張瓊

“要問客家哪里來？客家來自黃河邊；要問客家哪里??？逢山有客客住山?！?/p>

“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.”

這首民歌生動地道出了客家人的遷徙路線。地處中國華南地區(qū)的廣東有廣府、客家、潮汕三大族群。據(jù)說，客家人從中原南遷而來，他們一路南下，最終在粵東北和粵北，包括梅江、東江和北江流域的丘陵山區(qū)與盆地中安家落戶。

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.

不同于廣府人的“敢為天下先”、潮汕人的“愛拼才會贏”，客家人具有中原文化的深厚底蘊，秉承了儒家君子之風，加之長時間漂泊流離后到達新環(huán)境迎接諸多生存挑戰(zhàn)，客家人還有著耕讀傳家的傳統(tǒng)。在習俗上，就表現(xiàn)為特別注重儀式，這在中國人最隆重的傳統(tǒng)節(jié)日——春節(jié)中尤其明顯。

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.

臘月二十五被客家人稱為“入年架”。這一天起，春節(jié)的大幕徐徐拉開，客家人放下手頭的工作，開始為春節(jié)忙碌?？图胰说拇汗?jié)有三塊核心內(nèi)容：一是置辦年貨；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.

置辦年貨

客家人的年節(jié)食物，主要有年糕、黃酒和釀豆腐等?？图胰说哪旮猓址Q“粄”（bǎn）或“ 煎堆”，是走親訪友的必備之物?？图胰诉€有釀酒的習俗，用糯米加白酒發(fā)酵釀制，最終成品呈黃色，故俗稱“黃酒”。這種酒度數(shù)不高、甜中帶酸、香醇可口，是客家人吃團圓飯和招待客人的必備飲品。釀豆腐也是必不可少的一道佳肴，客家人釀豆腐，就像北方人包餃子、壯家人包粽子一樣充滿年味。

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

祭祀活動幾乎貫穿客家人的整個春節(jié)。年二十七到年二十九，客家人要祭祀“伯公”“伯婆”和“村神”等守衛(wèi)一方的小神，通常由老年婦女或小媳婦帶著小孩去祭拜。大年三十，客家人要帶上“三牲”“齋盤”，去祖祠祭拜祖先?！叭敝饕侵肛i、雞和魚，“齋盤”分別盛有發(fā)粄（寓意“年年發(fā)財”）、蘋果（寓意“四季平安”）、柑橘（寓意“年年吉利”）、柚子（寓意“年年富有”）和財寶（代表祖公、祖婆衣，伯公、伯婆衣，觀音衣，冥幣，花邊等）。這是過年非常隆重的一項習俗，也是客家人雷打不動的儀式。此時，家族成員都會返回老祖屋，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.

在設(shè)置年夜飯席位時，桌上會多放幾副碗筷，以示請祖先回來一同過年。開席前，客家人要先給祖先篩酒，將酒灑地，然后放鞭炮，吃團年飯。大年初一凌晨，客家人會選擇吉時燃放爆竹，開門迎接財神并上香，取“開門大發(fā)”之意。正月初五，出年界，是灶神回家之日，客家人會把廳堂的祖宗畫像收起來，晚上擺放牲禮果品敬灶神。在春節(jié)期間，客家人的龍燈、獅隊還要到村中各廟宇和祠堂向神靈及祖先拜年。

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?；顒影ㄊ貧q、貼春聯(lián)、放孔明燈等。

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

團年飯后，客家人開始“守歲”。家家戶戶通宵達旦，燈火明亮，這被稱為“點歲火”；火籠加炭則被稱為“漚火桶”。

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，客家人還要貼春聯(lián)?？图胰瞬粌H會在大門口貼對聯(lián)，還會在大廳里貼大紅的“?！弊?，在豬牛圈里貼上“六畜興旺”的紅條幅，甚至會在用具上貼紅紙條。這被稱為“封歲”“上紅”。

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 六畜興旺 （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.）

客家人的春聯(lián)寫法很有特色。通常，大門兩旁是該姓氏祖先立的堂聯(lián)［以楹（yíng）聯(lián)的形式對家族堂號的補充說明，亦稱“祠聯(lián)”，主要用于家族祠堂］。大門上方的橫批是祖先立的堂號，說明家族的來源地。比如，于姓立“河南堂”，說明于姓祖先來自河南；饒姓立“平陽堂”，說明饒姓祖先來自山西平陽；李姓立“隴西堂”，說明李姓祖先來自甘肅隴西。堂聯(lián)一般八個字，如文姓堂聯(lián)為“四夷賢相，盡節(jié)勤王”：上聯(lián)說北宋山西介休人文彥博一生做了四朝宰相，長達50年；下聯(lián)指江西吉水文天祥，在南宋末年起兵勤王，為國盡忠，壯烈犧牲，讓子孫后代牢記祖先的榮光。

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，盡節(jié)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，客家人過新年有打獅之戲，花燈以游龍燈為多，各處張燈結(jié)彩，人來人往，熱鬧非凡。正月十五日元宵節(jié)，春節(jié)的最后一天，客家人還會放孔明燈祈福，祈禱新的一年順心如意。

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.

看似繁瑣的年俗體現(xiàn)了客家人與故土深深的羈絆。客家人在萬不得已之下，背井離鄉(xiāng)，對故土卻始終難以忘懷。于是，他們把對故土的思念寄托在對自身家族歷史傳統(tǒng)的保留上。千百年來，這種寄托逐漸演變成一種崇尚祖訓、銘記歷史、注重家教、愛惜名節(jié)的文化?！皩庂u祖宗田，不賣祖宗言”，傳統(tǒng)、語言、文化習俗的完整保存，是客家人對家鄉(xiāng)無盡的牽掛，這就是客家人特別注重儀式的原因。當然，隨著時間的推移，一些儀式已經(jīng)簡化，不同地區(qū)客家人的年俗也可能有所不同，但融于客家人血脈中的對故土的牽掛卻始終不變。

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.