The 24 solar terms, based on the sun's position in the zodiac, were created by farmers in ancient China to guide the agricultural affairs and farming activities. The 24 solar terms reflect the changes in climate, natural phenomena, agricultural production, and other aspects of human life, including clothing, food, housing, and transportation. The 24 solar terms play important roles and have greatly influenced people's basic needs in life, and they still have an important function nowadays.
List of the 24 Solar Terms in 2025
| Solar Terms | Chinese | Month and Date | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start of Spring | lì chūn 立春 |
Feb 3rd | A dubiously premature name, as it's not the beginning of spring in most of China; only in the extreme south. |
| Rain Water | yǔ shuǐ 雨水 |
Feb 18th | There is an increase of rainfall from then on. |
| Awakening of Insects | jīng zhé 惊蛰 |
Mar 5th | Thunder begins and hibernating insects wake up. |
| Vernal Equinox | chūn fēn 春分 |
Mar 20th | With an equal length of day and night. |
| Clear and Bright | qīng míng 清明 | Apr 4th | It is clear and bright (when it's not raining), and the weather becomes noticeably warmer. A misnomer, particularly in southern China. |
| Grain Rain | gǔ yǔ 谷雨 |
Apr 20th | The early crops show their shoots. |
| Start of Summer | lì xià 立夏 |
May 5th | The beginning of summer (in southern China). |
| Small Full (Grain) | xiǎo mǎn 小满 |
May 21th | The seeds of summer crops begin to become plump, but are not yet ripe. |
| Grain in Ear | máng zhǒng 芒种 | Jun 5th | The wheat becomes ripe; and the summer planting starts (in southern China). |
| Summer Solstice | xià zhì 夏至 |
Jun 21st | The daytime is the longest and the nighttime is the shortest of the year. |
| Minor Heat | xiǎo shǔ 小暑 |
Jul 7th | The beginning of the hottest period. |
| Major Heat | dà shǔ 大暑 |
Jul 22rd | It is the time of year when the duration of the sunshine is the longest, the average temperature is the highest, the rainfall is the greatest, and the thunderstorms are the most frequent (in some parts of northern China). |
| Start of Autumn | lì qiū 立秋 | Aug 7th | An anomaly: nowhere is this true. Like the "start of spring" it is about a month premature. |
| Limit of Heat | chù shǔ 处暑 | Aug 23rd | The end of the hot summer. |
| White Dew | bái lù 白露 | Sep 7th | The transition from summer to autumn. The temperature drops sharply, and the autumn rains come. |
| Autumnal Equinox | qiū fēn 秋分 | Sep 23rd | With an equal length of day and night. |
| Cold Dew | hán lù 寒露 | Oct 8th | The weather becomes cold enough to reach dew point, but not cold enough to reach frost point. |
| Frost Descent | shuāng jiàng 霜降 | Oct 23rd | The weather becomes cold and frost begins to form (in North China). |
| Start of Winter | lì dōng 立冬 | Nov 7th | True of northern China, but winter comes later in the south. |
| Minor Snow | xiǎo xuě 小雪 | Nov 22nd | Snow begins to fall, the weather becomes cold. |
| Major Snow | dà xuě 大雪 | Dec 7th | It snows heavily for the first time in the year (in northern China). |
| Winter Solstice | dōng zhì 冬至 | Dec 21st | The daytime is the shortest and the nighttime is the longest of the year. |
| Minor Cold | xiǎo hán 小寒 | Jan 5th， 2025 | The weather rapidly reaches its coldest. |
| Major Cold | dà hán 大寒 | Jan 20th， 2025 | 'Major Cold' It is the coldest time of the year. |
The terms consist of 12 pairs of major (sectional) and minor (middle) solar terms interlaced with each other., namely The 24 solar terms embody a complete circle of the sun and divide the circle into 24 segments, with each segment being about half a month long. In both the lunar and solar calendars, the Gregorian calendar date of each solar term is basically fixed, with minor differences of within one or two days.
Meaning of the 24 Solar Terms
From the names of the 24 solar terms, we can see that the division of the solar terms has fully considered the variation of natural phenomena, such as seasons, climates and phenology.
The solar terms known as Start of Spring, Start of Summer, Start of Autumn, and Start of Winter are used to reflect the change of seasons, dividing the year into four seasons of exactly three months. While this fits an ideal pattern of dates, it does not reflect observable reality in most of China.
The solar terms of Vernal Equinox, Autumnal Equinox, Summer Solstice and Winter Solstice are divided from an astronomical aspect, reflecting the turning point of the variation of the altitude of the sun.
Minor Heat, Major Heat, Limit of Heat, Minor Cold, and Major Cold reflect the changes of temperature in different periods.
Clear and Bright, Rain Water, Grain Rain, Minor Snow, and Major Snow, White Dew, Cold Dew, and Frost Descent reflect the phenomenon of precipitation, indicating the time and intensity of rainfall, snowfall, dew, and frost.
Small Full (Grain) and Grain in Ear reflect the maturity and harvest time of crops, while Awakening of Insects reflects observed insect activity.
Origin
As early as the Spring and Autumn Period (770–476 BC), Chinese ancestors had already established two major solar terms, ri nan zhi (日南至 'Sun South Most') and ri bei zhi (日北至 'Sun North Most').
As of the end of the Warring States Period (475–221 BC), eight key solar terms (Start of Spring, Vernal Equinox, Start of Summer, Summer Solstice, Start of Autumn, Autumnal Equinox, Start of Winter and Winter Solstice) marking the four seasons, were established according to the different positions of the sun and changes in natural phenomena.
The rest of the solar terms were initiated in the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC–24 AD). Hence most terms refer to the climate of Xi'an, capital of the Han Dynasty.