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The traditional Korean calendar is a lunisolar calendar
Lunisolar calendar

A lunisolar calendar is a calendar in many cultures whose date indicates both the moon phase and the time of the solar year. If the solar year is defined as a tropical year then a lunisolar calendar will give an indication of the season; if it is taken as a sidereal year then the calendar will predict the constellation near which the full moo...
 which, like the traditional calendars of other East Asia
East Asia

East Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either Geography or cultural terms. Geography and geopolitically, it covers about 12,000,000 km?, or about 28 percent of the Asian continent, about 15 percent bigger than the area of Europe, though some categorize Tibet, Xinjiang, and Mongolia as Central Asia....
n countries, was based on the Chinese calendar
Chinese calendar

The Chinese calendar is lunisolar calendar, incorporating elements of a lunar calendar with those of a solar calendar. This measure of time was first introduced by the Babylonians ....
. Dates are calculated from Korea's meridian
Meridian (geography)

A meridian is an imaginary arc on the Earth's surface from the North Pole to the South Pole that connects all locations running along it with a given longitude....
, and observances and festivals are based in Korean culture.

The Gregorian calendar
Gregorian calendar

The Gregorian calendar is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was first proposed by the Calabrian doctor Aloysius Lilius, and decreed by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom it was named, on 24 February 1582 by the papal bull Inter gravissimas....
 was officially adopted in 1895, but traditional holidays and age-reckoning for older generations are still based on the old calendar. The biggest festival in Korea today is Seollal, the first day of the traditional Korean New Year
Korean New Year

Korean New Year, commonly known as Seollal , is the first day of the lunar Korean calendar. It is the most important of the traditional Korean holidays....
.






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The traditional Korean calendar is a lunisolar calendar
Lunisolar calendar

A lunisolar calendar is a calendar in many cultures whose date indicates both the moon phase and the time of the solar year. If the solar year is defined as a tropical year then a lunisolar calendar will give an indication of the season; if it is taken as a sidereal year then the calendar will predict the constellation near which the full moo...
 which, like the traditional calendars of other East Asia
East Asia

East Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either Geography or cultural terms. Geography and geopolitically, it covers about 12,000,000 km?, or about 28 percent of the Asian continent, about 15 percent bigger than the area of Europe, though some categorize Tibet, Xinjiang, and Mongolia as Central Asia....
n countries, was based on the Chinese calendar
Chinese calendar

The Chinese calendar is lunisolar calendar, incorporating elements of a lunar calendar with those of a solar calendar. This measure of time was first introduced by the Babylonians ....
. Dates are calculated from Korea's meridian
Meridian (geography)

A meridian is an imaginary arc on the Earth's surface from the North Pole to the South Pole that connects all locations running along it with a given longitude....
, and observances and festivals are based in Korean culture.

The Gregorian calendar
Gregorian calendar

The Gregorian calendar is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was first proposed by the Calabrian doctor Aloysius Lilius, and decreed by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom it was named, on 24 February 1582 by the papal bull Inter gravissimas....
 was officially adopted in 1895, but traditional holidays and age-reckoning for older generations are still based on the old calendar. The biggest festival in Korea today is Seollal, the first day of the traditional Korean New Year
Korean New Year

Korean New Year, commonly known as Seollal , is the first day of the lunar Korean calendar. It is the most important of the traditional Korean holidays....
. Other important festivals include Daeboreum
Daeboreum

Daeboreum is a Korea holiday that celebrates the first full moon of the new year of the lunar Korean calendar. This holiday is accompanied by many traditions....
 (the first full moon), Dano (spring festival) and Chuseok
Chuseok

Chuseok, originally known as Hangawi , is a major harvest festival and a three-day holiday in Korea celebrated on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar....
 (harvest festival).

See also Public holidays in North Korea
Public holidays in North Korea

This is a list of Public holidays in North Korea as of 2007. See also Korean calendar for a list of traditional holidays....
 and Public holidays in South Korea
Public holidays in South Korea

In South Korea, each public holiday belongs to one or more of three possible categories: National Celebration Day, National Flag Raising Day and/or Public Day Off....
.

History

The traditional calendar designated its years via Korean era name
Korean era name

Korean era names were used during the period of Silla, Goguryeo, Balhae, Taebong, Goryeo, Joseon, and the Korean Empire. Dangun-giwon, the era name originating from the foundation of Gojoseon is also widely used in Korea as an indication of long civilisation of Korea....
s from 270 to 963. Then Chinese era name
Chinese era name

A Chinese era name is the era name, reign period, or regnal title used when traditionally numbering years in an emperor's reign and naming certain Chinese rulers ....
s were used until 1895 when the official use of the lunar calendar ceased.

