Explainer | What is a Widow Year, why do Chinese believe it is a bad time to marry, and how to break the curse
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The fast-approaching Year of the Dragon is also infamously known as a “Widow Year” and there is much chatter on mainland social media about the year ahead being an unlucky one in which to get married.
As the name suggests, superstition has it that a woman who weds during a Widow Year has a greater chance of losing her husband.
It is said that the Widow Year, or gua fu nian in Chinese, got its name due to misinformation surrounding its original name, gua nian, which means “the year lacking Spring Commences” - a much-valued solar term seen by ancient Chinese people as the sign of a blessed year.
Some also linked spring to the energy of the sun, the translation of which in Chinese, yang, is also associated with masculine energy. Thus, lacking spring means lacking masculine energy, which justifies the Widow Year name.
What is a Widow Year?
Pronounced gua fu nian in Chinese, the term refers to a lunar year without Spring Commences, or the first day of spring, the first of the 24 solar terms known as li chun.
