客家年俗：对故土的眷恋

张琼

“要問客家哪里来？客家来自黄河边；要问客家哪里住？逢山有客客住山。”

“Where do the Hakka people come from？ ey comefrom the banks of the Yellow River. Where do the Hakkapeople live？ The Hakka people live anywhere there aremountains and hills.”

这首民歌生动地道出了客家人的迁徙路线。地处中国华南地区的广东有广府、客家、潮汕三大族群。据说，客家人从中原南迁而来，他们一路南下，最终在粤东北和粤北，包括梅江、东江和北江流域的丘陵山区与盆地中安家落户。

This folk song vividly portrays the migrationroute of the Hakka people， one of the three majorfolk groups in present-day Guangdong Province insouthern China， alongside the Guangfu and Chaoshancommunities. It is said that the Hakka people migratedfrom the Central Plains all the way to the south， andeventually settled in the hilly areas and basins alongMeijiang River， Dongjiang River， and Beijiang River innorthern and northeastern Guangdong.

不同于广府人的“敢为天下先”、潮汕人的“爱拼才会赢”，客家人具有中原文化的深厚底蕴，秉承了儒家君子之风，加之长时间漂泊流离后到达新环境迎接诸多生存挑战，客家人还有着耕读传家的传统。在习俗上，就表现为特别注重仪式，这在中国人最隆重的传统节日——春节中尤其明显。

Unlike the Guangfu people， who advocate “beingthe pioneers in the world”， or the Chaoshan people，who believe in “success belongs to the daring”， theHakka people， deeply influenced by the profoundculture of the Central Plains， exhibit qualities of aConfucian gentleman. Their serene and stable wayof life， centered around agriculture and education，became even more prominent as they faced andovercame the challenges upon arriving at their newhomeland a er the long， arduous journey. As a result，they hold a deep reverence for traditions and have astrong sense of ritual， which is most evidently re ectedin their celebration of Spring Festival， the mostimportant traditional festival in China.

腊月二十五被客家人称为“入年架”。这一天起，春节的大幕徐徐拉开，客家人放下手头的工作，开始为春节忙碌。客家人的春节有三块核心内容：一是置办年货；二是祭祀；三是祈福。

On the 25th day of the 12th lunar month， knownas ru nianjia （entering the festive period）， the grandcurtain of the Spring Festival celebrations slowly rises. e Hakka people set aside their daily tasks to preparefor the upcoming festival with their focus on three keyactivities： preparing festival items， offering sacrifices，and seeking blessings.

置办年货

客家人的年节食物，主要有年糕、黄酒和酿豆腐等。客家人的年糕，又称“粄”（bǎn）或“ 煎堆”，是走亲访友的必备之物。客家人还有酿酒的习俗，用糯米加白酒发酵酿制，最终成品呈黄色，故俗称“黄酒”。这种酒度数不高、甜中带酸、香醇可口，是客家人吃团圆饭和招待客人的必备饮品。酿豆腐也是必不可少的一道佳肴，客家人酿豆腐，就像北方人包饺子、壮家人包粽子一样充满年味。

A traditional Hakka festival meal typically consists of rice cake， yellow rice wine， and stu edtofu， among others. e rice cake， locally known as ban or jiandui， is an essential gi for festivalvisits. e Hakka people also have a tradition of brewing yellow rice wine using glutinous rice andbaijiu （white spirit）. e nal product is yellow in color， hence the name “yellow rice wine”. ismild， fragrant drink has a sweet and slightly sour avor， making it a favorite drink during familygatherings and when hosting guests. Stuffed tofu also takes on special significance during thisseason， much like dumplings in northern China and zongzi （sticky rice dumplings） among theZhuang ethnic community， representing the festive spirit of the occasion.

