24 Solar Terms in Chinese Culture

4 years ago
 24    Solar Terms
Chinese                             Month and Date
Remarks
Start of Spring     
lì chūn
立春                                          Feb 4th
A dubiously premature name, as it's not the beginning of spring in most of China; only in the extreme south.
Rain Water
yǔ shuǐ
雨水                                          Feb 19th
There is an increase of rainfall from then on.
Awakening of Insects
jīng zhé
惊蛰                                           Mar 5th
Thunder begins and hibernating insects wake up.
Vernal Equinox
chūn fēn
春分                                           Mar 20st
With an equal length of day and night.
Clear and Bright
qīng míng 清明                          Apr 4th
It is clear and bright (when it's not raining), and the weather becomes noticeably warmer. A misnomer, particularly in southern China.
Grain Rain
gǔ yǔ
谷雨                                              Apr 19th
The early crops show their shoots.
Start of Summer
lì xià
立夏                                              May 5th
The beginning of summer (in southern China).
Small Full (Grain)
xiǎo mǎn
小满                                               May 20st
The seeds of summer crops begin to become plump, but are not yet ripe.
Grain in Ear
máng zhǒng 芒种
Jun 5th
The wheat becomes ripe; and the summer planting starts (in southern China).
Summer Solstice
xià zhì
夏至                                                 Jun 21st
The daytime is the longest and the nighttime is the shortest of the year.
Minor Heat
xiǎo shǔ
小暑                                                   Jul 6th
The beginning of the hottest period. 
Major Heat
dà shǔ
大暑                                                    Jul 22rd
It is the time of year when the duration of the sunshine is the longest, the average temperature is the highest, the rainfall is the greatest, and the thunderstorms are the most frequent (in some parts of northern China).
Start of Autumn
lì qiū 立秋                                            Aug 7th
An anomaly: nowhere is this true. Like the "start of spring" it is about a month premature.
Limit of Heat
chù shǔ 处暑                                        Aug 22rd
The end of the hot summer.
White Dew
bái lù 白露                                           Sep 7th
The transition from summer to autumn. The temperature drops sharply, and the autumn rains come.
Autumnal Equinox
qiū fēn 秋分                                           Sep 22rd
With an equal length of day and night.
Cold Dew
hán lù 寒露                                                Oct 8th
The weather becomes cold enough to reach dew point, but not cold enough to reach frost point.
Frost Descent
shuāng jiàng 霜降                                       Oct 23rd
The weather becomes cold and frost begins to form (in North China).
Start of Winter
lì dōng 立冬                                                    Nov 7th
True of northern China, but winter comes later in the south.
Minor Snow
xiǎo xuě 小雪                                                 Nov 22nd
Snow begins to fall, the weather becomes cold.
Major Snow
dà xuě 大雪                                                     Dec 7th
It snows heavily for the first time in the year (in northern China).
Winter Solstice
dōng zhì 冬至                                                   Dec 21nd
The daytime is the shortest and the nighttime is the longest of the year.
Minor Cold
xiǎo hán 小寒                                                      Jan 5th， 2021
The weather rapidly reaches its coldest.
Major Cold
dà hán 大寒                                                          Jan 20th， 2021
'Major Cold' It is the coldest time of the year.
The terms consist of 12 pairs of major (sectional) and minor (middle) solar terms interlaced with each other., namely The 24 solar terms embody a complete circle of the sun and divide the circle into 24 segments, with each segment being about half a month long. In both the lunar and solar calendars, the Gregorian calendar date of each solar term is basically fixed, with minor differences of within one or two days.