China Internet Information Center
  April 2012  

Sun

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

1

 

2 3

4

Pure Brightness

5

15th/3rd mo.

6 7

8 

 

9 10 11 12 13 14

15 

 

16 17 18 19

20

Grain Rain

21

1st/4th mo.

22 

 

23 24 25 26 27 28

29

 

30

Holidays and Observances:

1: April Fool's Day.

4: Pure Brightness Festival (Tomb-sweeping Day). Marks the 5th seasonal division point and usually falls on April 4 or 5; a traditional festival for commemorating the dead, 1 day off.

5: Flower Fair of the Nu ethnic group (also called Fairy Maiden's Festival) held on the 15th day of the 3rd lunar month. The Nu people living around Gongshan, Nujiang Prefecture, Yunnan Province, dress in costumes adorned with flowers and offer blossoms to the stone statue in the Fairy Maiden Cave on Mount Gaoligong. A party inside the cave features food and drink, and song and dance follows.

5-10: Annual Fair of the Bai People, held at the foot of Diancang Mountain to the west of Dali city in Yunnan. Primarily a trading fair that lasts from the 15th to the 20th of the 3rd lunar month, peripheral activities include horseracing, archery contests, and music and dance performances.

7: World Health Day. The day coincides with the anniversary of the establishment of the World Health Organization on April 7, 1948. Its objective is the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health in physical, mental and social well-being terms, but not just the absence of disease or infirmity.

8: Easter Day is observed on the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs next after the vernal equinox.

9: Mountain Climbing Festival held on the 19th day of the 3rd lunar month, a chance for young Miao people in Guizhou Province to meet and greet each other. Young men and women climb mountains, sing and dance to get acquainted.

11: Worship at Genghis Khan's Tomb, held by the Mongolian ethnic minority four times a year, on the 21st of the 3rd lunar month, 15th of the 5th lunar month, 12th of the 9th month and 3rd of the 10th month. Activities on the day of worship also include horseracing.

13: Birthday of Mazu, goddess of the sea. In the days immediately before and after the 23rd day of the 3rd lunar month, people in southeast China's coastal areas honor the goddess with celebrations and rituals.

13-15: Water-Sprinkling Festival, the New Year celebration of the Dai ethnic group in Yunnan, and their most splendid festival. The celebration is usually held between April 13-15, with people sprinkling water over each other as a token of blessing. Among the young, the sprinkling often escalates into splashing and sometimes complete drenching. Other activities include dragon boat racing and fireworks.

22: Earth Day. With the push by the environment-conscious Senator Nelson who proposed a special day to teach everyone about the things that needed changing in our environment, on April 22, 1970, the first Earth Day was held. People all over the country made promises to help the environment and since then Earth Day has spread all over the world and was then recognized as an international day.

23: World Book and Copyright Day.

28: Yanu Festival. On the 8th day of the 4th lunar month, the Miao people of south and central China commemorate their hero, Yanu. Major activities include dancing to drum and lusheng (a type of mouth organ), climbing blade ladders and eating glutinous rice.

 
Notes:

1. In the traditional calendar, the new moon indicates the first day of a lunar month; the full moon marks the 15th day.

2. Dates in red are official holidays. To give workers longer holidays during the year, the Saturday and Sunday immediately preceding or following the extended holiday are official workdays. In 2012, there are six official working Saturdays and Sundays respectively on January 21 (Saturday), January 29 (Sunday), March 31 (Saturday), April 1 (Sunday), April 28 (Saturday) and September 29 (Saturday).

3. The 24 Seasonal Division Points:

Order & Name of Seasonal Division Point Sun's Position at Ecliptic Gregorian Calendar Date
Spring 1.Beginning of Spring
2.Rain Water
3.Waking of Insects
4.Vernal Equinox
5.Pure Brightness
6.Grain Rain
315°
330°
345°

15°
30°
4 or 5 February
18 or 19 February
5 or 6 March
20 or 21 March
4 or 5 April
20 or 21 April
Summer 7.Beginning of Summer
8.Grain Budding
9.Grain in Ear
10.Summer Solstice
11.Slight Heat
12.Great Heat
45°
60°
75°
90°
105°
120°
5 or 6 May
21 or 22 May
5 or 6 June
21 or 22 June
7 or 8 July
22 or 23 July
Autumn 13.Beginning of Autumn
14.Limit of Heat
15.White Dew
16.Autumnal Equinox
17.Cold Dew
18.Frost's Descent
135°
150°
165°
180°
195°
210°
7 or 8 August
23 or 24 August
7 or 8 September
22 or 23 September
8 or 9 October
23 or 24 October
Winter 19.Beginning of Winter
20.Slight Snow
21.Great Snow
22.Winter Solstice
23.Slight Cold
24.Great Cold
225°
240°
255°
270°
285°
300°
7 or 8 November
22 or 23 November
7 or 8 December
21 or 22 December
5 or 6 January
20 or 21 January
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