Calendopaedia - The Chinese Calendar
Calendopaedia - The Chinese Calendar
The Chinese calendar is a
lunisolar calendar
based on calculations of the
positions of the Sun and Moon. Months of 29 or 30 days begin on days of
astronomical New Moons, with an intercalary month begin added every two or
three years. Since the calendar is based on the true positions of the Sun and
Moon, the accuracy of the calendar depends on the accuracy of the astronomical
theories and calculations.
Although the
Gregorian calendar
is used in the
Peoples' Republic of China for
administrative purposes, the traditional Chinese calendar is used for setting
traditional festivals and for timing agricultural activities in the countryside.
The Chinese calendar is also used by Chinese communities around the world.
The exact rule for determining the leap months are complicated. Chinese
New Year will normally be the New Moon closest to the "Beginning of
Spring". (The Beginning of Spring is halfway between Winter Solstice and
Spring Equinox and usually falls on February 4.) Chinese New Year is
normally the second New Moon after Winter Solstice. This can
fall anywhere between 21
st
January and 21
st
February.
Western cultures date the years from the birth of Jesus Christ (For example,
1994 means 1,994 years after the birth of Christ), and thus approach the
progression of years from a linear point of view. In traditional China, dating
methods were cyclical, meaning that the years repeat according to a pattern.
The repetition pattern for the calendar is 60 years. This is made up of two
cycles, known as the
Stems
and the
Branches
.
There are ten stems which are jia, yi, bing, ding, wu, ji, geng, xin, ren and
gui. These words do not have English equivalents. The branches number twelve
and they are (followed by the corresponding animal) zi (rat), chou (ox), yin (tiger),
mao (hare), chen (dragon), si (snake), wu (horse), wei (sheep), shen (monkey),
you (fowl), jia (dog) and hai (pig).
The 60 year cycle starts with both the Stem and Branch cycles set to one. The
next year both are incremented so now stand at two. This continues until year
eleven when the Stem cycle returns to one. In year thirteen the Branch cycle
restarts while the Stem increments to three. This sequence continues until both
cycles are back at one together. This will be year one of the next 60 year
cycle. The years are named after the animals of the Branch, so the names form a
twelve year cycle.
The 60 year cycle is shown in the tables below, together with the Gregorian year
numbers for the current cycle.
The 60 Year Cycle
No.
| Name in
Chinese
| Name in
English
| Year
AD
|
1
| jia-zi
| Rat
| 1984
|
2
| yi-chou
| Ox
| 1985
|
3
| bing-yin
| Tiger
| 1986
|
4
| ding-mao
| Hare
| 1987
|
5
| wu-chen
| Dragon
| 1988
|
6
| ji-si
| Snake
| 1989
|
7
| geng-wu
| Horse
| 1990
|
8
| xin-wei
| Sheep
| 1991
|
9
| ren-shen
| Monkey
| 1992
|
10
| gui-you
| Fowl
| 1993
|
11
| jia-xu
| Dog
| 1994
|
12
| yi-hai
| Pig
| 1995
|
13
| bing-zi
| Rat
| 1996
|
14
| ding-chou
| Ox
| 1997
|
15
| wu-yin
| Tiger
| 1998
|
16
| ji-mao
| Hare
| 1999
|
17
| geng-chen
| Dragon
| 2000
|
18
| xin-si
| Snake
| 2001
|
19
| ren-wu
| Horse
| 2002
|
20
| gui-wei
| Sheep
| 2003
|
|
No.
| Name in
Chinese
| Name in
English
| Year
AD
|
21
| jia-shen
| Monkey
| 2004
|
22
| yi-you
| Fowl
| 2005
|
23
| bing-xu
| Dog
| 2006
|
24
| ding-hai
| Pig
| 2007
|
25
| wu-zi
| Rat
| 2008
|
26
| ji-chou
| Ox
| 2009
|
27
| geng-yin
| Tiger
| 2010
|
28
| xin-mao
| Hare
| 2011
|
29
| ren-chen
| Dragon
| 2012
|
30
| gui-si
| Snake
| 2013
|
31
| jia-wu
| Horse
| 2014
|
32
| yi-wei
| Sheep
| 2015
|
33
| bing-shen
| Monkey
| 2016
|
34
| ding-you
| Fowl
| 2017
|
35
| wu-xu
| Dog
| 2018
|
36
| ji-hai
| Pig
| 2019
|
37
| geng-zi
| Rat
| 2020
|
38
| xin-chou
| Ox
| 2021
|
39
| ren-yin
| Tiger
| 2022
|
40
| gui-mao
| Hare
| 2023
|
|
No.
| Name in
Chinese
| Name in
English
| Year
AD
|
41
| jia-chen
| Dragon
| 2024
|
42
| yi-si
| Snake
| 2025
|
43
| bing-wu
| Horse
| 2026
|
44
| ding-wei
| Sheep
| 2027
|
45
| wu-shen
| Monkey
| 2028
|
46
| ji-you
| Fowl
| 2029
|
47
| geng-xu
| Dog
| 2030
|
48
| xin-hai
| Pig
| 2031
|
49
| ren-zi
| Rat
| 2032
|
50
| gui-chou
| Ox
| 2033
|
51
| jia-yin
| Tiger
| 2034
|
52
| yi-mao
| Hare
| 2035
|
53
| bing-chen
| Dragon
| 2036
|
54
| ding-si
| Snake
| 2037
|
55
| wu-wu
| Horse
| 2038
|
56
| ji-wei
| Sheep
| 2039
|
57
| geng-shen
| Monkey
| 2040
|
58
| xin-you
| Fowl
| 2041
|
59
| ren-xu
| Dog
| 2042
|
60
| gui-hai
| Pig
| 2043
|
|
The years are only counted within the cycles, there is no count of the number of
the cycle. Historical dates are defined by the name of the emperor who was
reigning at the time together with the sixty year cycle number. The current cycle
began on 2nd February 1984 AD.
Since the length of the lunar cycle is approximately 29.53 days, each month has
either 29 or 30 days. There are twelve months in a year except when an intercalary
month is added for adjustment. Months do not have names, only numbers.
The normal year consists of 353, 354 or 355 days depending on when the new moon
occurs. Leap years have 383, 384 or 385 days. The rules for governing when a new
year starts and when a leap year is needed are complicated. The calculations for
this are performed by the staff of the
Purple Mountain Observatory, Academia Sinica, Nanjing, China
.
Thanks to Helmer Aslaksen for help and guidance on the Chinese calendar.
Go to the
Home page