“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。

The 12th lunar month in Chinese is called la yue, so the eighth day of this lunar month is la yue chu ba, or laba. 

祭祀、喝腊八粥、腌腊八蒜是腊八的三大习俗。

Three major customs on Laba are ancestor worship, eating Laba rice porridge and making Laba garlic.

一岁之末为“腊”。在我国上古时期，人们把冬季祭祀神灵、祖先称为“大腊”，举行冬祀日子被称为“腊日”。

慢慢的每年农历腊月初八作为“腊日”逐渐被确定下来，成为祈求丰收和吉祥的传统节日。

The worship of ancestors, called "腊" in Chinese, and the sacrifice for the gods, called "蜡", both frequently took place in the 12th month, which led to the traditional name of the month: la yue. And the day of sacrifice is called la ri.

最为讲究的会在白米中掺入红枣、莲子、核桃、栗子、杏仁、松仁、桂圆、榛子、葡萄、白果、菱角、青丝、玫瑰、红豆、花生等不下二十种食物。

The main ingredients of the Laba porridge are rice and sticky rice; people also add sugar, red dates, lotus seeds, walnuts, chestnuts, almonds, longans, hazelnuts, raisins, red beans, peanuts, water caltrops, roseleaf and other various materials to make the porridge special.

中国华北大部分地区在腊月初八这天有用醋泡蒜的习俗，叫“腊八蒜”（Laba garlic）。