Chinese lunar calendar · year archive
Current year & next Chinese New Year →Chinese calendar 1990: year of the Metal Horse
1990 is the year of the Metal Horse in the Chinese calendar, from 27 January 1990 to 14 February 1991: 384 days, 13 lunar months, including leap month 5. Born before 27 January 1990? That is still the Earth Snake year.
Choose “Save as PDF” in your browser’s print destination to keep this calendar.
384 days · Year of the Metal Horse
Sexagenary year
Fire controls Metal: the year stem is Metal, while theHorse's fixed phase is Fire.
Length
384 days
Across 13 lunar months.
Leap month
Month 5
29 days in the repeated month.
Beginning of Spring
Twice
立春 falls twice — a double-spring year, 双春年.
Year name explained
Why Metal Horse
Fire restrains Metal in the Five Phases, so the Horse’s fixed element is understood as moderating the year element.
The animal repeats every 12 years, while the stem-and-branch pairing repeats every 60. The element in “Metal Horse” comes from the year's heavenly stem; it is distinct from the animal's conventional fixed phase. Read the calendar glossary.
The 13 lunar months of 1990
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 1990.
| Lunar month | Begins | Days |
|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | 27 January 1990 | 29 |
| Month 2 | 25 February 1990 | 30 |
| Month 3 | 27 March 1990 | 29 |
| Month 4 | 25 April 1990 | 29 |
| Month 5 | 24 May 1990 | 30 |
| Leap month 5 | 23 June 1990 | 29 |
| Month 6 | 22 July 1990 | 29 |
| Month 7 | 20 August 1990 | 30 |
| Month 8 | 19 September 1990 | 29 |
| Month 9 | 18 October 1990 | 30 |
| Month 10 | 17 November 1990 | 30 |
| Month 11 | 17 December 1990 | 30 |
| Month 12 | 16 January 1991 | 30 |
The solar year within it
25 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.
- Beginning of Spring立春4 February 1990 · 10:14:00 UTC+8
- Rain Water雨水19 February 1990 · 06:14:01 UTC+8
- Awakening of Insects惊蛰6 March 1990 · 04:19:18 UTC+8
- Spring Equinox春分21 March 1990 · 05:19:15 UTC+8
- Pure Brightness清明5 April 1990 · 09:12:56 UTC+8
- Grain Rain谷雨20 April 1990 · 16:26:32 UTC+8
- Beginning of Summer立夏6 May 1990 · 02:35:26 UTC+8
- Grain Buds小满21 May 1990 · 15:37:23 UTC+8
- Grain in Ear芒种6 June 1990 · 06:46:18 UTC+8
- Summer Solstice夏至21 June 1990 · 23:32:46 UTC+8
- Minor Heat小暑7 July 1990 · 17:00:28 UTC+8
- Major Heat大暑23 July 1990 · 10:21:30 UTC+8
- Beginning of Autumn立秋8 August 1990 · 02:45:32 UTC+8
- End of Heat处暑23 August 1990 · 17:20:49 UTC+8
- White Dew白露8 September 1990 · 05:37:28 UTC+8
- Autumn Equinox秋分23 September 1990 · 14:55:29 UTC+8
- Cold Dew寒露8 October 1990 · 21:13:49 UTC+8
- Frost's Descent霜降24 October 1990 · 00:13:56 UTC+8
- Beginning of Winter立冬8 November 1990 · 00:23:30 UTC+8
- Minor Snow小雪22 November 1990 · 21:46:55 UTC+8
- Major Snow大雪7 December 1990 · 17:14:10 UTC+8
- Winter Solstice冬至22 December 1990 · 11:06:59 UTC+8
- Minor Cold小寒6 January 1991 · 04:28:07 UTC+8
- Major Cold大寒20 January 1991 · 21:47:05 UTC+8
- Beginning of Spring立春4 February 1991 · 16:08:24 UTC+8
Moving Gregorian dates
Festivals in the 1990 lunar year
Most follow numbered lunar dates; Qingming and Winter Solstice follow exact solar-term instants. Open a festival to see its rule.
- 27 January 1990lunar 1/1
- 10 February 1990lunar 1/15
- 28 May 1990lunar 5/5
- 26 August 1990lunar 7/7
- 3 September 1990lunar 7/15
- 3 October 1990lunar 8/15
- 26 October 1990lunar 9/9
- 23 January 1991lunar 12/8
- 14 February 1991lunar 12/30
Gregorian index
Month by month in 1990
Each Gregorian month of 1990, with the lunar dates and day pillars it covers.