Chinese lunar calendar · year archive
Current year & next Chinese New Year →Chinese calendar 2011: year of the Metal Rabbit
2011 is the year of the Metal Rabbit in the Chinese calendar, from 3 February 2011 to 22 January 2012: 354 days, 12 lunar months. Born before 3 February 2011? That is still the Metal Tiger year.
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354 days · Year of the Metal Rabbit
Sexagenary year
Metal controls Wood: the year stem is Metal, while theRabbit's fixed phase is Wood.
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 Metal Rabbit
Metal restrains Wood in the Five Phases, so the year element is understood as moderating the Rabbit’s fixed element.
The animal repeats every 12 years, while the stem-and-branch pairing repeats every 60. The element in “Metal Rabbit” 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 2011
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 2011.
| Lunar month | Begins | Days |
|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | 3 February 2011 | 30 |
| Month 2 | 5 March 2011 | 29 |
| Month 3 | 3 April 2011 | 30 |
| Month 4 | 3 May 2011 | 30 |
| Month 5 | 2 June 2011 | 29 |
| Month 6 | 1 July 2011 | 30 |
| Month 7 | 31 July 2011 | 29 |
| Month 8 | 29 August 2011 | 29 |
| Month 9 | 27 September 2011 | 30 |
| Month 10 | 27 October 2011 | 29 |
| Month 11 | 25 November 2011 | 30 |
| Month 12 | 25 December 2011 | 29 |
The solar year within it
24 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 2011 · 12:32:56 UTC+8
- Rain Water雨水19 February 2011 · 08:25:20 UTC+8
- Awakening of Insects惊蛰6 March 2011 · 06:29:59 UTC+8
- Spring Equinox春分21 March 2011 · 07:20:44 UTC+8
- Pure Brightness清明5 April 2011 · 11:11:59 UTC+8
- Grain Rain谷雨20 April 2011 · 18:17:26 UTC+8
- Beginning of Summer立夏6 May 2011 · 04:23:13 UTC+8
- Grain Buds小满21 May 2011 · 17:21:10 UTC+8
- Grain in Ear芒种6 June 2011 · 08:27:20 UTC+8
- Summer Solstice夏至22 June 2011 · 01:16:30 UTC+8
- Minor Heat小暑7 July 2011 · 18:42:00 UTC+8
- Major Heat大暑23 July 2011 · 12:11:49 UTC+8
- Beginning of Autumn立秋8 August 2011 · 04:33:26 UTC+8
- End of Heat处暑23 August 2011 · 19:20:38 UTC+8
- White Dew白露8 September 2011 · 07:34:14 UTC+8
- Autumn Equinox秋分23 September 2011 · 17:04:38 UTC+8
- Cold Dew寒露8 October 2011 · 23:19:06 UTC+8
- Frost's Descent霜降24 October 2011 · 02:30:19 UTC+8
- Beginning of Winter立冬8 November 2011 · 02:34:56 UTC+8
- Minor Snow小雪23 November 2011 · 00:07:49 UTC+8
- Major Snow大雪7 December 2011 · 19:29:00 UTC+8
- Winter Solstice冬至22 December 2011 · 13:30:02 UTC+8
- Minor Cold小寒6 January 2012 · 06:43:55 UTC+8
- Major Cold大寒21 January 2012 · 00:09:50 UTC+8
Moving Gregorian dates
Festivals in the 2011 lunar year
Most follow numbered lunar dates; Qingming and Winter Solstice follow exact solar-term instants. Open a festival to see its rule.
- 3 February 2011lunar 1/1
- 17 February 2011lunar 1/15
- 6 June 2011lunar 5/5
- 6 August 2011lunar 7/7
- 14 August 2011lunar 7/15
- 12 September 2011lunar 8/15
- 5 October 2011lunar 9/9
- 1 January 2012lunar 12/8
- 22 January 2012lunar 12/29
Gregorian index
Month by month in 2011
Each Gregorian month of 2011, with the lunar dates and day pillars it covers.