“糖瓜祭灶，新年来到”。今天是农历腊月廿三，也是我国北方民间俗称的“小年”。部分南方地区是腊月廿四。
小年一到，春节的气氛愈来愈浓，家家户户开始准备年货，准备干干净净过个好年，表示新年要有新气象，表达了人们辞旧迎新、迎祥纳福的美好愿望。
下面是小年的来历及关于小年的知识:
Little New Year (Chinese: Xiaonian), usually a week before the lunar New Year, falls on Feb 1st this year. It is also known as the Festival of the Kitchen God, the deity who oversees the moral character of each household.
There are numerous customs associated with honoring the Kitchen God and determining the date of Little New Year. The date of this holiday was sometimes assigned according to location, with people in northern China celebrating it on the twenty-third day of the twelfth lunar month, and people in southern China celebrating it on the twenty-fourth. People make sacrifices to the Kitchen God on this day. A paper image is burnt 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 pasting a new image of him beside the stove.
Here are six things you should know about the Little New Year, another sign of the star of spring.
祭灶王爷 offer sacrifice to Kitchen God
扫房 House cleaning
吃关东糖 Eat Guandong candy
贴窗花 Paste paper-cuts to windows
洗澡理发 Bath and hair-cut
置办年货 Preparations for Spring Festival
祝大家猴年事业如筋斗云直冲云霄，生活似大圣归来祥和美满！
We hope you have asmooth happy Monkey year and keep healthy!
