Chinese lunar calendar · year archive
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1985 is the year of the Wood Ox in the Chinese calendar, from 20 February 1985 to 8 February 1986: 354 days, 12 lunar months. Born before 20 February 1985? That is still the Wood Rat year.
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354 days · Year of the Wood Ox
Sexagenary year
Wood controls Earth: the year stem is Wood, while theOx's fixed phase is Earth.
Length
354 days
Across 12 lunar months.
Leap month
None
The year runs its ordinary twelve months.
Beginning of Spring
Once
立春 falls once, as it usually does.
Year name explained
Why Wood Ox
Wood restrains Earth in the Five Phases, so the year element is understood as moderating the Ox’s fixed element.
The animal repeats every 12 years, while the stem-and-branch pairing repeats every 60. The element in “Wood Ox” comes from the year's heavenly stem; it is distinct from the animal's conventional fixed phase. Read the calendar glossary.
The 12 lunar months of 1985
A lunar month begins on the day of the new moon, so its Gregorian start date moves every year. These are the exact correspondences for 1985.
| Lunar month | Begins | Days |
|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | 20 February 1985 | 29 |
| Month 2 | 21 March 1985 | 30 |
| Month 3 | 20 April 1985 | 30 |
| Month 4 | 20 May 1985 | 29 |
| Month 5 | 18 June 1985 | 30 |
| Month 6 | 18 July 1985 | 29 |
| Month 7 | 16 August 1985 | 30 |
| Month 8 | 15 September 1985 | 29 |
| Month 9 | 14 October 1985 | 29 |
| Month 10 | 12 November 1985 | 30 |
| Month 11 | 12 December 1985 | 29 |
| Month 12 | 10 January 1986 | 30 |
The solar year within it
23 solar terms
Solar terms track the sun rather than the moon, so they sit at almost the same Gregorian date every year while the lunar months move by weeks. A twelve-month year is about eleven days shorter than the solar year and so holds fewer of them than a thirteen-month one.
- Awakening of Insects惊蛰5 March 1985 · 23:16:21 UTC+8
- Spring Equinox春分21 March 1985 · 00:13:43 UTC+8
- Pure Brightness清明5 April 1985 · 04:13:35 UTC+8
- Grain Rain谷雨20 April 1985 · 11:25:46 UTC+8
- Beginning of Summer立夏5 May 1985 · 21:42:32 UTC+8
- Grain Buds小满21 May 1985 · 10:42:55 UTC+8
- Grain in Ear芒种6 June 1985 · 01:59:56 UTC+8
- Summer Solstice夏至21 June 1985 · 18:44:07 UTC+8
- Minor Heat小暑7 July 1985 · 12:18:35 UTC+8
- Major Heat大暑23 July 1985 · 05:36:26 UTC+8
- Beginning of Autumn立秋7 August 1985 · 22:04:16 UTC+8
- End of Heat处暑23 August 1985 · 12:35:41 UTC+8
- White Dew白露8 September 1985 · 00:53:01 UTC+8
- Autumn Equinox秋分23 September 1985 · 10:07:27 UTC+8
- Cold Dew寒露8 October 1985 · 16:24:33 UTC+8
- Frost's Descent霜降23 October 1985 · 19:21:52 UTC+8
- Beginning of Winter立冬7 November 1985 · 19:29:29 UTC+8
- Minor Snow小雪22 November 1985 · 16:50:46 UTC+8
- Major Snow大雪7 December 1985 · 12:16:21 UTC+8
- Winter Solstice冬至22 December 1985 · 06:07:40 UTC+8
- Minor Cold小寒5 January 1986 · 23:28:02 UTC+8
- Major Cold大寒20 January 1986 · 16:46:12 UTC+8
- Beginning of Spring立春4 February 1986 · 11:07:42 UTC+8
Moving Gregorian dates
Festivals in the 1985 lunar year
Most follow numbered lunar dates; Qingming and Winter Solstice follow exact solar-term instants. Open a festival to see its rule.
- 20 February 1985lunar 1/1
- 6 March 1985lunar 1/15
- 22 June 1985lunar 5/5
- 22 August 1985lunar 7/7
- 30 August 1985lunar 7/15
- 29 September 1985lunar 8/15
- 22 October 1985lunar 9/9
- 17 January 1986lunar 12/8
- 8 February 1986lunar 12/30
Gregorian index
Month by month in 1985
Each Gregorian month of 1985, with the lunar dates and day pillars it covers.