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| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese calendar | 2/8 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_calendar | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T14:20:08.278657+00:00 | kb-cron |
No reference date is universally accepted. The most popular is the Gregorian calendar (公曆; 公历; gōnglì; 'common calendar'). During the 17th century, the Jesuit missionaries tried to determine the epochal year of the Chinese calendar. In his Sinicae historiae decas prima (published in Munich in 1658), Martino Martini (1614–1661) dated the Yellow Emperor's ascension at 2697 BCE and began the Chinese calendar with the reign of Fuxi (which, according to Martini, began in 2952 BCE). Philippe Couplet's 1686 Chronological table of Chinese monarchs (Tabula chronologica monarchiae sinicae) gave the same date for the Yellow Emperor. The Jesuits' dates provoked interest in Europe, where they were used for comparison with Biblical chronology. Modern Chinese chronology has generally accepted Martini's dates, except that it usually places the reign of the Yellow Emperor at 2698 BCE and omits his predecessors Fuxi and Shennong as "too legendary to include". Publications began using the estimated birth date of the Yellow Emperor as the first year of the Han calendar in 1903, with newspapers and magazines proposing different dates. Jiangsu province counted 1905 as the year 4396 (using a year 1 of 2491 BCE, and implying that 2026 CE is 4517), and the newspaper Ming Pao (明報) reckoned 1905 as 4603 (using a year 1 of 2698 BCE, and implying that 2026 CE is 4724). Liu Shipei (劉師培, 1884–1919) created the Yellow Emperor Calendar (黃帝紀元, 黃帝曆 or 軒轅紀年), with year 1 as the birth of the emperor (which he determined as 2711 BCE, implying that 2026 CE is 4737). There is no evidence that this calendar was used before the 20th century. Liu calculated that the 1900 international expedition sent by the Eight-Nation Alliance to suppress the Boxer Rebellion entered Beijing in the 4611th year of the Yellow Emperor. On 2 January 1912, Sun Yat-sen announced changes to the official calendar and era. 1 January was Huángdì year 4809.11.14, assuming a year 1 of 2698 BCE, making 2026 CE year 4724. Many overseas Chinese communities like San Francisco's Chinatown adopted the change.
== History ==
=== Solar calendars ===
The traditional Chinese lunisolar calendar was developed between 771 BCE and 476 BCE, during the Spring and Autumn period of the Eastern Zhou dynasty. Solar calendars were used before the Zhou dynasty period, along with the basic sexagenary system. One version of the solar calendar is the five-elements (or phases) calendar (五行曆; 五行历; wǔxíng lì), which derives from the Wu Xing. A 365-day year was divided into five phases of 72 days, with each phase preceded by an intercalary day associated with the claimed beginning of the following 72 day period of domination by the next Wu Xing element; thus, the five phases each begin with a governing-element day (行御), followed by a 72-day period characterized by the ruling element. Years began on a jiǎzǐ (甲子) day and a 72-day wood phase, followed by a bǐngzǐ (丙子) day and a 72-day fire phase; a wùzǐ (戊子) day and a 72-day earth phase; a gēngzǐ (庚子) day and a 72-day metal phase, and a rénzǐ (壬子) day followed by a water phase. Each phase consisted of two three-week months, making each year ten months long. Other days were tracked using the Yellow River Map (He Tu). Another version is a four-quarters calendar (四時八節曆; 四时八节历; sìshí bājié lì; 'four-season eight-solar-term calendar', or 四分曆; 四分历; sìfēn lì; 'quarters calendar'). The weeks were ten days long, with one month consisting of three weeks. A year had 12 months, with a ten-day week intercalated in summer as needed to keep up with the tropical year. The 10 Heavenly Stems and 12 Earthly Branches were used to mark days. A third version is the balanced calendar (調曆; 调历; tiáo lì). A year was 365.25 days, and a month was 29.5 days. After every 16th month, a half-month was intercalated. According to oracle bone records, the Shang dynasty calendar (c. 1600 – c. 1046 BCE) was a balanced calendar with 12 to 14 months in a year; the month after the winter solstice was Zhēngyuè. A solar calendar called the Tung Shing, the Yellow Calendar or Imperial Calendar (both alluding to Yellow Emperor) continued to see use as an almanac and agricultural guide throughout Chinese history.
=== Lunisolar calendars by dynasty ===
Lunisolar calendars involve correlations of the cycles of the sun (solar) and the moon (lunar).
==== Zhou dynasty ==== The first lunisolar calendar was the Zhou calendar (周曆; 周历), introduced under the Zhou dynasty (1046 BCE – 256 BCE). This calendar sets the beginning of the year at the day of the new moon before the winter solstice.
==== Competing Warring states calendars ====
Several competing lunisolar calendars were introduced as Zhou devolved into the Warring States, especially by states fighting Zhou control during the Warring States period (perhaps 475 BCE – 221 BCE). From the Warring States period (ending in 221 BCE), six especially significant calendar systems are known to have begun to be developed. Later on, during their future course in history, the modern names for the ancient six calendars were also developed: Huangdi, Yin, Zhou, Xia, Zhuanxu, and Lu. Modern historical knowledge and records are limited for the earlier calendars. These calendars are known as the six ancient calendars (古六曆; 古六历), or quarter-remainder calendars, (四分曆; 四分历; sìfēnlì), since all calculate a year as 365+1⁄4 days long. Months begin on the day of the new moon, and a year has 12 or 13 months. Intercalary months (a 13th month) are added to the end of the year.
The state of Lu issued its own Lu calendar (魯曆; 鲁历).
The state of Jin issued the Xia calendar (夏曆; 夏历) with a year beginning on the day of the new moon nearest the March equinox.
The state of Qin issued the Zhuanxu calendar (顓頊曆; 颛顼历), with a year beginning on the day of the new moon nearest the winter solstice.
The Qiang and Dai calendars are modern versions of the Zhuanxu calendar, used by highland peoples.