 Here is the ninth legend. This is about the Chinese Calendar.  Can you find out more about it? Can you find different versions of this legend?

The Chinese Calendar

The traditional Chinese calendar has been used for centuries by farmers to tell them when to plant and when to harvest. It also continues to define the dates of festivals and is used for horoscopes in China. This calendar has a very long history going back to the Xia (21st century BC - 16th century BC) and Shang Dynasty (16th century BC - 11th century BC). It is based on a unique combination of astronomy and geography through observation and exploration. It is also referred to as the Lunar Calendar, Yin calendar, Xia calendar or the old Chinese calendar. A lunar month is the time between one full moon and the next, approximately twenty-eight days during which the moon orbits the earth. The lunar year consists of thirteen months of twenty-eight days each. This means that the Chinese New Year falls on varying dates between the latter part of January and early February.

According to the Lunar Calendar, a new month begins when the moon moves into line with the earth and the sun. This is called 'Chu Yi' or 'Shuo Ri' (the first day of a lunar month). The year was divided into in 24 equal parts, each forming the 24 solar terms. The month with its first day nearest the Beginning of Spring (the first solar term) is the first lunar month. This varies between January 20th and February 20th.

People in ancient times thought that there is a 19 year cycle and within this cycle certain solar days equate with the lunar day. For example, in 1963, 1982, and 2001, May 28th coincided with the sixth day of the fourth month in the lunar year.

1. The Lunar Calendar is based on observations of the weather and the solstices. 2. But the weather is changing these days. Typhoons and floods are frequent. 3. Does the Lunar Calendar have anything to tell us about this?