Chinese lunar calendar · year archive
Current year & next Chinese New Year →Chinese calendar 2012: year of the Water Dragon
2012 is the year of the Water Dragon in the Chinese calendar, from 23 January 2012 to 9 February 2013: 384 days, 13 lunar months, including leap month 4. Born before 23 January 2012? That is still the Metal Rabbit year.
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384 days · Year of the Water Dragon
Sexagenary year
Earth controls Water: the year stem is Water, while theDragon's fixed phase is Earth.
Length
384 days
Across 13 lunar months.
Leap month
Month 4
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 Water Dragon
Earth restrains Water in the Five Phases, so the Dragon’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 “Water Dragon” 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 2012
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 2012.
| Lunar month | Begins | Days |
|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | 23 January 2012 | 30 |
| Month 2 | 22 February 2012 | 29 |
| Month 3 | 22 March 2012 | 30 |
| Month 4 | 21 April 2012 | 30 |
| Leap month 4 | 21 May 2012 | 29 |
| Month 5 | 19 June 2012 | 30 |
| Month 6 | 19 July 2012 | 29 |
| Month 7 | 17 August 2012 | 30 |
| Month 8 | 16 September 2012 | 29 |
| Month 9 | 15 October 2012 | 30 |
| Month 10 | 14 November 2012 | 29 |
| Month 11 | 13 December 2012 | 30 |
| Month 12 | 12 January 2013 | 29 |
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 2012 · 18:22:24 UTC+8
- Rain Water雨水19 February 2012 · 14:17:36 UTC+8
- Awakening of Insects惊蛰5 March 2012 · 12:21:03 UTC+8
- Spring Equinox春分20 March 2012 · 13:14:26 UTC+8
- Pure Brightness清明4 April 2012 · 17:05:37 UTC+8
- Grain Rain谷雨20 April 2012 · 00:12:05 UTC+8
- Beginning of Summer立夏5 May 2012 · 10:19:41 UTC+8
- Grain Buds小满20 May 2012 · 23:15:31 UTC+8
- Grain in Ear芒种5 June 2012 · 14:25:54 UTC+8
- Summer Solstice夏至21 June 2012 · 07:08:48 UTC+8
- Minor Heat小暑7 July 2012 · 00:40:43 UTC+8
- Major Heat大暑22 July 2012 · 18:00:52 UTC+8
- Beginning of Autumn立秋7 August 2012 · 10:30:33 UTC+8
- End of Heat处暑23 August 2012 · 01:06:50 UTC+8
- White Dew白露7 September 2012 · 13:29:01 UTC+8
- Autumn Equinox秋分22 September 2012 · 22:48:59 UTC+8
- Cold Dew寒露8 October 2012 · 05:11:43 UTC+8
- Frost's Descent霜降23 October 2012 · 08:13:34 UTC+8
- Beginning of Winter立冬7 November 2012 · 08:25:57 UTC+8
- Minor Snow小雪22 November 2012 · 05:50:08 UTC+8
- Major Snow大雪7 December 2012 · 01:18:56 UTC+8
- Winter Solstice冬至21 December 2012 · 19:11:36 UTC+8
- Minor Cold小寒5 January 2013 · 12:33:38 UTC+8
- Major Cold大寒20 January 2013 · 05:51:43 UTC+8
- Beginning of Spring立春4 February 2013 · 00:13:25 UTC+8
Moving Gregorian dates
Festivals in the 2012 lunar year
Most follow numbered lunar dates; Qingming and Winter Solstice follow exact solar-term instants. Open a festival to see its rule.
- 23 January 2012lunar 1/1
- 6 February 2012lunar 1/15
- 23 June 2012lunar 5/5
- 23 August 2012lunar 7/7
- 31 August 2012lunar 7/15
- 30 September 2012lunar 8/15
- 23 October 2012lunar 9/9
- 19 January 2013lunar 12/8
- 9 February 2013lunar 12/29
Gregorian index
Month by month in 2012
Each Gregorian month of 2012, with the lunar dates and day pillars it covers.