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Copyright © 2024 CGTN. 京ICP备20000184号
Disinformation report hotline: 010-85061466
While China's over two-thousand-year-old Qingming Festival, or Tomb-sweeping Day, falls on April 5 on most occasions, this year has witnessed an early arrival of the festival, which falls on April 4. With that, people usually call this occurrence a "Zao Qingming," literally meaning an early Qingming Festival.
A ceremony in memory of the 1,262nd death anniversary of Tang Dynasty (618-907) poet Li Bai is held in Ma'anshan, Anhui Province on April 3, 2024. /CFP
According to folk customs, the three days before or the four days after Qingming Festival are the best times for tomb sweeping. Though tomb sweeping is appropriate on Tomb-sweeping Day itself, many people choose to do it on the days before or after, considering the peak flow of people and traffic congestion.
Visitors take photos among blooming rapeseed flowers in Jiaozuo, Henan Province on April 4, 2024, as they enjoy the Qingming Festival holidays. /CFP
Lin Yuan, a Tianjin-based expert in astronomical science, said that due to the way the Gregorian calendar is structured, the specific day of Qingming Festival can differ. The time that the Earth moves around the Sun once is called a "solar year," which is 365.24 days. However, a year is regarded as 365 days long in Gregorian calendar, so there is an extra 0.24 days per year.
With that, the Qingming Festival usually falls between April 4 and 6. No matter when you choose to sweep the tombs, the most important thing is to keep a pious and respectful heart as this is a chance to honor your ancestors and late beloved ones.