Chinese calendar, a lunisolar calendar, is formed on the movement of the moon and the sun. It is also called the Lunar calendar, Yin calendar, Xia calendar or the old Chinese calendar. Each Chinese calendar year has a zodiac sign, 12 or 13 months and each month has 29 or 30 days. If there are 12 months, there will be 354 or 355 days in a year; if 13 months, there will be 383 or 384 days. Although China has adopted the Gregorian calendar for official and business occasions, the traditional Chinese calendar is widely used to define 24 solar terms, traditional holidays and helps to choose a lucky day before important activities such as wedding, moving into a new house. How Does the Chinese Lunar Calendar Work? Each time the moon moves into a line with the earth and the sun, a new month begins and this is called 'Chu Yi' or 'Shuo Ri', meaning the first day of a lunar month. When the full moon appears, it is the middle of the month. The time of a full moon circle is a little more than 29 days, so one month has 29 days or 30 days. What are the Uses of Chinese Calendar？ Traditional Chinese Festivals: All traditional Chinese festivals are decided according to the lunar calendar. For example, Spring Festival is the first day of a lunar year, Dragon Boat Festival is on May 5th and Mid-Autumn Festival is on August 15th in lunar calendar. Chinese Zodiac: A zodiac year is from the first day to the last day of a lunar year. Every lunar year has a representative zodiac. And it has a 12-year cycle with the order as Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig. 24 Solar Terms: After observing the sun’s movement, ancients have found the longest day and the shortest day of a year, respectively Summer Solstice and Winter Solstice. Using these two annual events, a Chinese calendar year was divided into 24 equal parts, each forming a solar term. 24 solar terms show people’s understanding of four seasons, climate and the agriculture. For instance, the Beginning of Spring (Li Chun) symbolizes the coming of spring; Grain in Beard (Mang Zhong) means it is time to harvest wheat and Greater Cold (Da Han) signifies the coldest time of a year. Choose a Lucky Date: In daily life, Chinese people usually choose a lucky day in Chinese calendar before important activities such as marriage proposal, wedding and traveling. Over 4,000 Years’ History of Chinese Lunar Calendar The lunar calendar has a very long history going back to the Xia (21st century BC - 16th century BC) and Shang Dynasty (16th century BC - 11th century BC). Roughly speaking, it has existed for more than 4,000 years. It is based on a unique combination of astronomy and geography through observation and exploration. Following its creation in the Xia Dynasty, succeeding reigns continued to use the calendar but modified it from time to time. The Han Dynasty (202 BC - 220 AD) rulers instituted the Taichu calendar, while during Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 AD) the Huangji calendar was introduced and it was adopted by Japan, Korea and Vietnam. Differences between Chinese Calendar and Gregorian Calendar Chinese calendar is lunisolar calendar which is calculated according to the movement of the moon and the sun. Gregorian calendar is calculated by the movement of sun; when the earth goes around the sun for one circle, it is one year. Generally speaking, lunar calendar is 20 – 50 days later than Gregorian calendar. # Our teachers # More than 10 years teaching experience Master Degree Certificate for teaching chinese as a foreign language   # About us # Founded in 2007 Chinese test and training center 200+ Chinese teachers 5000+ students  # Contact us# Name:fiona Phone number:021-52287809,13918358891 E-mail:info@mandarinmorning.com www.mandarinmorning.com If you are interested to join Mandarin Morning school or want more details about our services, scan the following QR code. ☟   Mandarin Morning Chinese test center attached to Confucius institute headquarters Authorized Test Center and Training Center for International Chinese Language Teacher Certificater 10 years+ ，200 teachers ，more 10000 students，200+companies  |
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