Major Cold (大寒, Dahan): The Last Term Before Spring

Major Cold (大寒, Dahan) is the 24th and final solar term, beginning at 300 degrees of solar longitude. It closes the traditional year: when it ends, Start of Spring begins a new year pillar.

Dates

The Major Cold of the 2026 cycle falls on 20 January 2027 at 16:30 Korea time; the one of the 2027 cycle on 20 January 2028 at 22:22. It is a qi (氣) term in the middle of the Ox month (丑), so the month pillar set at Minor Cold continues: 辛丑 in the first case, 癸丑 in the second.

Major Cold lasts until the sun reaches 315 degrees. In the 2026 cycle that is Start of Spring on 4 February 2027 at 10:46, 14 days 18 hours 16 minutes later. At that minute both the month (to 寅) and the year (from 丙午 to 丁未) change together.

Three kinds of 'new year' in a row

Late January and early February hold several year boundaries that are easy to mix up. The Gregorian year has already turned. The Four Pillars year turns at Start of Spring. The lunar year, celebrated as Seollal in Korea, turns at the second new moon after the winter solstice in most years, so its order relative to Start of Spring changes: in 2027 Seollal comes three days after Start of Spring, while in 2028 it comes eight days before it.

From Major Cold to the new year, two cycles compared (KST)
	2026 cycle	2027 cycle
Major Cold begins	2027-01-20 16:30	2028-01-20 22:22
Month pillar during Major Cold	辛丑	癸丑
Lunar New Year (Seollal)	2027-02-07	2028-01-27
Start of Spring	2027-02-04 10:46	2028-02-04 16:31
Length of Major Cold	14 d 18 h 16 min	14 d 18 h 9 min
Year pillar before / after Start of Spring	丙午 / 丁未	丁未 / 戊申

What the name means

大 is great and 寒 is cold. In northern China this is traditionally the harshest fortnight of the year. In Korea it is often a little milder than Minor Cold, but it is still deep winter.

What changes in nature

Ice is at its thickest on lakes and rivers, and in the tradition's reading the 丑 month's long Earth phase (18 of its 30 days, by the hidden-stem division 癸 9, 辛 3, 己 18) settles the ground before Wood appears at Start of Spring. The classical almanac names three signs: hens begin to hatch chicks, birds of prey fly fast and fierce, and the ice of lakes reaches all the way to the middle.

Seasonal foods and customs

This is the season of getting ready for Seollal: households prepare rice cake for tteokguk and gather ingredients for the holiday table. On Jeju Island there is a custom called singugan (新舊間), a window from about five days after Major Cold to about three days before Start of Spring, when the island's household spirits were said to be away, so people traditionally chose it for moving house or repairs.

For everyday meals, ginger and jujube chicken soup or beef and radish soup keep the table warm.

Gentle habits for the season

Clear out and clean a little at a time, so the house feels ready for spring and the holiday.
Keep up warm, regular meals rather than skipping meals in the busy pre-holiday weeks.
Use the lengthening afternoons for a short walk in the sun.
Look back over the year before the new one starts: a list of what went well is enough.

A line of poetry

Liu Changqing's 《逢雪宿芙蓉山主人》 (Lodging with the Master of Hibiscus Mountain in Snow) begins: 「日暮蒼山遠，天寒白屋貧。」 "At dusk the blue mountains are far away; in the cold sky the thatched hut looks poor."

Questions

Is Major Cold the end of the Four Pillars year?

Yes. The year pillar changes at the next Start of Spring. For the 2026 cycle that is 4 February 2027 at 10:46 KST, when 丙午 gives way to 丁未.

Why is Seollal sometimes before and sometimes after Start of Spring?

Seollal follows the moon, Start of Spring follows the sun. In 2027 Seollal (7 February) is after it; in 2028 Seollal (27 January) is before it.

If I am born on Seollal 2028, which year pillar do I have?

丁未. Seollal on 27 January 2028 comes before Start of Spring on 4 February 2028 at 16:31, so the 丁未 year is still running.

What comes after Major Cold?

Start of Spring (立春), which begins the next cycle of 24 terms.

Recipes for this season

Abalone Rice Porridge (Jeonbokjuk) and the Water ElementKorean abalone porridge in 40 minutes: 2 abalone, 1 cup of rice, 6 cups of water. Why the tradition reads it as an even, all-season Water dish.Baek-kimchi: a Cool Metal White Kimchi without ChiliKorean white kimchi with napa cabbage, radish and pear in a clear brine, no chili. How the tradition reads its white colour as Metal.Black Sesame Porridge: a Black, Water-Element BowlBlack sesame porridge in 20 minutes with 4 tbsp black sesame and glutinous rice. Why black foods are read as Water, for autumn and winter tables.Broccoli and Tofu Salad: a 15-Minute Wood and Water SideA 15-minute Korean side of blanched broccoli and mashed tofu, and how the five-element tradition reads its green Wood and soft Water.Chestnut Rice (Bam-bap): an Autumn Earth BowlKorean chestnut rice for 2 in 50 minutes: 10 peeled chestnuts and 3 jujubes on soaked rice. Why the tradition reads it as Earth.Ginger and Jujube Chicken Soup for Cold MonthsChicken soup with ginger, 6 jujubes and 5 garlic cloves, simmered 45 minutes. A warm Fire and Earth dish the tradition sets for autumn and winter.