TL;DR: Tiểu Tuyết (小雪, Minor Snow) is the 20th of the 24 solar terms, not a fixed holiday but a roughly 15-day climatic period that begins when the Sun reaches 240 degrees of ecliptic longitude, usually on 22 November in Vietnam time (from 21 to 23 November between 1900 and 2100). It is the mid-month qi of the month of Hợi (10th lunar month), so it does not change the month in Bát Tự; books on hexagram-qi treat the day of Tiểu Tuyết as the point where yang qi is exhausted and begins to grow again. The name refers to the mildness of the cold and snow, not to actual snowfall, and it is not a fixed auspicious or inauspicious day.
What is Tiểu Tuyết and where does it sit in the 24 solar terms?
Tiểu Tuyết (小雪, Minor Snow) is the 20th of the 24 solar terms of the Eastern calendar, coming right after Lập Đông and before Đại Tuyết. It is not a fixed holiday but a climatic period lasting about 15 days. In the wording of old books, each solar term is divided into three "hậu" (pentads) of about 5 days, and each hậu has its own natural sign for people to observe.
The Hiệp kỷ biện phương thư records the three hậu of Tiểu Tuyết as: "虹藏不見" (rainbows hide and are no longer seen), "天氣上升地氣下降" (the qi of heaven rises and the qi of earth descends), "閉塞而成冬" (heaven and earth close up and winter is formed)[1]. None of the three signs mentions snow, which shows that the name describes the weather closing in for winter rather than a specific weather event.
On what day does Tiểu Tuyết begin?
Tiểu Tuyết begins when the Sun reaches 240 degrees of ecliptic longitude, usually on 22 November in Vietnam time. Between 1900 and 2100 it falls as early as 21 November in some years (such as 2044 and 2060) and as late as 23 November in others (such as 1999 and 2003). The Gregorian date shifts because the length of the year is not a whole number.
The moment Tiểu Tuyết begins in recent years, in Vietnam time:
| Year | Gregorian date | Time of the term |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 22 November 2025 | 08:35 |
| 2026 | 22 November 2026 | 14:22 |
| 2027 | 22 November 2027 | 20:10 |
| 2028 | 22 November 2028 | 01:58 |
| 2029 | 22 November 2029 | 07:47 |
| 2030 | 22 November 2030 | 13:37 |
The Hiệp kỷ biện phương thư records that at Tiểu Tuyết the Sun enters the first degree of the Dần palace, called "Tích Mộc chi thứ" (析木之次), so the monthly general (nguyệt tướng) of the 10th month is at Dần[1].
Why is it called "Tiểu Tuyết" and not "Đại Tuyết"?
The name "Tiểu Tuyết" indicates that the cold and the snow are still light, distinguishing it from "Đại Tuyết", the term that follows. The Mệnh lý tham nguyên explains that after Lập Đông come Tiểu Tuyết and Đại Tuyết: the cold qi begins as dew (露), turns to frost (霜) in the middle and ends as snow (雪), and snow goes from small to large, each step in order[3]. On this reading the name reflects the gradual increase of cold, not the actual amount of snow in any particular place.
The book also cites earlier Confucian scholars: after Tiểu Tuyết, yang qi grows by one part each day, and after thirty days it reaches thirty parts and forms one yang line, which is Đông Chí[3]. This is an understanding based on hexagram-qi theory, not a measurable meteorological fact.
Which can chi month does Tiểu Tuyết belong to?
Tiểu Tuyết is the mid-month qi (trung khí) of the 10th lunar month, the month of Hợi. In Bát Tự, months are counted by the solar terms: the month of Hợi runs from Lập Đông to just before Đại Tuyết, so the moment of Tiểu Tuyết does not change the month, and a person born before or after it still belongs to the month of Hợi.
