Chinese holidays are not just celebrated in China, but around the world as well! Whether the occasion is the Chinese New Year (元旦 Yuándàn) or the Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋节 Zhōngqiū jié), it is important to celebrate on the right date. When planning the timing of celebrations, one can often find a discrepancy between the dates of each holiday from year to year. The reason for this is because most Chinese holidays are based on the lunar calendar (阴历 Yīnlì), while the United States uses a solar calendar (阳历 Yánglì).
The Chinese lunar calendar dates back over two thousand years to the Han Dynasty, where a system of timekeeping based around the phases of the moon was first devised in China.[1] In the lunar calendar, each month consists of 29 or 30 days, which differs from the solar calendar’s 28 to 31. Additionally, there can be either 12 or 13 months in a given year. Because of this, dates and holidays occurring on the same day on the lunar calendar will occur on different days each year as measured by the solar calendar. While conversions between the two calendars may seem confusing, it need not be since finding the current year’s holidays is one simple internet search away. With this in mind, you won’t ever be confused on why certain Chinese holidays occur on different dates each year. Happy celebrating!
Sources:
https://depts.washington.edu/triolive/quest/2007/TTQ07030/history.html