By Ping Zhang

Did you wake to the first snow outside your window? The first snow of this winter officially hit Edinburgh on 3rd December.

Did you know that Chinese people probably like snow more than people from any other country in the world? There are many Chinese cultures that relate to snow. With its white colour and cold, translucent texture, snow has long been associated with white jade in China. As well as being one of the country’s favourite ornaments, people also believe that it represents purity, dignity, and royalty. Chinese people particularly like the first snow of each year as the first snow always brings good luck to agriculture. A well-known Chinese idiom called “瑞雪兆丰年ruì xuě zhào fēng nián” means a fall of seasonable snow gives promise to a fruitful year. Two of the 24 Chinese solar terms are related to snow, these are Light Snow and Great Snow. Light snow begins this year on 22nd November and ends on 6th December. Great Snow begins this year on 7th December and ends on 20th December. During Great Snow, the snow becomes heavy and begins to accumulate on the ground.