The Dịch kinh tồn nghi by Lin Xiyuan (Lâm Hy Nguyên), commenting on Zhu Xi's remarks on the Phục hexagram, holds that although the 10th month corresponds to the pure-yin Khôn hexagram, yang qi does not vanish all at once at Lập Đông: from Sương Giáng yang loses one part each day, is only fully exhausted on the day of Tiểu Tuyết, then begins to grow again from the Tý hour of the next day, and by Đông Chí it reaches thirty parts and forms one yang line[4]. This is an explanation based on hexagram-qi theory, not a measurable meteorological observation.
The Trạch vận tân án by Shen Zhureng (Thẩm Trúc Nhưng), translated by Lê Việt Anh, when discussing the five elements by season, places Tiểu Tuyết together with Lập Đông in "Mạnh đông" (early winter), when the Water element is in its prime[5]. This placement is a convention of feng shui and fate reading, used to judge the rise and decline of the five elements by season, not a scientific conclusion about climate.
What customs does Tiểu Tuyết have?
In the Tuế thời quảng ký, only one custom is tied by name to Tiểu Tuyết: the book cites the Toả toái lục on a custom of the Mân region (Fujian), where the first Nhâm day after Lập Đông is called "entering the liquid" and Tiểu Tuyết is "leaving the liquid", and rain in that span is called "liquid rain"; if no rain falls, people take it as a sign of drought in the following year.
In Vietnam, Dương Bá Trạc's Gia lễ giản yếu (1932), in its section on festivals, advised dropping observances he called "meaningless", such as Đoan ngũ, Thượng nguyên, Trung nguyên and Trung thu, and keeping only Tết Nguyên đán, Tết Thanh minh and Tết cơm mới (the new rice festival) for offerings to ancestors[6]. Tiểu Tuyết is not among the festivals he kept.
Is Tiểu Tuyết a fixed good or bad day?
Tiểu Tuyết is not a fixed good or bad day. Day-selection books such as Vạn sự bất cầu nhân by Quảng Luân Nguyện Lan list good and bad stars by month and by the earthly branch of each day[7].
According to the Hiệp kỷ biện phương thư, the month pointer (nguyệt kiến, the month counted by the handle of the Big Dipper) follows the solar terms, while the monthly general (nguyệt tướng, set by the Sun's position) follows the mid-month qi[1]. Since Tiểu Tuyết is a mid-month qi, the days before and after it are still checked against the same month of Hợi; what changes at Tiểu Tuyết is the monthly general, used in choosing hours.
How do the divination arts use Tiểu Tuyết?
The book Thuật số Lạc Thư (Kỳ Môn Độn Giáp nguyên thủy) places Tiểu Tuyết in the half of the year counted from Hạ Chí, and groups Sương Giáng, Lập Đông and Tiểu Tuyết under the Càn trigram in palace 6[2]. This grouping serves the setting up of charts in Kỳ Môn, not a view on climate or farming.
Thanh Thủy's Sử dụng la bàn (2006) lists a ring for the "24 solar terms" among the rings of the compass[8]. This is a convention of feng shui, not an independent astronomical fact.
Summary table of Tiểu Tuyết
| Feature | Content |
|---|---|
| Chinese characters | 小雪 |
| Position in the 24 solar terms | 20th term, after Lập Đông, before Đại Tuyết |
| Solar longitude | 240 degrees |
| Start date | Usually 22 November; from 21 to 23 November between 1900 and 2100 (Vietnam time) |
| Can chi month | Mid-month qi of the month of Hợi (10th lunar month), does not change the Bát Tự month |
| Ancient zodiac palace | The Sun enters the Dần palace, Tích Mộc chi thứ |
| Three hậu | Rainbows hide; the qi of heaven rises and the qi of earth descends; heaven and earth close up and winter is formed |
| Element in its prime | Water |
| Custom recorded in books | "Liquid rain" custom of the Mân region (Fujian) |
| Role in Vietnamese ritual | Not a fixed festival |
Nhật Nguyệt's suggestion
Nhật Nguyệt's suggestion: if you want to use Tiểu Tuyết as a marker for your own plans, use the exact time of the term for that year in Vietnam time, as in the table above. In 2028 the term begins at 01:58 on 22 November, so the night of 21 November that year still falls in Lập Đông.
