How were the twelve hours divided in ancient China?

Mondo Culture Updated on 2024-02-07

Hello everyone, the traditional Chinese timekeeping, the day and night are divided into 12 sections, corresponding to the modern 24 hours, each section is called an hour, equal to the present two hours, the twelve hours are named after the earthly branch, from the middle of the night, 23 o'clock in the middle of the night to one o'clock is the sub hour, also known as the middle of the night, is the most yin time of the day, corresponding to the modern twelve o'clock in the evening, one to three o'clock is ugly, also known as the rooster crow, corresponding to the modern two o'clock in the evening, three o'clock to five o'clock for the Yin time, also known as Pingdan, corresponding to the modern 4 o'clock in the evening, five o'clock to seven o'clock for the Mao time, Also known as sunrise, it is the time when night and day alternate, when the sun has just risen, corresponding to 6 o'clock in the morning in modern times.

Seven o'clock to nine o'clock is the hour, also known as the time of food, is the time of breakfast corresponding to the modern eight o'clock, nine o'clock to eleven o'clock is the time, also known as the middle of the day, meaning near noon, corresponding to the modern ten o'clock, eleven o'clock to thirteen o'clock for the noon, also called the middle of the day, noon meaning, is the day when the yang is at its peak, corresponding to the modern twelve o'clock, thirteen o'clock to fifteen o'clock is called the time, also known as the sun falling, the meaning of the sun is westerly, corresponding to the modern point, fifteen o'clock to seventeen o'clock for the Shen time, also known as the sun, corresponding to the modern four o'clock, Seventeen o'clock to nineteen o'clock is unitary time, also known as sunset, which means that the sun has set, corresponding to six o'clock at noon in modern times.

Nineteen o'clock to twenty-one o'clock is the time of the sun, also known as dusk, the sun has set, the sky will be dark, corresponding to the modern eight o'clock.

From twenty-one to twenty-three o'clock, it is called Hai, and it is also a celebrity, when the night is late, people stop their activities, and sleep peacefully, corresponding to ten o'clock in the modern evening.

The ancients used five watches to express the night as one watch, the second watch when the Hai time, the third watch when the child time, the ugly time for the five watches, and the Yin time for the five watches. We really admire the ingenuity of the ancients.

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