祭祀

祭祀活动几乎贯穿客家人的整个春节。年二十七到年二十九，客家人要祭祀“伯公”“伯婆”和“村神”等守卫一方的小神，通常由老年妇女或小媳妇带着小孩去祭拜。大年三十，客家人要带上“三牲”“斋盘”，去祖祠祭拜祖先。“三牲”主要是指猪、鸡和鱼，“斋盘”分别盛有发粄（寓意“年年发财”）、苹果（寓意“四季平安”）、柑橘（寓意“年年吉利”）、柚子（寓意“年年富有”）和财宝（代表祖公、祖婆衣，伯公、伯婆衣，观音衣，冥币，花边等）。这是过年非常隆重的一项习俗，也是客家人雷打不动的仪式。此时，家族成员都会返回老祖屋，焚香叩首，祭拜祖先，追思祖先功德。

The Hakka worshiping activities last throughoutthe entire Spring Festival period. Between the 27thand 29th of the 12th lunar month， elderly womenin the family or young mothers take the childrento worship local deities who guard the community，such as Bogong and Bopo （both Gods of the Land）and the Village God. On Chinese New Year’s Eve， theHakka people go to the ancestral shrines for ancestralworship. They bring with them “the three animalo erings” （pork， chicken， and sh）， and the “vegetarianofferings”， including faban （symbolizing “wealth”），apples （symbolizing “safety”）， tangerines （symbolizing“good luck”）， and pomelos （symbolizing “abundance”）.They also bring with them symbolic treasures，representing ancestral clothing， clothing for the deities，paper money for the deceased， and decorations. eseare solemn and deeply rooted traditions for the Hakkapeople. At this time each year， all family membersreturn to the ancestral home， burn incense， kowtow，worship their ancestors， and reflect on the merits oftheir forebears.

在设置年夜饭席位时，桌上会多放几副碗筷，以示请祖先回来一同过年。开席前，客家人要先给祖先筛酒，将酒洒地，然后放鞭炮，吃团年饭。大年初一凌晨，客家人会选择吉时燃放爆竹，开门迎接财神并上香，取“开门大发”之意。正月初五，出年界，是灶神回家之日，客家人會把厅堂的祖宗画像收起来，晚上摆放牲礼果品敬灶神。在春节期间，客家人的龙灯、狮队还要到村中各庙宇和祠堂向神灵及祖先拜年。

Extra bowls and chopsticks are always prepared on Chinese New Year’s Evedinner table as a gesture of inviting the ancestors to join the family reunion. Beforethe feast， the Hakka people go through a series of rituals： sieving the wine， pouringit on the ground， and setting o recrackers. In the early morning of the next day，the Hakka people set o recrackers at an auspicious time， open the gate to welcomethe Wealth God （a propitious ritual symbolizing prosperity in the coming year）， andburn incense. On the h day of the new year， known as the end day of the ChineseNew Year period and the day when the Kitchen God returns， the Hakka peopleput away portraits of the ancestors and set up o erings to the Kitchen God， such assacri cial items and fruits， in the evening. During the festive days， the Hakka peopleperform dragon lantern dances and lion dances in temples and ancestral shrines topay homage to the deities and their ancestors.

祈福

祈福活动包括守岁、贴春联、放孔明灯等。

Blessings-seeking activities for the Hakka peopleinclude vigil for Chinese New Year’s Eve， putting upSpring Festival couplets， and releasing Kongming skylanterns.

团年饭后，客家人开始“守岁”。家家户户通宵达旦，灯火明亮，这被称为“点岁火”；火笼加炭则被称为“沤火桶”。

After Chinese New Year’s Eve dinner， the Hakkapeople begin their shou sui （keeping vigil for the ChineseNew Year’s Eve）. They stay awake all night with therooms brightly lit a tradition referred to as dian suihuo（lighting the fire of the new year）. Additionally， theylight a charcoal burner， a custom known as ou huotong.

除夕夜，客家人还要贴春联。客家人不仅会在大门口贴对联，还会在大厅里贴大红的“福”字，在猪牛圈里贴上“六畜兴旺”的红条幅，甚至会在用具上贴红纸条。这被称为“封岁”“上红”。

On Chinese New Year’s Eve， the Hakka peoplealso put up Spring Festival couplets. They not onlypaste the couplets at the gate but also hang the Chinesecharacter 福 （fu， meaning “blessing”） with a redbackground in the living room， along with red bannerswith the characters 六畜兴旺 （liuchu xingwang， meaning“prosperity for the six essential farm animals”） inthe pen. Some families even stick red paper strips tohousehold items. is is known as feng sui （sealing theyear） or shang hong （putting up red decorations.）

