As soon as summer comes, we always hear adults say, "The Dog Days are here, it's unbearably hot." So when exactly are the Dog Days? Why are they called this name? And what interesting customs are there?
一到夏天，总能听到大人们说“三伏天到了，热得受不了”。那三伏天到底是什么时候？为什么叫这个名字？又有哪些有趣的习俗呢？
The timing of the Dog Days is closely related to the twenty - four solar terms and the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches calendar. It usually falls between Minor Heat and End of Heat. Among them, the third Geng day after the Summer Solstice is the start of the First Dog Day, the fourth Geng day marks the beginning of the Middle Dog Day, and the first Geng day after the Beginning of Autumn is the start of the Last Dog Day.
三伏天的时间和二十四节气、干支纪日密切相关。它通常出现在小暑和处暑之间，其中，夏至后的第三个庚日是初伏的开始，第四个庚日进入中伏，立秋之后的第一个庚日则是末伏的起点。
The First Dog Day and the Last Dog Day are fixed at 10 days each. The Middle Dog Day is sometimes 10 days and sometimes 20 days. So the Dog Days are either 30 days or 40 days.
初伏和末伏固定为 10 天，中伏有时 10 天，有时 20 天，所以三伏天要么是 30 天，要么是 40 天。
The origin of the name "Dog Days" is related to the ancient theory of Yin - Yang and the Five Elements. In the concept of the ancients, "Fu" means that the Yin energy is forced to hide underground by the Yang energy. During the Dog Days, the Yang energy is the strongest, and the Yin energy is forced to hide, so the weather becomes extremely hot.
“三伏天” 这个名字的由来，和古代的阴阳五行学说有关。在古人的观念里，“伏” 表示阴气受阳气所迫藏伏在地下。三伏天期间，阳气最为旺盛，阴气被迫潜伏，天气也就热到了极致。
The origin of the English term "The Dog Days" comes from Western ancient astronomy and mythology: Ancient Romans believed that when Sirius (also known as the "Dog Star") rises at the same time as the sun in summer, it releases extra heat, causing extremely hot weather.
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英文“The Dog Days” 的由来，源自西方古代天文学和神话：古罗马人认为，夏季天狼星（Sirius，又称 “狗星”）与太阳同时升起时，会释放额外的热量，导致天气异常炎热。
Therefore, "Dog Days" is used to refer to "the hottest and most humid period of the year." The term literally translates as "Dog Days," but it actually has nothing to do with dogs; instead, it comes from the name of the "Dog Star."
因此用Dog Days 指代 “一年中最热、最潮湿的时期”，原词直译为 “狗日”，实际与 “狗” 无关，而是源于 “狗星” 的名字。
三伏天习俗
北方
In terms of food customs, in the north, the saying "dumplings on the First Dog Day, noodles on the Middle Dog Day, and pancakes with fried eggs on the Last Dog Day" is popular. Eating dumplings on the First Dog Day is because dumplings are plump in shape, like ingots. And pasta is easy to digest. During the Dog Days, people sweat a lot and consume a lot of physical strength. Eating dumplings can not only replenish physical strength but also symbolize full of good fortune.
在饮食习俗上，北方流行 “头伏饺子二伏面，三伏烙饼摊鸡蛋”。头伏吃饺子，是因为饺子外形饱满，像元宝，而且面食容易消化，三伏天出汗多，体力消耗大，吃饺子既能补充体力，又寓意福气满满。
三伏天习俗
南方
In the south, there is a custom of eating fairy grass and drinking herbal tea. The grass jelly made from fairy grass has a smooth taste, and herbal tea can clear heat and relieve summer heat. They are both excellent products for cooling off.
南方则有吃仙草、喝凉茶的习惯，仙草做成的烧仙草口感爽滑，凉茶清热解暑，都是消暑的佳品。
There is also the custom of "Sunning Fu" during the Dog Days. In addition, there is also the folk tradition of "applying Dog Day patches", which is a method of "treating winter diseases in summer" in traditional Chinese medicine.
三伏天还有“晒伏” 的习俗。此外，民间还有 “贴三伏贴” 的传统，这是中医 “冬病夏治” 的一种方法。
重点短语
1. be related to 与……相关
2. fall between 介于……之间
3. in terms of 在……方面
4. be popular 流行
5. be easy to digest 容易消化
6. cool off 消暑
7. take out 拿出
8. be helpful for 对……有帮助
来源：维克多英语返回搜狐，查看更多