Revolving Around the Moon: Chinese Lunar Calendar

Functions of Chinese Lunar Calendar

The lunar calendar is used to find auspicious dates for important events, such as weddings and funerals, and it is also still used to celebrate traditional Chinese festivals.

For instance, the duanwu jie, or Dragon Boat Festival, occurs on the 5th day of the 5th lunar month, which is usually in May, and likewise the zhongqiu jie, or Mid-Autumn Festival, is always held on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, which is most often in late September or early October.

Traditional Chinese Holidays

Moon Lantern at Chinese Lantern Festival (Yuen Sui), Victoria Park, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong

*******Chinese New Year(Spring Festival)*******
It is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays and often inaccurately called "Lunar New Year", because - as part of the lunisolar Chinese calendar - the date is partially determined based on lunar phase. Chinese New Year is the longest and most important festivity in the Chinese Lunar Calendar.

************Lantern Festival************
The Lantern Festival falls on the 15th day of the 1st lunar month, usually in February or March in the Gregorian calendar. As early as the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 25), it had become a festival with great significance.
Till today, the lantern festival is still held each year around the country. Lanterns of various shapes and sizes are hung in the streets, attracting countless visitors. Children will hold self-made or bought lanterns to stroll with on the streets, extremely excited.

Highlights:
1. This day's important activity is watching lanterns.

2. "Guessing lantern riddles"is an essential part of the Festival.

3. People will eat yuanxiao, or rice dumplings, on this day, so it is also called the "Yuanxiao Festival."

4. In the daytime of the Festival, performances such as a dragon lantern dance, a lion dance, a land boat dance, a yangge dance, walking on stilts and beating drums while dancing will be staged.

5. On the night, except for magnificent lanterns, fireworks form a beautiful scene.

*Double-seventh Day*
The Chinese Valentine's Day is one of traditional chinese festival, which usually arrives on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month every year (so also called "Double-Seventh Day" and "Qi Xi Festival"). It is the most romantic Chinese traditional festival and the big day of all girls. Because the major players are young girls and the major activity is to pray for skills, Qi Xi Festival is also called the festival to plead for skills or the night of skills.

***********Mid-Autumn Festival***********
Most cultures have a harvest festival. China is no exception. The Mid-Autumn Festival (Zhong Qiu Jie) is one of the three most important, traditional Chinese holidays. (The other two are Chinese New Year and Dragon Boat Festival.)
It takes place on the fifteenth day of the eighth month (according to the lunar calendar). It is usually on or close to the time of the Harvest Moon, when the moon appears at its fullest during the autumn equinox.

Photo courtesy of Sister72, CC License