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Traditional Chinese timekeeping
Traditional Chinese timekeeping refers to the time standards for divisions of the day used in China until the introduction of the Shixian calendar in 1628 at the beginning of the Qing dynasty.
Dating from the Han dynasty, the third chapter of the Huainanzi outlines 15 hours of daylight. These are dawn (晨明), morning light (朏明), daybreak (旦明), early meal (早食; 蚤食), feast meal (宴食), before noon (隅中), noon (正中), short shadow (少还; 小還), evening (𫗦时; 餔時; 'evening mealtime'), long shadow (大还; 大還), high setting (高舂), lower setting(下舂), sunset (县东; 縣東), twilight (黄昏; 黃昏), rest time (定昏). These correspond to each hour from 06:00 to 20:00 on the 24-hour clock.
The system used between the Eastern Han and Ming dynasties comprised two standards to measure the time in a solar day. Times during daylight were measured in the shí-kè standard, and at night were measured using the gēng-diǎn standard.
The shí-kè (時–刻) system is derived from the position of the sun.
Each shí (時; 时) was 1⁄12 of the time between one midnight and the next, making it roughly double the modern hour. These dual hours are named after the earthly branches in order, with midnight in the first shí. This first shí traditionally occurred from 23:00 to 01:00 on the 24-hour clock, but was changed during the Song dynasty so that it fell from 00:00 to 02:00, with midnight at the beginning.
Starting from the end of the Tang dynasty into the Song dynasty, each shí was divided in half, with the first half called the initial hour (初) and the second called the central hour (正). The change of the midnight hour in the Song dynasty could thus be stated as going from the central hour of the first shí (子正) to the initial hour of the first shí (子初).
Days were also divided into smaller units, called kè (刻). One kè was usually defined as 1⁄100 of a day until 1628, though there were short periods before then where days had 96, 108 or 120 kè. kè literally means "mark" or "engraving", referring to the marks placed on sundials or water clocks to help keep time.
Using the definition of kè as 1⁄100 of a day, each kè is equal to 0.24 hours, 14.4 minutes, or 14 minutes 24 seconds. Every shí contains 81⁄3 kè, with 7 or 8 full kè and partial beginning or ending kè. These fractional kè are multiples of 1⁄6 kè, or 2 minutes 24 seconds. The 7 or 8 full kè within each shí were referred to as "major kè" (大刻). Each 1⁄6 of a kè was called a "minor kè" (小刻).
Traditional Chinese timekeeping
Traditional Chinese timekeeping refers to the time standards for divisions of the day used in China until the introduction of the Shixian calendar in 1628 at the beginning of the Qing dynasty.
Dating from the Han dynasty, the third chapter of the Huainanzi outlines 15 hours of daylight. These are dawn (晨明), morning light (朏明), daybreak (旦明), early meal (早食; 蚤食), feast meal (宴食), before noon (隅中), noon (正中), short shadow (少还; 小還), evening (𫗦时; 餔時; 'evening mealtime'), long shadow (大还; 大還), high setting (高舂), lower setting(下舂), sunset (县东; 縣東), twilight (黄昏; 黃昏), rest time (定昏). These correspond to each hour from 06:00 to 20:00 on the 24-hour clock.
The system used between the Eastern Han and Ming dynasties comprised two standards to measure the time in a solar day. Times during daylight were measured in the shí-kè standard, and at night were measured using the gēng-diǎn standard.
The shí-kè (時–刻) system is derived from the position of the sun.
Each shí (時; 时) was 1⁄12 of the time between one midnight and the next, making it roughly double the modern hour. These dual hours are named after the earthly branches in order, with midnight in the first shí. This first shí traditionally occurred from 23:00 to 01:00 on the 24-hour clock, but was changed during the Song dynasty so that it fell from 00:00 to 02:00, with midnight at the beginning.
Starting from the end of the Tang dynasty into the Song dynasty, each shí was divided in half, with the first half called the initial hour (初) and the second called the central hour (正). The change of the midnight hour in the Song dynasty could thus be stated as going from the central hour of the first shí (子正) to the initial hour of the first shí (子初).
Days were also divided into smaller units, called kè (刻). One kè was usually defined as 1⁄100 of a day until 1628, though there were short periods before then where days had 96, 108 or 120 kè. kè literally means "mark" or "engraving", referring to the marks placed on sundials or water clocks to help keep time.
Using the definition of kè as 1⁄100 of a day, each kè is equal to 0.24 hours, 14.4 minutes, or 14 minutes 24 seconds. Every shí contains 81⁄3 kè, with 7 or 8 full kè and partial beginning or ending kè. These fractional kè are multiples of 1⁄6 kè, or 2 minutes 24 seconds. The 7 or 8 full kè within each shí were referred to as "major kè" (大刻). Each 1⁄6 of a kè was called a "minor kè" (小刻).