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by Maria Yang

The year 2025 in the traditional Chinese calendar is the Year of the Snake. Snakes are known as “little dragons.” The year begins on January 29, 2025, and ends on February 16, 2026.
Based on archaeological evidence, some form of calendar has been used in China for three-and-a half millennia. The Western Gregorian calendar was adopted by the Republic of China effective January 1, 1912, for official business, but the general populace continued to use the traditional calendar. The status of the Gregorian calendar was unclear between 1916 and 1921, when several competing warlords controlled China. From 1921 to 1928, warlords continued to fight over northern China, but the Nationalist government controlled southern China and used the Gregorian calendar.
After the establishment of the ROC by the nationalist government, the Gregorian calendar was officially adopted on January 1, 1929. The People’s Republic of China has continued to use the Gregorian calendar since 1949.
The Chinese traditional calendar is lunisolar, incorporating elements of a lunar calendar with those of a solar calendar. It is not exclusive to China but is followed by many other Asian cultures.
The Gregorian calendar is used for day-to-day activities in Taiwan. However, the traditional calendar is still used to mark traditional holidays such as the Chinese New Year, the Dragon Boat Festival, and the Mid-Autumn Festival. It is also used in Chinese astrology – for example, when choosing the most auspicious date for a wedding or building opening.
Unsurprisingly, some of the earliest printed items were calendars, since the Chinese found it necessary to calculate and mark which days were auspicious and which were not.
The two oldest printed Chinese calendars are dated 877 and 882; they were found at the Buddhist pilgrimage site of Dunhuang, China.
The practical benefit of this system is that the calendar is able to keep pace with the solar cycle while at the same time retaining months that roughly correspond with lunar cycles. Hence, the term Lunisolar calendar. The latter is essential because many traditional festivals correspond to significant moon cycle events. For example, the Mid-Autumn Festival is always on a day of the full moon.
The stem-branch cycle is the other system by which years are marked historically in China. This system is based on two forms of counting: a cycle of 10 Heavenly Stems and 12 Earthly Branches. Each year is named after a pair of one stem and one branch called a stem-branch. The 10 Heavenly Stems are associated with Yin Yang and the Five Elements. The 12 Earthly Branches are associated with the 12 signs of the Zodiac. Each Earthly Branch is also associated with an animal, collectively known as the Twelve Animals.
Therefore, this year is called “the Year of Yi-Si, or the Year of Snake, the Year of Wood Snake, or the Year of Green Snake.” Wood is one of five elements, and green or blue is the color of wood.
The Chinese calendar remains culturally essential today. Most traditional festivals, such as Chinese New Year and the Mid-Autumn Festival, occur on new or full moons. As an element of conventional culture, the traditional calendar has much cultural and national sentiment invested in it. The calendar is still used in more traditional Chinese households worldwide to pick auspicious dates for important events such as weddings, funerals, and business deals.
As stated in the 2025 Yun Lin Temple published calendar, written by Khadro Chu Rinpoche, Spiritual leader at Yun Lin Temple, “the Green Snake year will gradually break free from the chaotic and tumultuous situation of the previous two years, transitioning from ambiguity to gradual clarity… Thus, the year should be a year of positive upward change.”
Happy Lunar New Year! I wish everyone a prosperous, healthy, and productive year!