Timekeeping is an important part of every culture, and has been for centuries. But how we keep track of time hasn’t been consistent for very long. Over the course of human history, there have been dozens of calendars. One of the oldest and most famous is the Chinese lunar calendar.
What Is the Chinese Lunar Calendar?
Although it is called a lunar calendar, the Chinese calendar is a lunisolar calendar. That means it combines elements of a lunar calendar (which follows the phases of the moon) with a solar calendar (which follows the position of the sun).
The Chinese calendar is lunar because its 12 months align with the phases of the moon. However, the length of the moon’s phases don’t quite line up with the time it takes the earth to make its way around the sun—which takes approximately 365 days. A pure lunar calendar has 354. When going by a lunar calendar, the months and seasons would drift apart within a few years, coming out of sync.
That’s where the "solar" part of lunisolar comes in. To adjust for the solar year, an intercalary month is added to the calendar about every 3 years to account for the difference.
In the Chinese calendar, each month is numbered and assigned to one of the animals on the Chinese Zodiac.
What Is the Chinese Zodiac?
The Chinese Zodiac refers to a cycle of 12 animals: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig. Although people most commonly think of the zodiac being only a yearly cycle of 12 animals, the zodiac animals are assigned months, days, and even hours on the Chinese lunar calendar as well.
It is traditionally believed that a people’s zodiac year determines parts of their life, including their personality and their compatibility with others.
The Chinese Zodiac shares some surface-level similarities with the Western Zodiac; however, the 2 are very distinct. Although both are called Zodiacs—a term which comes from the Latin word for “animal cycle”—only the Chinese Zodiac actually has animals for each of its 12 segments. Additionally, the Western Zodiac is associated with constellations, while the Chinese Zodiac is not.
History of the Chinese Calendar
Some of the earliest Chinese calendars have been found on oracle bones—carved ox bones or turtle shells that were used by fortune tellers. These bones show that as early as the Shang dynasty (1600–1046 B.C.), the Chinese were using solar calendars.
An accurate calendar was an important part of ancient Chinese culture, because it was a sign that the emperor was in harmony with heaven. Because of this, calendars were considered sacred and were created and maintained by the government.
The first truly lunisolar calendar was introduced by the Zhou dynasty between 771 B.C. and 476 B.C. Once introduced, it evolved and was adjusted throughout multiple eras and dynasties. During the warring states period, multiple competing lunar calendars were created by groups vying for control.
When China was unified under the Qin dynasty, a new calendar was introduced. The Ming and Han dynasties made a few tweaks by introducing 24 solar terms and created the Tàichū calendar.
Later dynasties added solstices, used new methods to determine the length of a solar month, and discovered the true length of the solar year.
In the early 20th century, the Chinese calendar fell out of favor as western influence spread throughout China. The last calendar of the Qing dynasty was published in 1908, and on January 1, 1912, China began using the western Gregorian calendar.
Differences Between the Gregorian and Chinese Calendar
Today’s near-universally adopted calendar is called the Gregorian calendar, and it’s relatively new, all things considered. In fact, the Gregorian calendar has only been in use since 1582. Some countries have only started using it as recently as 2016!
On the Gregorian calendar, a week is 7 days. But on the Chinese lunar calendar, a week, known as xún, is 9 or 10 days depending on if the month has 29 or 30 days. The Chinese Lunar calendar is also split into 24 solar terms (2 per month) that reflect changes in the environment and daily life.
Because the Chinese calendar is primarily a lunar calendar, dates on the Chinese calendar do not line up exactly with dates on the Gregorian calendar. This means that Chinese holidays that fall on the same date annually on the Chinese calendar do not fall on the same dates annually on the Gregorian calendar.
For example, the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival takes place on the 15th day of the 8th month on the Chinese lunar calendar. On the Gregorian calendar, this translates to sometime in mid-September to early October, depending on the year.
Is the Chinese Calendar Still Used Today?
Yes! Although the Chinese government has adopted the Gregorian calendar for official, public, and day-to-day use, the Chinese lunar calendar is still used for traditional holidays such as Chinese New Year and the Lantern festival. It is also used in astrology to choose dates for special events.
The Chinese Calendar in Chinese records
China has the longest continuous written history of any country in the world—over 3,500 years of documentation. With so much information chronicled, knowing how Chinese calendar dates are used in Chinese records, or dang’an, couldn’t be more important!
Lunar Calendar Dates in Genealogical Records
China’s adoption of the Gregorian calendar was slow; the public resisted its initial adoption in 1912, and it wasn’t until 1928 that the government fully switched over. Older texts, including genealogical texts like jiapu, will use the Chinese lunar calendar in its dates until at least 1912—and perhaps for a few years beyond!
How to Read Chinese Lunar Calendar Dates
How you’ll read a Chinese lunar calendar date changes depending on how old the document you’re reading is. Here are the basics for a more ancient Chinese text:
- Dates will be read in the following order: Dynasty, emperor, era name, year, month, day. Although not every document will include every one of these items, the pieces included will be in that order.
- Years are given in a 60-year cycle that is written with 2 characters. The first of these 2 characters has a 10-character sequence that advances each year; the second has 12.
- The month and date are often written in the format (month)月 (day)日; however, the 60-year cycle that affects how years are written can also affect how months are written.
How to Convert Chinese Calendar Dates to Gregorian Dates
With the Chinese lunar calendar and the Gregorian calendar not being the same, it can be difficult to know how to translate dates from one to the other. Converting these dates involves astronomical calculations of the moon’s cycles, the sun’s longitude, and more. Luckily, there are several guides online that can help you convert the dates.
Explore Chinese Records
Now that you know a bit more about the Chinese lunar calendar, consider exploring Chinese records to learn more about Chinese ancestry. Chinese records such as jiapu are a wealth of information and can help you put your new knowledge to the test! Chinese families record their ancestry in jiapu, starting with a first ancestor (an early ancestor who started their family line or tribe) and working down to the current generation.
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