noun
ten celestial stems; ten heavenly stems
A traditional Chinese calendrical and divinatory system consisting of ten signs, each associated with one of the five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, water) in either elder (yang) or younger (yin) form. Used in combination with the twelve earthly branches (十二支) to form the sexagenary cycle.
十干は、甲・乙・丙・丁・戊・己・庚・辛・壬・癸の十種類からなる。
The ten celestial stems consist of the ten types: kō, otsu, hei, tei, bo, ki, kō, shin, jin, and ki.
十
Combining the ten celestial stems with the twelve earthly branches yields sixty combinations.