In China, there is a special day called Xiao Nian （小年，the Little New Year）. It serves as a prelude to the Spring Festival, marking the beginning of people’s busy preparations for the new year. Today, let me tell you the story of Little Year.
Long, long ago, in a distant village, people lived peaceful lives. But every winter, a fierce beast called ”Nian” would come to the village, eating livestock and even harming villagers, causing everyone to be very frightened.
To protect the village, the villagers came up with a plan. They discovered that ”Nian” was afraid of red, firelight, and loud noises. So, every winter when ”Nian” was about to arrive, the villagers would wear red clothes, light lanterns, and set off firecrackers to drive ”Nian” away.
Later, people found that ”Nian” always appeared on the 23rd or 24th day of the 12th lunar month, so they designated these two days as Little Year, preparing in advance to welcome ”Nian”. On the day of Little Year, every household would clean their house, paste red couplets and paper-cuts on windows, hoping to sweep away all the bad luck of the year and welcome good luck for the new year.
Apart from cleaning, there is another important custom during Little Year, which is sacrificing to the Kitchen God. According to legend, the Kitchen God would report on the good and evil of human beings to the Jade Emperor on the day of Little Year, so people would put sweets on the stove, hoping that the Kitchen God would say good things after going to heaven and bless their families with peace and happiness in the coming year.
In this way, Little Year has become an integral part of Chinese traditional festivals. By celebrating Little Year, people express their longing and hope for a better life.