秋分是中国传统二十四节气（the 24 traditional Chinese solar terms）中的第十六个节气。“秋分”的英文表达为Autumn Equinox，它有以下两个含义：
平分秋季：秋分是秋季的中点，将秋天一分为二。 平分昼夜：这天太阳几乎直射地球赤道，各地昼夜等长。
After that day, the location of direct sunlight moves to the south, making days shorter and nights longer in the northern hemisphere.
秋分过后，太阳直射点向南移动，北半球白昼时间变短，夜晚时间变长。
中国典籍《春秋繁露》记载：“秋分者，阴阳相半也，故昼夜均而寒暑平。”
“It is on the Autumn Equinox day that the Yin and Yang are in a balance of power. Thus the day and night are of equal length, and so are the cold and hot weather.”
秋分的到来，预示着这一年已脱离夏的炎热，正式进入了秋季。秋分有哪些特点和习俗呢？一起看看吧。
自秋分起，中国大部分地区已经进入了凉爽的秋季。此时田里的庄稼已长得丰腴饱满，路边的梧桐叶子被季节染成一片暖黄。然而，与热情的颜色共生的，是淅淅沥沥一场凉过一场的秋雨。
When the cold air southward meets the declining warm and wet air, precipitation is the result. The temperature also drops frequently.
当南下的冷空气与不断衰退的暖湿空气相遇时，就产生了降雨，温度也频频下降。
秋天的蟹，膏满黄肥，民间素有“秋风起，蟹脚痒”一说。《红楼梦》中的一场“螃蟹宴”中，曹雪芹更是借黛玉之口咏出“螯封嫩玉双双满，壳凸红脂块块香”的美句，不知馋得多少人深夜里吞口水。
In this season, crabs are delicious. Eating crabs helps nourish the marrow and clear the heat inside the body.
这个时节的蟹是非常肥美的。吃蟹可益阴补髓，清热解毒。
在中国南方，秋分“吃秋菜”也是广受欢迎的习俗。秋菜是一种野苋菜。每到秋分这天，村民们都会去野外采摘秋菜。田野中的秋菜青翠纤细，可与鱼一起熬成汤。
Qiucai is taken back and made into soup with fish, named “Qiutang” （autumn soup）. There is a verse about the soup: “Drink the soup to clear the liver and intestines, thus the whole family will be safe and healthy.”
采摘的秋菜和鱼一起熬成汤，这种汤被叫做“秋汤”。有句关于秋汤的顺口溜：“秋汤灌脏，洗涤肝肠，阖家老少，平安健康。”
“桂树婆娑影，天香满世闻。” 秋分正是闻桂香、赏桂花的好时节。
At this time, it is hot in the day and cool in the night in South China, so people have to wear light clothing when it is hot, and put on more clothes when it is getting cooler. This period is named as “Guihuazheng” in Chinese, which means osmanthus mugginess.
秋分时节，中国南方昼暖夜凉，所以人们白天穿单衣，温度变凉时就要加衣服。这段时期在汉语中被叫做“桂花蒸”，表示桂花绽放之时出现的闷热天气。
古人云：“寒花开已尽，菊蕊独盈枝。”秋风萧瑟，万花憔悴失色，此时盛放的菊花一簇簇站在天地间，耀眼得让人敬佩。
It is also a good season to enjoy chrysanthemums in full blossom around Autumn Equinox.
秋分前后也是欣赏菊花的佳期。
秋分这天，世界各地成千上万的人在参与“竖蛋”游戏。而相传这一习俗，起源于中国。
关于“竖蛋”的原理，有两种不同的说法：一种说法是，春秋分时期，地球地轴与地球绕太阳公转的轨道平面正好处于一种力的相对平衡状态，有利于“竖蛋”；另外一种观点则表明，“竖蛋”的成功率与日期无关，关键需要使蛋的重心下移。
The trick is holding the egg until the yolk sinks as much as possible. For this, you‘re better off choosing an egg of about 4 or 5 days old, whose yolk is easier to sink down.
“竖蛋”的诀窍是握住鸡蛋，使其蛋黄尽可能下沉。为了达成这个条件，最好选择生出来4-5天的鸡蛋，蛋黄更易沉降。
据史料记载，自周代起，我国便有“春祭日，秋祭月”的传统。“中秋节”的诸多仪式便是承袭了秋分祭月的习俗而来。
Since it is not a fixed day in lunar August, there might be no full moon on the Autumn Equinox. During the festival, if there was no moon to make sacrifices to, it would spoil the fun. Thus, the day was changed to the Mid-Autumn Day.
农历八月的“祭月节”并不是固定的，秋分日并不一定会有满月。如果祭月期间无月可祭，就大煞风景了。因此，祭月节便由秋分改成了中秋节。
转自|中国日报双语新闻
校对|刘久龙 张顺坤 苗宸熙
审核|李佳 王潇 潘辉
