冬至别名考

On the Alias of Winter Solstice

大如年的冬至节,起源久远,初名“日短”,周人占卜记录中称“至日”;春秋时代有“日至”“日南至”或“南至日”的称谓,战国时代又有“日短至”之名;冬至节定名于汉代,之后还有“长日”“长至”“亚岁”“小岁”“一线长”等名称。冬至命名的发展史,是古代历法不断进步的实证。

The winter solstice originated a long time ago.It was originally named“short day”in the divination records of Zhou people.In the Spring and Autumn period,it was named“the Sun going to the utmost point”,“the sun going to the southernmost point”or“the day on which the sun going to the southermost point”.In the Warring-States period,it was also named“day when the sun shines the least”.The winter solstice was named in the Han Dynasty,followed by the names of“long night”,“long night coming”,“sub-year”,“little year”and“one line long”.The history of the naming of the winter solstice is an example of the continuous progress of the ancient calendar.