The Gregorian calendar was adopted by the new Korean Empire
Korean Empire

The Greater Korean Empire was a former empire of Korea that succeded the Joseon Dynasty that ruled the nation over the past 500 years.In 1897, Emperor Gojong of Korea proclaimed the new entity at Deoksugung Palace and oversaw the partially successful modernization of the military, economy, real property laws, education system, and various...
 on 1 January 1895, but with years numbered from the foundation of the Joseon Dynasty
Joseon Dynasty

Joseon , was a sovereign state founded by Taejo Taejo of Joseon, and lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded in the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo Kingdom at what is today the city of Kaesong....
 in 1393. From 1897, Korean era names were used for its years until Japan annexed Korea
Korea under Japanese rule

Korea was under Japanese rule as part of the Imperial Japan during the first half of the 20th century, until the surrender of Japan in 1945. Korea was occupied and declared a Japanese protectorate in 1905 , and officially annexation in 1910 through an Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty....
 in 1910. Then Japanese era name
Japanese era name

The Japanese era calendar scheme is a common calendar scheme used in Japan, which identifies a year by the combination of the and the year number within the era....
s were used to count the years of the Gregorian calendar used in Korea until Japanese occupation ended in 1945.

From 1945 until 1961 in South Korea
South Korea

South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea , ), often referred to as Korea and the "names of Korea#Revival of the names", is a Semi-presidential system republic in East Asia, located in the southern half of the Korean Peninsula....
, Gregorian calendar years were counted from the foundation of Gojoseon
Gojoseon

Gojoseon was an ancient Korean kingdom, considered the first proper nation of the Korean people. According to the Samguk Yusa and other Korean medieval-era records, Gojoseon is said to have been founded in 2333 BC by the legendary Dangun, who is said to be the grandson of Heaven ....
 in 2333 BCE
Common Era

Common Era, abbreviated as CE, is a designation for the calendar system most commonly used in the Western world, and also internationally, for numbering the year part of the calendar date....
 (regarded as year one), the date of the legendary founding of Korea by Dangun
Dangun

Dangun Wanggeom was the legendary founder of Gojoseon, the first Korean kingdom, around present-day Liaoning, Manchuria, and the Korean Peninsula....
, hence these Dangi years were 4278 to 4294. This numbering was informally used with the Korean lunar calendar before 1945 but is only occasionally used today.

In North Korea
North Korea

North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea , is a state in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula....
, the Juche calendar
Juche

The Juche Idea is the official state ideology of North Korea and the political system based on it. The doctrine is a component part of Kimilsungism, the North Korean term for Kim Il-sung's family regime....
 has been used since 1997 to number its years, based on the birth of Kim Il Sung.

Features

  • The Chinese zodiac
    Chinese astrology

    Chinese astrology is based on the astronomy and traditional calendars. The Chinese astrology does not calculate the positions of the sun, moon and planets at the time of birth....
     of 12 Earthly Branches
    Earthly Branches

    The Earthly Branches provide one China system for reckoning time.This system was built from observations of the orbit of Jupiter. Chinese astronomers divided the celestial circle into 12 sections to follow the orbit of Su?xing ....
     (animals), which were used for counting hours and years;
  • Ten Heavenly Stems
    Heavenly Stems

    The ten Celestial Stems , sometimes known as Heavenly Stems, are the elements of an ancient China cyclic character numeral system: Jia , Yi , Bing , Ding , Wu , Ji , Geng , Xin , Ren , Gui ....
    , which were combined with the 12 Earthly Branches to form a sixty-year cycle;
  • Twenty-four solar term
    Solar term

    A solar term is one of 24 points in traditional East Asian lunisolar calendars that matches a particular astronomical event or signifies some natural phenomenon....
    s (jeolgi ?? ??) in the year, spaced roughly 15 days apart;
  • Lunar months including leap months added every two or three years.


Festivals

The lunar calendar is used for the observation of traditional festivals, such as Korean New Year, Chuseok, and Buddha's Birthday
Buddha's Birthday

Buddha's Birthday , the birthday of the Gautama_Buddha traditionally celebrated in East Asia on the eighth day of the fourth month in the Chinese calendar, is an official holiday in Hong Kong, Macau, and South Korea....
. It is also used for jesa memorial services for ancestors and the marking of birthdays by older Koreans.

Traditional holidays

There are also many regional festivals celebrated according to the lunar calendar.

See also

  • List of Korea-related topics
    List of Korea-related topics

    This is a list of articles on Korea-related people, places, things, and concepts. For help on how to use this list, see the #Introduction below....
  • Traditional Korean culture
  • Korean era name
    Korean era name

    Korean era names were used during the period of Silla, Goguryeo, Balhae, Taebong, Goryeo, Joseon, and the Korean Empire. Dangun-giwon, the era name originating from the foundation of Gojoseon is also widely used in Korea as an indication of long civilisation of Korea....
  • Sexagenary cycle
    Sexagenary cycle

    The China sexagenary cycle , also known as Stems-Branches , is a cyclic numeral system of 60 combinations of the two basic cycles, the 10 Heavenly Stems and the 12 Earthly Branches ....
  • Chinese calendar
    Chinese calendar

    The Chinese calendar is lunisolar calendar, incorporating elements of a lunar calendar with those of a solar calendar. This measure of time was first introduced by the Babylonians ....