腊八节是中国的一个传统节日，在农历十二月的第八天庆祝。“腊”是农历十二月的名字，八的中文发音为“ba”，因而英语译为“Laba”。
The Laba Festival is a traditional Chinese holiday celebrated on the eighth day of the twelfth month of the lunar Chinese calendar. "La" is the name given to the 12th lunar month and 8 is pronounced as "ba" in Chinese, which translated as "Laba".
腊八节最初目的是为了祭祀祖先和神灵，祈求来年丰收和吉祥。
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. Many people hoped for good luck as well for the coming year.
腊八节的一个传统就是喝腊八粥。一般来说，粥有八种配料，可以包括糯米、红豆、小米、高粱、豌豆、莲子和其他一些配料，如红枣、栗子肉、核桃肉、杏仁、花生等。
One of the festival tradition is eating Laba porridge. Generally, the porridge contains eight ingredients which can include glutinous rice, red beans, millet, Chinese sorghum, peas, dried lotus seeds and some other ingredients, such as dried dates, chestnut meat, walnut meat, almond, peanut, etc.
另一个习俗是腌制腊八蒜。从腊八节开始，大蒜在醋中浸泡了二十多天。然后，当中国春节到来时，大蒜、醋会和饺子一起放在桌子上。
Another custom is making Laba garlic. Garlic is soaked in vinegar for more than twenty days starting from Laba festival. Then when the Chinese New Year comes, the garlic and vinegar is used alongside dumplings on the table.
