的一天，一些环保人士鼓励人们关灯几个小时，以此作为一种象征性的、实用的节能方式。相关的活动已在中国和世界上多个城市举办。今年的6月21日，也许会有更多的人看到日光，主动走到户外，多享受几小时的阳光。
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