Traditional culture in plain words

Learn: five elements, zodiac signs, Ten Gods, solar terms and more

Plain-language guides to the five elements, the twelve zodiac signs and the Ten Gods, plus the 24 solar terms, Hong Kong's traditional festivals, Kua numbers and the nine flying stars, with Hong Kong dates for 2026 to 2028 — and a glossary of about a hundred key terms.

I'm Popo. Water flows slowly and steadily — let's learn the tradition one small step at a time.

Seasons and festivals

Where we are in the year

The 24 solar terms wheel marks today's term, and the timeline lists the festivals of the next twelve months.

The 24 solar terms wheel

Solar term dates for 2027

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The 24 solar terms wheel
Item	Value	Details
Start of Spring (立春)	February 4, 2027	Spring
Rain Water (雨水)	February 19, 2027	Spring
Awakening of Insects (驚蟄)	March 6, 2027	Spring
Spring Equinox (春分)	March 21, 2027	Spring
Qingming (清明)	April 5, 2027	Spring
Grain Rain (穀雨)	April 20, 2027	Spring
Start of Summer (立夏)	May 6, 2027	Summer
Grain Buds (小滿)	May 21, 2027	Summer
Grain in Ear (芒種)	June 6, 2027	Summer
Summer Solstice (夏至)	June 21, 2027	Summer
Lesser Heat (小暑)	July 7, 2027	Summer
Greater Heat (大暑)	July 23, 2027	Summer
Start of Autumn (立秋)	August 8, 2027	Autumn
End of Heat (處暑)	August 23, 2027	Autumn
White Dew (白露)	September 8, 2027	Autumn
Autumn Equinox (秋分)	September 23, 2027	Autumn
Cold Dew (寒露)	October 8, 2027	Autumn
Frost's Descent (霜降)	October 23, 2027	Autumn
Start of Winter (立冬)	November 7, 2027	Winter
Lesser Snow (小雪)	November 22, 2027	Winter
Greater Snow (大雪)	December 7, 2027	Winter
Winter Solstice (冬至)	December 22, 2027	Winter
Lesser Cold (小寒)	January 5, 2027	Winter
Greater Cold (大寒)	January 20, 2027	Winter

Traditional festivals in 2027

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Traditional festivals in 2027
Item	Value	Details
Thanking the Kitchen God (謝灶)	January 31, 2027	the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month
Lunar New Year's Eve (除夕)	February 5, 2027	the last day of the lunar year
Lunar New Year (農曆新年)	February 6, 2027	the 1st day of the first lunar month
Renri (人日), Human Day	February 12, 2027	the 7th day of the first lunar month
Lantern Festival (元宵節)	February 20, 2027	the 15th day of the first lunar month
Earth God Festival (土地誕)	March 9, 2027	the 2nd day of the second lunar month
Qingming (清明): the Tomb-Sweeping Festival	April 5, 2027	the day of the Qingming (清明) solar term
Mazu's Birthday (Tin Hau, 天后誕)	April 29, 2027	the 23rd day of the third lunar month
Buddha's Birthday (佛誕)	May 13, 2027	the 8th day of the fourth lunar month
Dragon Boat Festival (端午節)	June 9, 2027	the 5th day of the fifth lunar month
Guan Di Festival (關帝誕)	July 27, 2027	the 24th day of the sixth lunar month
Qixi, the Double Seventh Festival (七夕)	August 8, 2027	the 7th day of the seventh lunar month
Yu Lan Festival (盂蘭節)	August 16, 2027	the 15th day of the seventh lunar month
Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋節)	September 15, 2027	the 15th day of the eighth lunar month
Double Ninth Festival (重陽節)	October 8, 2027	the 9th day of the ninth lunar month
Winter Solstice (冬至)	December 22, 2027	the day of the Dongzhi (冬至) solar term

When the current term or the full next twelve months are outside the recorded dates, the chart shows 2027 dates.

Colours mark the seasons: green for spring, red for summer, gold for autumn, blue for winter.

Five elements

The five elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water

The five elements are five qualities — Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. Tradition uses them to pair the seasons with directions and colours, and describes how each element feeds the next or restrains the one after.

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Zodiac signs

The twelve zodiac signs: from Rat to Pig

The twelve zodiac signs pair twelve animals with twelve branches, in the order Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. Here each sign's traditional character, its harmonious partners and its customs are introduced in plain words.

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Ten Gods

The Ten Gods: ten relations to the day master

The Ten Gods are ten traditional names describing how another stem relates to the day master — the stem of your birth day, which stands for you — sorted by the feeding and restraining cycles and by polarity. Each one is introduced here in plain words, with everyday examples.

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Solar terms

The 24 solar terms

Solar terms (節氣) are 24 points in the year, fixed long ago by the Sun's position. Each one lasts about fifteen days. They mark the turn of the seasons and the weather. In the past, they guided farming. They also shape food and festivals. Chinese communities around the world still keep these traditions today. All dates and times below are in Hong Kong time (UTC+8). Readers overseas may convert them to their own time zone.

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Festivals

Traditional Chinese festivals

These festivals include traditional holidays and the birthdays of deities. They follow the lunar calendar and have long been part of Chinese life. Communities in mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaysia and overseas celebrate them in much the same way. Western dates for 2026 to 2028 are shown, to help you plan ahead.

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Kua

Life Gua and the Eight Mansions directions

The Life Gua is worked out from birth year and gender, and belongs to the East or West group. Each Gua has four traditional favourable directions and four to take care with.

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Flying stars

The nine flying stars

The nine stars are the numbers of Flying Star feng shui; each year they move through the nine palaces by a fixed path. Here is where each star sits in 2027.

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Glossary

About a hundred traditional calendar and feng shui terms in eight themes; each one gets a plain one-line meaning and a short explanation, ready whenever you meet an unfamiliar word.

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FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Thirty-six questions in six themes, from using FengSync to lucky colours and bracelets; every answer links to the page that explains more.

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