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The lunar calendar

The Chinese calendar as the one of numerous other civilizations is to the origin a lunar calendar. That means that he holds account of the walk of the two big regulators of the nature, the sun and the moon;  and take as a basis on essentially astronomical rules:  the lunaisons.

Every month of one lunar year, long of twelve months, start by a new moon and hard twenty-nine to thirty days. The months don’t have a particular appellation, they are designated numerically, according to their order of apparition in the time. Some months however, depending on whether they include twenty-nine or thirty days, are called " small month" either " long month."

The set of the twelve lunaisons totals a number of three hundred fifty four days, to which it misses eleven days to coincide with the solar year.

The Chinese calendar

The Chinese solution was to insert a supplementary month all two to three years, that would be announced by the almanac. This supplementary month is not inserted at the end of the lunar year, that means that it doesn’t constitute a thirteenth month by no means to named cleanly. He is inserted between two other months, so that sixth two month ago, or third two months etc. In this way the solstice of winter falls always in the eleventh month, the equinox of spring in the second, the solstice of summer in the fifth and the equinox of fall in the eighth. For astrological considerations, the system of intercalation cannot apply between the twelfth and the first month, nor in one period during which the sun passes a sign of the zodiac to another. A lunar calendar of which the first day of the year fluctuates from one year to the next results from it.

Fixing of the dates

Before the reform of the calendar in 104 before our era, some dynasties established themselves the day of the new Year because the determination of the calendar was always a royal prerogative, kept jealously, that supposed political implications sometimes. Under the Zhous (1122 ave JC-256 ap. JC) he fell to the eleventh month while other vassal states, users of different calendars, had fixed it to an all other date. From then on at the time of the reform of the calendar, one establishes that the year would begin to the first moon that would follow the exit of the sun of the last of the three wintry signs, the capricorne. New Year’s Day falls thus always between January twenty-one and February twelve (according to the solar calendar).

Since this first reform, there was very few changes in the calendar, until Republic of China adopted definitely in 1912 the Gregorian calendar. In the same time, he was decided to give to the new Year the name of feast of him " spring", in order to differentiate the new western Year with the new Chinese Year, since his date of celebration would remain the one of the new lunar Year, that opens the vernal season precisely.