Often during your pregnancy the question arises whether your baby will be a boy or a girl. A Chinese conception calendar is supposed to be a tool to find out exactly that as early as possible. How safe a Chinese conception calendar is and how it works, you can find out here.
Origin: What is a Chinese conception calendar?
The Chinese conception calendar has its origin already in the 13th century. Based on the so-called peasant calendar, a Chinese scientist developed the Chinese conception calendar. It is believed that the Chinese conception calendar was intended to help the emperor conceive an heir to the throne.
Since then, the Chinese conception calendar has been used not only in China. Since the calendar is based on the different phases of the moon, it is also known as the lunar calendar.
Especially during the time of the one-child policy in China, many couples have used the Chinese conception calendar for their baby planning. Many couples in China prefer to have a boy, as they traditionally care for their parents’ old age. While girls usually move in with the in-laws.
Most parents don’t really care about the sex of the child, the main thing is that it comes into the world healthy and cheerful. But one or the other has nevertheless a secretly favored sex and would not like to leave the decision, boy or girl completely to the coincidence.
To help with family planning, a Chinese conception calendar, long before the child is even conceived, is designed to help determine the sex of your child. If you are already pregnant, but the ultrasound examination of the gynecologist could not yet identify the sex of your child, the Chinese conception calendar can also be of help to you.
Function: How does a Chinese conception calendar determine gender?
The Chinese conception calendar can work out before your child is conceived whether it will be a boy or a girl. It refers to the day of conception and the age of the mother at the time of conception. However, this is based on the lunar age of the woman, so you have to add nine months to the actual age.
Example:
- 34 years and 5 months old: Moon age is 35 years and 2 months.
Now, to determine the sex, you only need the month in which you want to conceive your baby or, if you are already pregnant, the month in which you conceived your baby.
Chinese Conception Calendar: Chinese New Year
In China, the New Year is not welcomed on New Year’s Eve as it is in your country. Instead, the Chinese New Year is based on the new moon. It is celebrated every year between January 21 and February 21.
If your birthday is after February 22, nothing changes for you. Your moon age is calculated as described. If your birthday is before February 22, however, the whole thing becomes a little more complicated. Then you have to find out when exactly the Chinese New Year was celebrated in your year of birth.
If it was after your birthday, everything remains the same. If it was before, you have to add another twelve months to your age to calculate your moon age. In this case, the total is 21 months.
Chinese Conception Calendar: Calculate Moon Age
If you want to use the Chinese conception calendar, but you are confused by the explanations of how to calculate the moon age, here are two practical examples.
Example 1:
Your birthday is after February 22nd
In this case the calculation is relatively simple:
- Date: 20.02.2019
- Birthday: 13.05.2005
- Age: 23 years and 9 months
- Moon age: 23 years and 9 months PLUS 9 months = 24 years and 6 months
Now, if you want to know what gender a Chinese conception calendar predicts for your baby, you still need the month in which you got pregnant:
- Pregnant since: January 2019
Look in the table at 24 and in the January column. According to the calendar, you will have a boy.
Example 2:
- Your birthday is before February 22
In this case, calculating your lunar age is a bit more complicated because Chinese New Year plays a role:
- Date: 08/20/2019
- Birthday: 01/13/2005
- Age: 23 years and 7 months
- Chinese New Year in your birth year: February 9, 2005
Since it is before your birthday, you have to add 12 more months to your current age, for a total of 21 (= nine for the lunar age + 12 for the previous Chinese New Year)
- Moon age: 23 years and 7 months PLUS 21 months = 25 years and 4 months.
- Pregnant since: July 2019
Look in the table at the moon age 25 and then at the July column. So in this case a Chinese conception calendar predicts you a girl, but how sure it is you will see only after birth or ultrasound.
Chinese conception calendar: Determine gender
With the help of the table you can choose the age of the moon and the month of conception. The intersection of the two parameters gives you the answer, which sex your baby will have.
How reliable is a Chinese conception calendar?
According to scientific studies, predetermination of the baby’s sex cannot be reliable without a genetic application.
But the probability of the Chinese conception calendar determined from researches is amazingly high. For example, research in North America has shown that this conception calendar is actually said to be 85 percent accurate.
In another study, Dr. Eduardo Villamor of the University of Michigan, together with colleagues from Boston and Sweden, checked 2.8 million births between 1973 and 2006 using the Chinese conception calendar. The hit rate of the calendar was about 50%. The Chinese conception calendar does not achieve a higher probability than a coin toss.
You should be aware that this method is more gimmick than science. Don’t take it too seriously with the reliability of being able to plan the right sex or to find out early. But it is fun anyway – maybe the result is right for you.
Even if the Chinese conception calendar predicts a boy or a girl, you should wait for the ultrasound before you start buying cute baby clothes.