Chinese lunar calendar · year archive
Current year & next Chinese New Year →Chinese calendar 2008: year of the Earth Rat
2008 is the year of the Earth Rat in the Chinese calendar, from 7 February 2008 to 25 January 2009: 354 days, 12 lunar months. Born before 7 February 2008? That is still the Fire Pig year.
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354 days · Year of the Earth Rat
Sexagenary year
Earth controls Water: the year stem is Earth, while theRat's fixed phase is Water.
Length
354 days
Across 12 lunar months.
Leap month
None
The year runs its ordinary twelve months.
Beginning of Spring
Not within this year
立春 does not fall inside it — a springless year, 无春年.
Year name explained
Why Earth Rat
Earth restrains Water in the Five Phases, so the year element is understood as moderating the Rat’s fixed element.
The animal repeats every 12 years, while the stem-and-branch pairing repeats every 60. The element in “Earth Rat” 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 2008
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 2008.
| Lunar month | Begins | Days |
|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | 7 February 2008 | 30 |
| Month 2 | 8 March 2008 | 29 |
| Month 3 | 6 April 2008 | 29 |
| Month 4 | 5 May 2008 | 30 |
| Month 5 | 4 June 2008 | 29 |
| Month 6 | 3 July 2008 | 29 |
| Month 7 | 1 August 2008 | 30 |
| Month 8 | 31 August 2008 | 29 |
| Month 9 | 29 September 2008 | 30 |
| Month 10 | 29 October 2008 | 30 |
| Month 11 | 28 November 2008 | 29 |
| Month 12 | 27 December 2008 | 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.
- Rain Water雨水19 February 2008 · 14:49:33 UTC+8
- Awakening of Insects惊蛰5 March 2008 · 12:58:48 UTC+8
- Spring Equinox春分20 March 2008 · 13:48:17 UTC+8
- Pure Brightness清明4 April 2008 · 17:45:52 UTC+8
- Grain Rain谷雨20 April 2008 · 00:51:08 UTC+8
- Beginning of Summer立夏5 May 2008 · 11:03:26 UTC+8
- Grain Buds小满21 May 2008 · 00:00:54 UTC+8
- Grain in Ear芒种5 June 2008 · 15:11:44 UTC+8
- Summer Solstice夏至21 June 2008 · 07:59:21 UTC+8
- Minor Heat小暑7 July 2008 · 01:26:49 UTC+8
- Major Heat大暑22 July 2008 · 18:54:48 UTC+8
- Beginning of Autumn立秋7 August 2008 · 11:16:10 UTC+8
- End of Heat处暑23 August 2008 · 02:02:14 UTC+8
- White Dew白露7 September 2008 · 14:14:08 UTC+8
- Autumn Equinox秋分22 September 2008 · 23:44:30 UTC+8
- Cold Dew寒露8 October 2008 · 05:56:38 UTC+8
- Frost's Descent霜降23 October 2008 · 09:08:39 UTC+8
- Beginning of Winter立冬7 November 2008 · 09:10:34 UTC+8
- Minor Snow小雪22 November 2008 · 06:44:20 UTC+8
- Major Snow大雪7 December 2008 · 02:02:18 UTC+8
- Winter Solstice冬至21 December 2008 · 20:03:45 UTC+8
- Minor Cold小寒5 January 2009 · 13:14:08 UTC+8
- Major Cold大寒20 January 2009 · 06:40:20 UTC+8
Moving Gregorian dates
Festivals in the 2008 lunar year
Most follow numbered lunar dates; Qingming and Winter Solstice follow exact solar-term instants. Open a festival to see its rule.
- 7 February 2008lunar 1/1
- 21 February 2008lunar 1/15
- 8 June 2008lunar 5/5
- 7 August 2008lunar 7/7
- 15 August 2008lunar 7/15
- 14 September 2008lunar 8/15
- 7 October 2008lunar 9/9
- 3 January 2009lunar 12/8
- 25 January 2009lunar 12/30
Gregorian index
Month by month in 2008
Each Gregorian month of 2008, with the lunar dates and day pillars it covers.