Chunfen

The traditional Chinese calendar divides a year into 24 solar terms.[1] Chūnfēn, Shunbun, Chunbun, or Xuân phân is the 4th solar term. It begins when the Sun reaches the celestial longitude of 0° and ends when it reaches the longitude of 15°. In the Gregorian calendar, it usually begins around 20 March and ends around 4 April (5 April East Asia time). It more often refers in particular to the day when the Sun is exactly at the celestial longitude of 0°.

See also: March equinox

Chunfen
Chinese name
Chinese春分
Literal meaningvernal equinox
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese alphabetxuân phân
Chữ Hán春分
Korean name
Hangul춘분
Hanja春分
Japanese name
Kanji春分
Hiraganaしゅんぶん
Solar term
Term Longitude Dates
Lichun 315°4–5 February
Yushui 330°18–19 February
Jingzhe 345°5–6 March
Chunfen 0°20–21 March
Qingming 15°4–5 April
Guyu 30°20–21 April
Lixia 45°5–6 May
Xiaoman 60°21–22 May
Mangzhong 75°5–6 June
Xiazhi 90°21–22 June
Xiaoshu 105°7–8 July
Dashu 120°22–23 July
Liqiu 135°7–8 August
Chushu 150°23–24 August
Bailu 165°7–8 September
Qiufen 180°23–24 September
Hanlu 195°8–9 October
Shuangjiang 210°23–24 October
Lidong 225°7–8 November
Xiaoxue 240°22–23 November
Daxue 255°7–8 December
Dongzhi 270°21–22 December
Xiaohan 285°5–6 January
Dahan 300°20–21 January

Pentads

Each solar term can be divided into 3 pentads (候). They are: first pentad (初候), second pentad (次候) and last pentad (末候). Pentads in Chunfen include:

China
  • First pentad: 玄鳥至, 'The dark birds arrive'. 'Dark bird' in this case refers to swallows, which are also making their northward migration.[2]
  • Second pentad: 雷乃發聲, 'Thunder sounds', referring to the onset of spring thunderstorms.[2]
  • Last pentad: 始電, 'Lightning begins'. This refers to thunderstorms as well, but also to the gradual lengthening of daytime, and the prevalence of sunlight.[2]

Japan
See also: Vernal Equinox Day

A pentad as follows was referred to Japanese traditional calendar presented in a smaller, easy to use, format.

  • First pentad: Suzume hajimete sukuu (雀始巣), 'Sparrow begins holding a nest'.[3]
  • Second pentad: Sakura hajimete hiraku (桜始開), 'Cherry blossoms open for the first time'.[3]
  • Last pentad: Kaminari sunawachi koeo hassu (雷乃発声), 'Distant thunder start to sound'.[3]

Date and time
Date and Time (UTC)
yearbeginend
辛巳 2001-03-20 13:30 2001-04-04 17:24
壬午 2002-03-20 19:16 2002-04-04 23:18
癸未 2003-03-21 00:59 2003-04-05 04:52
甲申 2004-03-20 06:48 2004-04-04 10:43
乙酉 2005-03-20 12:33 2005-04-04 16:34
丙戌 2006-03-20 18:25 2006-04-04 22:15
丁亥 2007-03-21 00:07 2007-04-05 04:04
戊子 2008-03-20 05:48 2008-04-04 09:45
己丑 2009-03-20 11:43 2009-04-04 15:33
庚寅 2010-03-20 17:32 2010-04-04 21:30
辛卯 2011-03-20 23:20 2011-04-05 03:11
壬辰 2012-03-20 05:14 2012-04-04 09:05
癸巳 2013-03-20 11:01 2013-04-04 15:02
甲午 2014-03-20 16:57 2014-04-04 20:46
乙未 2015-03-20 22:48 2015-04-05 02:39
丙申 2016-03-20 04:30 2016-04-04 08:26
丁酉 2017-03-20 10:30 2017-04-04 14:19
戊戌 2018-03-20 16:24 2018-04-04 20:15
己亥 2019-03-20 22:06 2019-04-05 01:51
庚子 2020-03-20 03:54 2020-04-04 07:37
Source: JPL Horizons On-Line Ephemeris System

See also

References
  1. Zhang, Peiyu; Hunag, Hongfeng( (1994). "The Twenty-four Solar Terms of the Chinese Calendar and the Calculation for Them". Purple Mountain Observatory.
  2. Kondō Heijō (近藤瓶城), ed. (1901). 新加纂録類 (Shinka Sanrokurui). p. 110. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  3. Fujisawa, Morihiko (1961). 年中行事編 (Nenjū Gyōjihen). p. 103. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
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