Solar term
(Twenty-four) solar terms | |||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Traditional Chinese | ( | ||||||||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | ( | ||||||||||||||||||
|
Term | Longitude | Dates |
---|---|---|
Lichun | 315° | 4–5 February |
Yushui | 330° | 18–19 February |
Jingzhe | 345° | 5–6 March |
Chunfen | 0° | 20–21 March |
Qingming | 15° | 4–5 April |
Guyu | 30° | 20–21 April |
Lixia | 45° | 5–6 May |
Xiaoman | 60° | 21–22 May |
Mangzhong | 75° | 5–6 June |
Xiazhi | 90° | 21–22 June |
Xiaoshu | 105° | 7–8 July |
Dashu | 120° | 22–23 July |
Liqiu | 135° | 7–8 August |
Chushu | 150° | 23–24 August |
Bailu | 165° | 7–8 September |
Qiufen | 180° | 23–24 September |
Hanlu | 195° | 8–9 October |
Shuangjiang | 210° | 23–24 October |
Lidong | 225° | 7–8 November |
Xiaoxue | 240° | 22–23 November |
Daxue | 255° | 7–8 December |
Dongzhi | 270° | 21–22 December |
Xiaohan | 285° | 5–6 January |
Dahan | 300° | 20–21 January |
A solar term (or jieqi, simplified Chinese: 节气; traditional Chinese:
According to the Book of Documents, the first determined term was Dongzhi (Winter Solstice) by Dan, the Duke of Zhou, while he was trying to locate the geological center of the Western Zhou dynasty, by measuring the length of the sun's shadow on an ancient type of sundial called tǔguī (
Because the Sun's speed along the ecliptic varies depending on the Earth-Sun distance, the number of days that it takes the Sun to travel between each pair of solar terms varies slightly throughout the year, but it is always between 15 and 16 days. Each solar term is divided into three pentads (
Solar terms originated in China, then spread to Korea, Vietnam, and Japan, countries in the East Asian cultural sphere. Although each term was named based on the seasonal changes of climate in the North China Plain, peoples living in the different climates still use it without changes.[6] This is exhibited by the fact that traditional Chinese characters for most of the solar terms are identical.
On December 1, 2016, the solar terms were listed by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage.[7]
Numbering
[edit]The even solar terms (marked with "Z", for Chinese:
Multilingual list
[edit]Sun's ecliptic longitude |
Chinese name[9] |
Korean name[10] | Vietnamese name |
Japanese name |
Ryukyuan (Okinawan) name |
English name (Hong Kong Observatory)[11] |
English name (Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics)[12] |
Gregorian Date[13] (± 1 day) |
Reference for Month Intercalating |
Chinese zodiac & Earthly Branch of Month | Corresponding Western astrological sign |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
315° | lìchūn |
ipchun/ripchun |
Lập xuân ( |
risshun |
risshun |
Spring commences | Beginning of Spring | Feb 4 | 1st month initial | Tiger ( Yín ( |
Aquarius |
330° | yǔshuǐ[14] |
usu |
Vũ thủy ( |
usui |
ushii |
Rain water | Rain Water | Feb 19 | 1st month midpoint | Pisces | |
345° | jīngzhé[15] |
gyeongchip |
Kinh trập ( |
keichitsu |
|
Insects waken | Awakening of Insects | Mar 6 | 2nd month initial | Rabbit ( Mǎo ( | |
0° | chūnfēn |
chunbun |
Xuân phân ( |
shunbun |
sunbun |
Vernal equinox | Spring Equinox | Mar 21 | 2nd month midpoint | Aries | |
15° | qīngmíng[16] |
cheongmyeong |
Thanh minh ( |
seimei |
shiimii |
Bright and clear | Pure Brightness | Apr 5 | 3rd month initial | Dragon ( Chén ( | |
30° | gǔyǔ[17] |
gogu |
Cốc vũ ( |
kokuu |
kukuu |
Corn rain | Grain Rain | Apr 20 | 3rd month midpoint | Taurus | |
45° | lìxià |
ipha/ripha |
Lập hạ ( |
rikka |
rikkaa |
Summer commences | Beginning of Summer | May 6 | 4th month initial | Snake ( Sì ( | |
60° | xiǎomǎn |
soman |
Tiểu mãn ( |
shōman |
suuman |
Corn forms | Grain Buds | May 21 | 4th month midpoint | Gemini | |
75° | mángzhòng |
mangjong |
Mang chủng ( |
bōshu |
boosuu |
Corn on ear | Grain in Ear | Jun 6 | 5th month initial | Horse ( Wǔ ( | |
90° | xiàzhì |
haji |
Hạ chí ( |
geshi |
kaachii |
Summer solstice | Summer Solstice | Jun 21 | 5th month midpoint | Cancer | |
105° | xiǎoshǔ |
soseo |
Tiểu thử ( |
shōsho |
kuu'achisa |
Moderate heat | Minor Heat | Jul 7 | 6th month initial | Goat ( Wèi ( | |
120° | dàshǔ |
daeseo |
Đại thử ( |
taisho |
uu'achisa |
Great heat | Major heat | Jul 23 | 6th month midpoint | Leo | |
135° | lìqiū |
ipchu/ripchu |
Lập thu ( |
risshū |
rissuu |
