old divisions of year
in China and Japan

Season	Chinese	Japanese Nijūshisekki	Meaning	Falls on Gregorian
Spring	Li ch'un	Risshun	Beginning of spring	4 or 5 Feb
	Yü shui	Usui	“Rainwater”	19 or 20 Feb
	Ching chih	Keichitsu	“Insects emerge”	5 or 6 Mar
	Ch'un fen	Shumbun	Vernal equinox	21 or 22 Mar
	Ch'ing ming	Seimei	“Pure and clear”	5 or 6 April
	Ku yü	Kokuu	“Grain rains”	20 or 21 April
Summer	Li hsia	Rikka	Beginning of summer	5 or 6 May
	Hsiao man	Shōman	“The lesser ripening”	21 or 22 May
	Mang chung	Bōshu	“Grain beards and seeds”	6 or 7 June
	Hsia chih	Geshi	Summer solstice	21 or 22 June
	Hsiao shu	Shosho	“The lesser heat”	7 or 8 July
	Ta shu	Taisho	“The greater heat”	23 or 24 July
Autumn	Li ch'iu	Risshū	Beginning of Autumn	7 or 8 Aug
	Ch'u shu	Shosho	“Manageable heat”	23 or 24 Aug
	Pai lu	Hakuro	“White dew”	8 or 9 Sept
	Ch'iu fen	Shūbun	Autumnal equinox	23 or 24 Sept
	Han lu	Kanro	“Cold dew”	8 or 9 Oct
	Shuang chiang	Soko	Frost falls	23 or 24 Oct
Winter	Li tung	Ritto	Beginning of winter	7 or 8 Nov
	Hsiao hsueh	Shōsetsu	“Light snow”	22 or 23 Nov
	Ta hsueh	Taisetsu	“Heavy snow”	7 or 8 Dec
	Tung chih	Toji	Winter solstice	21 or 22 Dec
	Hsiao han	Shokan	“Little cold”	5 or 6 Jan
	Ta han	Daikan	“Big cold”	20 or 21 Jan

old divisions of yearin China and Japan