“腊八粥”的英文是porridge还是congee？
“腊八，腊八，冻掉下巴”，这句俗语大家可能都听说过。今天是农历腊月初八，被认为是一年中最冷的一天，也是我们中国特有的一个传统节日——腊八节。
今天Yee君就跟大家分享一些关于腊八的英文小知识。
（图源：视觉中国）
There is an old saying: Don't make your mouth water, children, because the Laba Festival and the Spring Festival are just around the corner.
俗话说：“小孩小孩你别馋，过了腊八就是年。”
Laba is celebrated on the eighth day of the last lunar month, referring to the traditional start of celebrations for the Chinese New Year. "La" in Chinese means the 12th lunar month, and "ba" means eight.
腊八节是农历12月初八，这一天象征着庆祝中国传统新春佳节的开始。“腊”代表一年中农历最后一个月，而“八”代表第八天。
“腊八”一般可以直接用拼音“laba”来表示，后面进一步说明这一天是农历十二月初八（the eighth day of the 12th lunar month）即可。
There are several legends about the origin of this festival and we could not tell which one is true. But what we know today is that this festival started as a sacrificial offering to ancestors. It was also a time for the ancient Chinese to pray to heaven and earth that there would be a bountiful harvest.
关于腊八起源的传说有很多，已经难辨真假。我们可以确定的是，这个节日起初是为了祭祀祖先、祈求丰收以及为即将来到的一年祈福。
The two most important traditions associated with Laba Festival are: eating Laba rice porridge, and praying for peace and good health in the coming year.
腊八节这天，两个最重要的传统就是喝腊八粥和祈福新年平安了。
（图源：视觉中国）
腊八节喝腊八粥是中国传统习俗，腊八粥不仅好喝，对身体也十分有益。
腊八粥可以翻译成Làbā congee[ˈkɒndʒiː] 或者Làbā rice porridge。
“拼音+单词”的折中策略兼具了文化性和解释性。
不过congee/porridge并不是随意的选择。
英文里三个常见的“粥”分别是porridge, congee和gruel。含义区别细微：
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porridge在陆谷孙主编的《英汉大词典》中的释义是：（谷物或豆类煮成的）粥，糊。其凭借较早的使用（1643年）和较广的使用面拔得头筹，甚至成为了另外两个“粥”的解释用词。
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congee: 例如《韦氏大学词典》给congee的英语释义：porridge made from rice （大米或小米）粥，稀饭。
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gruel: a thin porridge 稀粥（常用燕麦和牛奶或清水煮成，主要作为病人食物）
权威参考书一般反映的是过去的情况，要了解比出版年份更新近的用法可以参考网络论坛。Quora上多数答案与词典里的区别不大：
Porridge is a dish of any boiled grain, gruel is a very thin porridge, and congee is a specific type of porridge made using rice.
porridge可以是任何谷物煮的粥，gruel是非常稀的粥，而congee就是大米煮的粥。
Làbā congee contains glutinous rice, red beans, millet, Chinese sorghum, peas, dried lotus seeds, and some other ingredients, such as dried dates, chestnut, walnut, almond, peanut, etc.
腊八粥包括糯米、红豆、小米、高粱米、青豆、莲子、干枣、栗子、核桃、杏仁等食材。
Since the earliest beginning of the Song Dynasty, this congee has been popular in the royal court, local authorities, temples and common families.
最早开始于宋代，每逢腊八这一天，不论是朝廷、官府、寺院还是黎民百姓家都要做腊八粥。
The Laba congee is called "Union Food" in Henan Province, which is a food custom in memory of China's national hero Yue Fei.
在河南，腊八粥又称"大家饭"，是纪念民族英雄岳飞的一种节日食俗。
（图源：视觉中国）
Another custom is the soaking of Laba garlic. The practice is very simple. Put the stripped garlic cloves into a sealed jar, and then pour vinegar into it.
腊八节的另一传统是腌制腊八蒜。做法很简单，将剥好的蒜瓣放在一个可以密封的罐子里，然后再倒入醋。
Gradually, the color of those garlic cloves will turn green. By the time of the Spring Festival, you can taste the garlic while eating dumplings.
慢慢地，泡在醋中的蒜就会变绿。这样，到春节的时候，就可以在餐桌上与饺子同食了。
