Minor Cold (小寒, Xiaohan): January's Term and the 丑 Month

Minor Cold (小寒, Xiaohan) is the 23rd solar term, at 285 degrees of solar longitude. It opens the Ox month (丑), the last month of the traditional year, and in Korea it is often the coldest stretch of winter despite its modest name.

A January term that belongs to the old year

The solar-term cycle that starts at Start of Spring 2026 does not end on 31 December. Its last two terms fall in the following January. So the Minor Cold of the 2026 cycle comes on 5 January 2027 at 23:10 Korea time, and the one of the 2027 cycle on 6 January 2028 at 04:55.

For the Four Pillars this matters. The year pillar changes only at Start of Spring, so a person born in early January 2027 still has the year pillar 丙午, even though the Gregorian year and the wall calendar have moved on. Minor Cold is a jie (節) term, so the month does change: from 23:10 on 5 January 2027 the month pillar is 辛丑.

Minor Cold and the year boundary
	2026 cycle	2027 cycle
Minor Cold (KST)	2027-01-05 23:10	2028-01-06 04:55
Gregorian year	2027	2028
Year pillar still in force	丙午	丁未
Month pillar from Minor Cold	辛丑	癸丑
Next Start of Spring (year pillar changes)	2027-02-04 10:46	2028-02-04 16:31
Lunar New Year (Seollal)	2027-02-07	2028-01-27

A term late in the evening

The moment lands at 23:10 on the clock, and it shows why the engine works with exact minutes. The month changes at the sun's actual position, the same instant everywhere, so a baby born in Seoul at 23:05 that evening is still in the 庚子 month and one born at 23:15 is in the 辛丑 month. The hour pillar is a separate matter: it uses true solar time, and in January the engine's Seoul correction is -41 minutes, so both births fall at about 22:25-22:35 true solar time, in the Pig hour (亥), not yet the Rat hour.

What the name means

小 is small and 寒 is cold. In the Yellow River plain, where the names were fixed, Major Cold two weeks later was usually the harsher one, so this term got the 'minor' label. Korea's climate often runs the other way, which gave rise to a well-known joke: 'Major Cold went to visit Minor Cold and froze to death' (대한이 소한 집에 놀러 갔다가 얼어 죽는다).

What changes in nature

Across Korea rivers and reservoirs may freeze solid, and the Siberian high brings clear skies and hard frosts. Yet the classical almanac already looks ahead: wild geese turn north, magpies begin building nests, and pheasants begin to call. The Ox month (丑) holds Water, Metal and Earth among its hidden stems, which the tradition reads as the frozen soil storing what spring will use.

Seasonal foods

Deep-winter meals lean on stored foods: kimchi from kimjang, dried radish greens, beans and grains. Seaweed soup with beef, black sesame porridge and pumpkin porridge are simple warm choices. In China the Laba festival on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, with its mixed-grain Laba porridge, often falls in this season.

Gentle habits for the season

Warm up the house and your body before heading into early-morning cold.
Keep daily movement going indoors when outdoor walks are uncomfortable: stairs, stretching, housework.
Warm drinks through the day help against the very dry winter air.
Check on older neighbours and relatives during cold snaps.

A line of poetry

Wang Anshi's 《梅花》 (Plum Blossoms) praises flowers that open in the coldest weeks: 「牆角數枝梅，凌寒獨自開。」 "In the corner of the wall, a few sprays of plum, braving the cold, blooming on their own."

Questions

Why is a January 2027 date on the 2026 page of terms?

Each cycle of 24 terms runs from Start of Spring to Start of Spring. Minor Cold and Major Cold are the last two, so they fall in the January after.

What year pillar does a person born on 10 January 2027 have?

丙午. The year pillar changes at Start of Spring, 4 February 2027 at 10:46 KST.

Is Minor Cold colder than Major Cold in Korea?

Often it is, which is the point of the Korean saying, though it varies year by year.

When is the next term?

Major Cold (大寒), on 20 January 2027 at 16:30 KST, 14 days 17 hours 20 minutes later.

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.