Hi everyone, I'm Youmi MaMa
Ask a question: Is your family celebrating a baby's birthday a "solar calendar" or a "lunar calendar"?
Colleague Lin Lin is going to hold a birthday party for her 5-year-old daughter, and has a long birthday party menu, preparing to invite her daughter's good friends to her home on her birthday. I also specially invited friends who know how to bake to help.
She said: The child is already in a large class, and I want to give the child a little sense of ritual, which can also be regarded as leaving a little good memories for the kindergarten.
However, the problem is, their family usually celebrates the birthday of the solar calendar, and this birthday party also intends to follow the previous experience. But after my mother-in-law heard that there was a birthday banquet, she always strongly recommended celebrating the "lunar birthday".
The old man firmly believes that the lunar calendar calculation method left by the ancestors is more "accurate", and even moved out the "birthday eight characters" to convince the little two.
The birthday banquet, which was originally not difficult, was stuck due to the intervention of my mother-in-law. The little couple originally planned to do it secretly, to cut first and then play, who knew that the mother-in-law unexpectedly valued this matter, and called every three to five to inquire, which made Linlin also embarrassed.
What exactly is the difference between lunar and solar calendars?
If you want to give your child an accurate birthday, you need to figure out what is the difference between the lunar calendar and the lunar calendar?
I don't know if you've noticed that people use different calendar systems in different cultural traditions and religious backgrounds.
For example, Western countries use the solar calendar extensively, while China and some Southeast Asian countries are better at using the lunar calendar.
Interestingly, whether it is a lunar or solar calendar, they are human observations and records of time and astronomical phenomena. Although the starting point is the same, there are still clear differences:
● First of all, in terms of periodicity
The solar calendar is a calendar based on the Earth's orbit around the Sun, dividing a year into 365 days or 366 days (leap years).
The lunar calendar, on the other hand, is based on the law of the moon's rotation around the earth, dividing the year into 12 months, each determined by the time between one full moon and the next.
The monthly length of the lunar calendar is not fixed, and the year usually contains 354~355 days.
The dates of each month in the lunar calendar carry the meaning of the phases of the moon, with 11 out of every 30 years being leap years and the other 19 being common years.
● Secondly, in terms of the purpose of use
Since the mainland has always been a large agricultural country, the solar calendar is mainly used in the continent to calculate seasons, crop planting and other climate-related affairs.
The lunar calendar, as a calendar left by the ancestors, is more used in some religions, festivals and cultural activities. For example, China's Spring Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival.
Due to the different calculation methods, the lunar calendar time is about eleven days different from the solar calendar. This has led to the fact that birthdays have solar and lunar calendars.
For children's birthdays, should I choose a solar calendar or a lunar calendar?
● The calculation method starts, and the solar birthday is more accurate
I don't know if you have found that the dates on the ID card are mostly solar birthdays. Not only ID cards, but also other important documents, such as marriage certificates, graduation certificates and other authoritative documents, are subject to the date of the solar calendar.
This is because the algorithm of the solar calendar is indeed more accurate in terms of accuracy.
The solar calendar algorithm is based on the Earth's orbit around the Sun, with a constant 365 days per year (or 366 days in leap years), which corresponds to the actual time of the Earth's revolution, and nothing else.
The lunar calendar, on the other hand, is based on the phases of the moon, is not fixed in length, and is difficult to correspond exactly to the 365 days of the solar calendar. Sometimes one month (leap month) is added to the year to align with the solar calendar, so occasionally there are 13 months in a year.
As a result, if calculated according to the lunar calendar, it is likely that the child's birthday will be many days different from the previous year.
● Starting from traditional culture, lunar birthdays are more formal
The mainland has a long farming culture and lunar tradition, and most people, especially the elderly, have a deep sense of affection and identification with the lunar calendar. They believe that lunar birthdays are more symbolic, so in many places, as soon as a child is born, parents will use his lunar "birthday" to predict future fortunes.
In addition, some major festivals in the mainland are calculated by the lunar calendar, such as the Mid-Autumn Festival and the Spring Festival, which makes many families pay more attention to the lunar birthday, and they firmly believe that the lunar birthday has more special meaning and energy, which is more in line with our traditional culture.
Many families around who have "lunar birthdays" actually stem from the traditional customs and family agreements of their elders.
For children, birthdays are a meaningful and special moment in ordinary days. We celebrate our child's birthday in the hope of giving meaning to this special day.
For example, letting the child know that he has grown up another year, letting the child feel the company of his family, and leaving some precious and unforgettable memories of the child's childhood are more important than the birthday itself!
Therefore, whether to choose the lunar calendar or the solar calendar, each family can depend on their own situation.
Just like my family, I usually celebrate lunar birthdays, because my parents have always had lunar birthdays since I was a child, but I have always given her solar birthdays after Yumi was born.
This is because although the old mother celebrates the lunar birthday every year, the lunar date is difficult to remember, and she often forgets not to mention it, and she has made a lot of oolong because of the lunar birthday.
I remember once the company celebrated the birthday of an employee in August, and I was elected as a speaking representative, but according to the lunar calendar, it was obviously not my birthday, which was very embarrassing!
Therefore, I would recommend families who value tradition and can choose lunar birthdays for their children; And families who don't pay much attention to it, can choose the solar calendar.
The child's 4th birthday should be well celebrated
Some families do not pay attention to the sense of birthday ritual and think that it is not necessary. But you know what? Psychological findings have found that the picture of a child getting along with his family when he is a child will become an important source of security when he grows up.
For example, telling stories before going to bed every night and celebrating birthdays will become armor on their way forward.
So if there are conditions, whether it is a solar calendar or a lunar calendar, the following 4 birthdays, it is recommended to give your child a good life:
◆ 6th birthday: Entering elementary school
At this time, it is in a critical period of children's cognitive development, and parents can pass on to their children through this birthday: "Congratulations, you have become a primary school student, you are now an older child, and there are some things that can be decided by yourself." ”
◆12th birthday: entering puberty
When children enter puberty, parents should make their children feel cared for by the family on this birthday, so that they know that whenever they turn back, their parents are behind them.
◆14th birthday: Start taking responsibility
On this birthday, parents should tell their children, "You are old enough to be legally criminally responsible, which means you need to be responsible for what you do, and from now on you must think twice about doing things and not challenge the bottom line." ”
◆18th birthday: adulthood
The child is finally an adult, and this birthday will be a watershed moment in his life. We have to tell him that "adulthood means having more responsibility, starting to take responsibility for your actions, becoming more independent and inclusive."
In "The Little Prince", it is said that the sense of ritual is to make a certain day different from other days, to make a certain moment different from other moments.
As a child grows up, there are always several ritualistic moments to record. 365 days a year, if there are not a few highlight moments, the days will be like flowing water without memory points, such a life is inevitably a little too boring, are you right?
Today's topic: Is your child celebrating a lunar or solar birthday? Why did you choose this birthday?