What are the 24 solar terms?

The 24 solar terms are: beginning of spring, Rain, Sting, Equinox, Qingming, Grain Rain, Changxia, Xiaoman, Mangzhong, Summer Solstice, Xiaoxia, Daxia, beginning of autumn, Early Summer, Bailu, Autumn Equinox, Cold Dew, Early Frost, beginning of winter, Light Snow, Heavy Snow, Winter Solstice, Slight Cold and Severe Cold. Among the solar terms, beginning of spring, Jingzhe, Qingming, Changxia, Mangzhong, Xiaoshu, beginning of autumn, Bailu, Hanlu, beginning of winter, Daxue and Xiaohan are silver moon, Uzuki, Chen Yue, Mitsuki, Wuyue, Yue Wei, Shenyue, Youyue, Moon, Haiyue, Ziyue and Ugly Moon.

Twenty-four solar terms are special festivals in the dry calendar, indicating the change of natural rhythm and establishing "December construction". At first, it was based on the movement of stars. The Big Dipper rotates circularly, and bucket handle rotates around the east, south, west and north, which is called one of the "years old" (Figure). Each rotation cycle begins in early spring and ends in severe cold. The current "twenty-four solar terms" are formulated according to the position of the sun on the return to the ecliptic, that is, the annual movement track of the sun is divided into 24 equal parts, each 15 is 1, and each 1 is a solar term, starting in beginning of spring and ending in severe cold. "Twenty-four solar terms" is an important part of the long history and culture of the Chinese nation, which embodies the historical and cultural essence of Chinese civilization. [ 1][2]

"Twenty-four solar terms" is the product of ancient farming civilization, and farming production is closely related to the rhythm of nature. It is a knowledge system formed by ancient ancestors who followed the farming season and realized the changing laws of time (season), climate and phenology in a year (year) by observing the movement of celestial bodies. Each solar term represents different changes in time, climate and phenology. The twenty-four solar terms express the unique concept of time between human beings and the natural universe, and contain the long-standing cultural connotation and historical accumulation of the Chinese nation. It not only plays a guiding role in agricultural production, but also affects the food, clothing, housing and transportation of ancient people, and even cultural concepts. [3][4]

After historical development, the lunar calendar absorbed solar terms of the dry calendar as a supplement to the calendar, and adjusted it to conform to the tropic year through the leap method, forming a combined calendar of yin and yang, and the "24 solar terms" became an important part of the lunar calendar. In the field of international meteorology, the 24 solar terms are known as "the fifth invention of China". 2016165438+1October 30th, 24 solar terms were officially listed in UNESCO's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.