Autumn commences | Beginning of Autumn | Aug 8 | 7th month initial | Monkey (猴) Shēn ( | |
150° | chǔshǔ |
cheoseo |
Xử thử ( |
shosho |
tukuru'achisa |
End of heat | End of Heat | Aug 23 | 7th month midpoint | Virgo | |
165° | báilù |
baengno |
Bạch lộ ( |
hakuro |
fakuruu |
White dew | White Dew | Sep 8 | 8th month initial | Rooster (雞) Yǒu ( | |
180° | qiūfēn |
chubun |
Thu phân ( |
shūbun |
suubun |
Autumnal equinox | Autumn Equinox | Sep 23 | 8th month midpoint | Libra | |
195° | hánlù |
hallo |
Hàn lộ ( |
kanro |
kanruu |
Cold dew | Cold Dew | Oct 8 | 9th month initial | Dog ( Xū ( | |
210° | shuāngjiàng |
sanggang |
Sương giáng ( |
sōkō |
shimukudari |
Frost | Frost's Descent | Oct 23 | 9th month midpoint | Scorpio | |
225° | lìdōng |
ipdong/ripdong |
Lập đông ( |
rittō |
rittuu |
Winter commences | Beginning of Winter | Nov 7 | 10th month initial | Pig (豬) Hài ( | |
240° | xiǎoxuě |
soseol |
Tiểu tuyết ( |
shōsetsu |
kuuyuchi |
Light snow | Minor Snow | Nov 22 | 10th month midpoint | Sagittarius | |
255° | dàxuě |
daeseol |
Đại tuyết ( |
taisetsu |
uuyuchi |
Heavy snow | Major Snow | Dec 7 | 11th month initial | Rat ( Zǐ ( | |
270° | dōngzhì |
dongji |
Đông chí ( |
tōji |
tunjii |
Winter solstice | Winter Solstice | Dec 22 | 11th month midpoint | Capricorn | |
285° | xiǎohán |
sohan |
Tiểu hàn ( |
shōkan |
suukan |
Moderate cold | Minor Cold | Jan 6 | 12th month initial | Ox ( Chǒu ( | |
300° | dàhán |
daehan |
Đại hàn ( |
daikan |
deekan |
Severe cold | Major Cold | Jan 20 | 12th month midpoint | Aquarius |
Chinese mnemonic song
[edit]The "Song of Solar Terms" (simplified Chinese: 节气
|
|
chūn yǔ jīng chūn qīng gǔ tiān, |
The first four lines provides a concise version of the names of the 24 jieqi. The last four lines provide some rules of thumb about the Gregorian dates of jieqi, namely:
- Two jieqi per month;
- Gregorian dates are off by one or two days at most;
- In the first half of the year, jieqi happens around the 6th and 21st day of each (Gregorian) month;
- In the second half of the year, jieqi happens around the 8th and 23rd day of each (Gregorian) month.
Determination
[edit]The modern definition using ecliptic longitudes, introduced by the Shixian calendar, is known as
The older method is known as
Regional note
[edit]In Japan, the term Setsubun (
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "24 Chinese Feasts (Jiéqì, 节气), equivalent to the 24 Chinese Solar Terms". Chinese calendar. asia-home.com.
- ^ Until 1644 (Chinese Empire and its tributary states) or 1844 (Japan) a period of time of the solar year itself had been equally divided instead of the spatial zodiac.
- ^ When a lunar month's end does not reach a midpoint of the solar terms, it is regarded as the last month's intercalary one instead of the true "next" month. It is called
歲 中 閏月 法 lit. "midpoint intercalating system". - ^ Book of Documents.
- ^ Ban, Gu. Book of Han.
- ^ なぜずれる?
二 十 四 節気 と季 節 感 (Why off-point? -solar terms and our real feeling of the seasons) Maritime Japan, for example, comparing the climate of Taiyuan with that of Tokyo and Kyoto: on Japanese islands differences in seasonal gap lengths are the main problem. In subtropical or tropical regions including southern China climate difference is more serious. - ^ "UNESCO – The Twenty-Four Solar Terms, knowledge in China of time and practices developed through observation of the sun's annual motion". ich.unesco.org. Retrieved 9 March 2021.
- ^ Aslaksen, Helmer. "When is Chinese New Year?" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 March 2009. Retrieved 27 July 2019.
- ^ Simplified Chinese characters are shown in parentheses if they differ from the Traditional Chinese characters.
- ^ Hangul are shown in parentheses. For Hangul and romanisation, where the pronunciation differs between South Korea and North Korea, the South Korean pronunciation is given first before the slash, followed by the North Korean pronunciation.
- ^ "The 24 Solar Terms". Hong Kong Observatory.
- ^ "
二 十 四节气上了北京冬奥开幕式,牛 !". - ^ Date can vary within a ±1 day range.
- ^ the Yushui and Jingzhe have been exchanged by Liu Xin in Han dynasty.
- ^ the Jingzhe and Yushui have been exchanged by Liu Xin in Han dynasty.
- ^ the Qingming and Guyu have been exchanged by Liu Xin in Han dynasty.
- ^ the Guyu and Qingming have been exchanged by Liu Xin in Han dynasty.
- ^ "Determination of Equinox and Solstice Dates". farside.ph.utexas.edu.