Liuyue

Liùyuè (Chinese: 六月) is the sixth month of the Chinese calendar and calendars based on it such as the Japanese calendar, Korean calendar and Vietnamese calendar. It follows Wǔyuè and precedes Qīyuè. It is known in Japanese as Rokugatsu (Japanese: 六月) or traditionally Minazuki (Japanese: 水無月), and in Korean as Yuwol (Korean: 유월; Hanja: 六月) or traditionally Yangdal (Korean: 양달; Hanja: 未月). All of these words can also refer to the month of June in the Gregorian calendar.

Names

In Mandarin Chinese, traditional names of the month include héyuè (Chinese: 荷月) and jìxià (Chinese: 季夏)..

In Japanese, the month is known as rokugatsu (Japanese: 六月) or traditionally minazuki (Japanese: 水無月). Although the spelling 水無月 can suggest a month without water, since the character 無 normally means "absent" or "not exist", it is used in 水無月 only as an ateji for a possessive particle equivalent to no, giving the sense "month of water". This is a reference to the flooding of the rice fields, which requires large amounts of water.

In Kyoto, minazuki (水無月) is also the name of a triangular uirō sweet topped with adzuki beans, traditionally eaten in summer.

Observances

• The Double Sixth Festival is held on the 6th day of the 6th month.
• Yudu is celebrated on the 15th day of the 6th month in Korea.
• Nagoshi no harae, the summer great purification, was traditionally performed on the last day of the 6th month in Japan.

Dates

Below is a list of the start and end dates of Liùyuè in the Gregorian calendar. Because the 1-hour difference between China and Japan/Korea occasionally affects the date on which a new moon occurs, the dates below can differ from those of the Japanese and Korean calendars.

References