客家人的春联写法很有特色。通常，大门两旁是该姓氏祖先立的堂联［以楹（yíng）联的形式对家族堂号的补充说明，亦称“祠联”，主要用于家族祠堂］。大门上方的横批是祖先立的堂号，说明家族的来源地。比如，于姓立“河南堂”，说明于姓祖先来自河南；饶姓立“平阳堂”，说明饶姓祖先来自山西平阳；李姓立“陇西堂”，说明李姓祖先来自甘肃陇西。堂联一般八个字，如文姓堂联为“四夷贤相，尽节勤王”：上联说北宋山西介休人文彦博一生做了四朝宰相，长达50年；下联指江西吉水文天祥，在南宋末年起兵勤王，为国尽忠，壮烈牺牲，让子孙后代牢记祖先的荣光。

e layout and content of the Hakka Spring Festivalcouplets are distinctive. Typically， above the mainentrance of the clan hall is a horizontal scroll statingthe clan’s place of origin. For example， the “HenanHall” scroll in the Yu Shrine indicates its ancestralorigin in Henan Province; similarly， the “PingyangHall” of the Rao Shrine and the “Longxi Hall” of theLi Shrine indicate their respective origins. Below thehorizontal scroll and on both sides of the entranceare a pair of couplets known as tanglian， yinglian， orcilian， which usually provide more information aboutthe clan. For instance， the tanglian of the Wen Shrinereads “四夷賢相，尽节勤王”. The first four charactersshow that Wen Yanbo from Jiexiu， Shanxi Province inthe Northern Song Dynasty served as prime ministerfor four emperors for 50 years. e last four characterstell the story of Wen Tianxiang from Jishui， JiangxiProvince， who died heroically in defense of his countryin the late Southern Song Dynasty. e couplets call onthe descendants of the Wen clan to honor and celebratethe glorious legacy the ancestors le for them.

此外，客家人過新年有打狮之戏，花灯以游龙灯为多，各处张灯结彩，人来人往，热闹非凡。正月十五日元宵节，春节的最后一天，客家人还会放孔明灯祈福，祈祷新的一年顺心如意。

During Chinese New Year celebrations， theHakka people showcase various dance performances，with dragon lanterns and lion dances being the mostcommon. The streets are bustling with people， adornedwith lanterns， and resonate with a lively atmosphere.The Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first lunarmonth， marking the end of the Spring Festival period， isparticularly vibrant. On this day， the Hakka people releaseKongming sky lanterns， wishing for a lucky year ahead.

看似繁琐的年俗体现了客家人与故土深深的羁绊。客家人在万不得已之下，背井离乡，对故土却始终难以忘怀。于是，他们把对故土的思念寄托在对自身家族历史传统的保留上。千百年来，这种寄托逐渐演变成一种崇尚祖训、铭记历史、注重家教、爱惜名节的文化。“宁卖祖宗田，不卖祖宗言”，传统、语言、文化习俗的完整保存，是客家人对家乡无尽的牵挂，这就是客家人特别注重仪式的原因。当然，随着时间的推移，一些仪式已经简化，不同地区客家人的年俗也可能有所不同，但融于客家人血脉中的对故土的牵挂却始终不变。

The seemingly complicated customs symbolizethe profound attachment the Hakka people have fortheir homeland. Despite being forced to relocate，they preserve fond memories of their homeland. Insubsequent years， this enduring a ection transformedinto a steadfast commitment to their ancestraltraditions， which， over thousands of years， has evolvedinto a culture that prioritizes ancestral teachings andfamily education， values reputation， and highlightsthe importance of remembering one’s history. “Betterto lose ancestral land than to lose the ancestrallanguage.” The Hakka people hold a profound lovefor their homeland， leading them to prioritize thepreservation of their traditions， language， culture， andcustoms. As time goes by， some rituals may have beensimpli ed， and practices may di er in di erent Hakkacommunities. Nevertheless， their enduring， unyieldinglove for their homeland， woven into the very fabrics oftheir being， remains unchanged.