Snakes in Chinese mythology of the Han dynasty, which claimed to rule with the protection of water and the north. Although the Black Warrior (Xuan Wu) is generally depicted as a snake entwining around a turtle, sometimes they are viewed as two separable generals. In Chinese culture mythologized snakes and snakelike beings have various roles, including the calendar system, poetry, and literature. In Chinese culture, years of the Snake are sixth in the cycle, following the Dragon Years, and recur every twelfth year. The Chinese New Year does not fall on a specific date, so it is essential to check the calendar to find
Adoption of the Gregorian calendar is only occasionally used today. North Korea from 1997 officially counts years based on the Juche era, the first year of which is 1912. The Republic of China (ROC) formally adopted the Gregorian calendar at its founding on , but China soon descended into a period of warlordism with different warlords using different calendars. With the unification of China under the Kuomintang in October 1928, the Nationalist government decreed that effective the Gregorian calendar would be used. China retained the Chinese traditions of numbering the months and a modified Era System, backdating the first year of the ROC to 1912;