Why is Qingming called "Qingming"?

The origin of Tomb-Sweeping Day is related to the weather and climate characteristics, and originated from the ancient solar terms.

Tomb-Sweeping Day began in the Zhou Dynasty. "Huainanzi Astronomical Training" records: "The handle of the Big Dipper points to two places at the fifteenth day after the vernal equinox, and the Qingming wind is coming", hence the name "Qingming" solar term.

Tomb-Sweeping Day is one of the twenty-four solar terms in China, and the time is around April 5th in the solar calendar every year. After Tomb-Sweeping Day, the rain increased, and the earth showed a scene of spring, which is a good season for spring ploughing and planting. Therefore, there are agricultural proverbs such as "Before and after Qingming Festival, point melons to plant beans" and "Planting trees is not as good as Tomb-Sweeping Day".

After more than two thousand years' evolution, Tomb-Sweeping Day has gone beyond the meaning of solar terms and has extremely rich connotations. Different customs have been developed in different places, and sweeping graves to worship ancestors and outing are the basic themes.