Summer Solstice 夏至
On the summer solstice, the day is longest as the sun shines nearly straight overhead. Daylight then shortens as true midsummer heat arrives. An old saying goes, dumplings at winter solstice, noodles at summer solstice; today people eat cooling noodles.
Deer antlers dropFirst pentad
Cicadas start to singSecond pentad
Crow-dipper growsThird pentad
Three pentads
- First pentadDeer antlers dropDeer shed their old antlers, which the ancients read as summer's peak giving way to the first cool.
- Second pentadCicadas start to singCicadas begin their loud singing.
- Third pentadCrow-dipper growsThe herb pinellia sprouts; its Chinese name, banxia, means half of summer, after the time it grows.
Custom
Eat chilled noodles to beat the heat.
Start dates
- June 21, 2025
- June 21, 2026
- June 21, 2027