Continuing the Unique Winter Solstice Traditions of Penghu

In order to promote Penghu’s annual traditional winter solstice festival of making animal figurines with rice flour, Penghu County’s Cultural Affairs Bureau are raising DIY activities in all townships including, Makeng City, Huxi Township, Baisha Township, Xiyu Township, as well as on the outlying island in Wangan Township and Qimei Township. The people have been invited to come together and knead out animal figurines in this traditional festival. Rice for the figurines is first ground into a thick paste, known as ‘Weicui’ in Taiwanese, then has the moisture content squeezed out and finally cooked.

The resulting dough is then used to make the animal figurines that are offered to the ancestors and according to original traditions have six animals – chickens, ducks, pigs, dogs, cows and sheep. In recent years the number of animals have been extended to include the local fishing traditional and so many people will now also make fish and prawn figurines to give good luck to the fisherman going out to sea.

Continuing the Unique Winter Solstice Traditions of Penghu (by CJ Penghu Era)

URL: http://www.peopo.org/news/66758

(以下為中文對照)

雞母狗研習傳承澎湖冬至獨特風情(公民記者 澎湖代 報導)

照片

為推廣澎湖每到冬至都會用米做雞母狗的傳統文化，澎湖縣政府文化局於全縣五鄉一市舉辦ＤＩＹ活動，場次遍及馬公市、湖西鄉、白沙鄉、西嶼鄉，與離島的望安 鄉、七美鄉，邀請民眾一起來動手捏雞母狗。雞母狗是利用米，磨成米漿，台語稱之為「威粹」，然後將水分擠壓乾淨，接著捏碎入鍋翻炒，最後將這些米磨成的粉 揉捏成麵糰，捏成各種形狀。依照傳統，主要是做出六畜，雞、鴨、豬、狗、牛、羊，用來祭拜祖先，後來則衍生出魚、蝦等等造型，希望漁船出海滿載而歸。以前 生活不富裕，要擺出大魚大肉、三牲四果，是很大的經濟壓力，加上冬至後沒多久就過年了，於是先人就想出，用米製品取代大魚大肉來祭祀祖先，將錢留到過年再 使用。

為擴大服務範圍，自2010年4月起，PeoPo每周精選三則公民報導及相關活動與發展，翻譯成英文摘要，讓更多關心台灣公民新聞的朋友，瞭解台灣在地大小事。