小孩儿满月与抓周

　　在中国，小孩儿的满月酒和抓周仪式独具特色。在孩子的成长过程中，这两个仪式有里程碑式的纪念意义。

　　小孩儿出生满一个月的那天，孩子的家人一般要招呼亲朋挚友，邀请他们一起来庆祝孩子满月。按照中国的传统，这一天，家里会充满了喜庆和节日的氛围，满月就要办得热热闹闹才行。不过最近这些年，这个习俗在城市尤其是年轻夫妇中有逐渐被淡化的趋势。但是，小孩儿满月对于每个家庭来说，仍然是一个非常值得纪念的高兴的日子。

　　“抓周儿”中的“周”是小孩儿满一周岁的意思。关于“抓周儿”，最早记载于北齐。“抓周儿”也就是在小孩儿满周岁那天，吃中午的长寿面之前，摆上经书、笔、墨、纸、砚、算盘、钱币、账册、首饰、花朵、胭脂、吃食、玩具等，如果是女孩儿则要加摆铲子、勺子（炊具）、剪子、尺子（缝纫用具）、绣线、花样子（刺绣用具），再由大人将小孩抱来，令其端坐，父母及他人不给予任何的引导或暗示，任孩子随意挑选，看他先抓什么，后抓什么，并以此为依据来预测孩子可能存在的志趣和将从事的职业以及前途。

　　One-Month-Old Feast and One-Year-Old Catch (zhuazhou) of babies

　　In China, One-Month-Old Feast and One-Year-Old Catch of a baby are of unique Chinese characteristics. These two ceremonies are milestone-like significance in the growing process of a baby.

　　On the day when a baby is a month old, the family of the baby will invite their friends and relatives to a ceremony to celebrate the occasion. In a traditional One-Month-Old Ceremony, there will be a rejoicing and?festive atmosphere in the family and the feast is supposed to be lively and joyful. However, in recent years this custom has been gradually abandoned among young people. Nevertheless, One-Month-Old Feast still remains a memorable and happy moment for every family.

　　Zhou in the word zhuazhou means "a baby is one year old". The earliest historical record about zhuazhou appeared during the Dynasty of Northern Qi. On the day when a baby is a year old , the family?of the baby will lay out sutras, brush pens, ink sticks, paper, ink slabs, abacus, copper coins, account books, jewelries, flowers, rouges, foods, toys, etc. For girls, scoops, scissors, rulers, thread, scissor-cut will be added. The parents then put the baby in front of these articles and make it sit up. Nobody will give and instruction or cue to the baby so that it is left free to choose by itself. Watching the baby catch the articles it likes, the family can then make predictions about its potential interests, future career and development.