Chinese zodiac

For the 2012 film starring Jackie Chan, see CZ12.

Unless otherwise specified, Chinese text in this article is written in the format Simplified Chinese / Traditional Chinese, Pinyin. If the Simplified and Traditional Chinese characters are identical, they are written only once.

The Chinese zodiac is a traditional classification scheme based on the Chinese calendar that assigns an animal and its reputed attributes to each year in a repeating twelve-year cycle. Originating from China, the zodiac and its variations remain popular in many East Asian and Southeast Asian countries, such as Japan,^[1] South Korea,^[2] Vietnam,^[2] Singapore, Nepal, Bhutan, Cambodia, and Thailand.^[3]

Chinese zodiac
Chinese	生肖
Hanyu Pinyin	shēngxiào
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin shēngxiào Wu Romanization sen平-siau去 Hakka Romanization sensiau Yue: Cantonese Jyutping saang^1-ciu^3 Southern Min Hokkien POJ singsiàu Eastern Min Fuzhou BUC săng-ngá
Alternative Chinese name
Simplified Chinese	属相
Traditional Chinese	屬相
Hanyu Pinyin	shǔxiàng
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin shǔxiàng Wu Romanization zoh入-sian平 Yue: Cantonese Jyutping suk^6-soeng^3 Southern Min Hokkien POJ sio̍ksiùnn

Identifying this scheme using the generic term "zodiac" reflects several superficial similarities to the Western zodiac: both have time cycles divided into twelve parts, each labels at least the majority of those parts with names of animals, and each is widely associated with a culture of ascribing a person's personality or events in their life to the supposed influence of the person's particular relationship to the cycle.

Nevertheless, there are major differences between the two: the animals of the Chinese zodiac are not associated with constellations spanned by the ecliptic plane. The Chinese twelve-part cycle corresponds to years, rather than months. The Chinese zodiac is represented by twelve animals, whereas some of the signs in the Western zodiac are not animals, despite the implication of the etymology of the English word zodiac, which derives from zōdiacus, the Latinized form of the Ancient Greek zōdiakòs kýklos (ζῳδιακός κύκλος), meaning "cycle of animals".

Signs

 

A stone carving of the Chinese zodiac.

The zodiac traditionally begins with the sign of the Rat. The following are the twelve zodiac signs in order, each with its associated characteristics (Earthly Branch, yin/yang force, Trine, and nature element).^[4]

Number	Animal	Characters	Yin/yang	Trine	Fixed element
1	Rat	鼠, shǔ (子)	Yang	1st	Water
2	Ox	牛, niú (丑)	Yin	2nd	Earth
3	Tiger	虎, hǔ (寅)	Yang	3rd	Wood
4	Rabbit ^[* 1]	兔, tù (卯)	Yin	4th	Wood
5	Dragon	龙/龍, lóng (辰)	Yang	1st	Earth
6	Snake	蛇, shé (巳)	Yin	2nd	Fire
7	Horse	马/馬, mǎ (午)	Yang	3rd	Fire
8	Goat	羊, yáng (未)	Yin	4th	Earth
9	Monkey	猴, hóu (申)	Yang	1st	Metal
10	Rooster	鸡/雞, jī (酉)	Yin	2nd	Metal
11	Dog	狗, gǒu (戌)	Yang	3rd	Earth
12	Pig	猪/豬, zhū (亥)	Yin	4th	Water

In Chinese astrology the animal signs assigned by year represent how others perceive one or how one presents oneself. It is a common misconception that the animals assigned by year are the only signs, and many Western descriptions of Chinese astrology draw solely on this system. In fact, there are also animal signs assigned by month (called "inner animals"), by day (called "true animals") and hours (called "secret animals"). The Earth is all twelve signs, with five seasons.

Decans

The Chinese zodiac features decans in the form of thirty-six calendar animals (三十六生肖, sānshíliù shēngxiào; 'thirty-six zodiac signs'). The group originated in China, wherein the 36 were divided into four clusters, with each cluster made up of nine animal-deity pairs. The four clusters represent the four cardinal directions (north, south, east, west). The animals are also grouped in triads—three animals are combined under one of 12 zodiac signs.

East Asian Zodiac^[5]

Zodiac	First animal	Second animal	Third animal
Rat	Swallow (燕子)	Rat (老鼠)	Bat (蝙蝠)
Ox	Ox (牛)	Crab (螃蟹)	Turtle (鱉)
Tiger	Leopard cat (狸貓)	Leopard (豹子)	Tiger (老虎)
Rabbit	Hedgehog (刺猬)	Rabbit (兔)	Raccoon dog (貉)
Dragon	Dragon (龍)	Jiaolong (蛟龍)	Fish (魚)
Snake	Eel (鱔魚)	Earthworm (蚯蚓)	Snake (蛇)
Horse	Deer (鹿)	Horse (馬)	Hinny (驢騾)
Goat	Sheep/Goat (羊)	Eagle (鵰)	Goose (雁)
Monkey	Gorilla (猩猩)	Ape (猿)	Monkey (猴)
Rooster	Pheasant (雉雞)	Chicken/Rooster (雞)	Kite (鳶)
Dog	Dog (狗)	Wolf (狼)	Dhole (豺)
Pig	Domestic pig (豕)	Badger (獾)	Wild boar (野豬)

In Japan, the decans are known as Sanjūroku Kingyōzō (三十六禽形像; alternatively known as the Chikusan Reiki 畜産暦), but some of them are different from their Chinese counterparts. The group appeared in the Nichū Reki 二中暦, a Japanese calendar from the second half of the 14th century. Eight of the 36 appear “fox like”—almost identical in physical attributes. These eight include the tanuki, mujina, fox, wolf, jackal, wild cat, and wild male-female dogs. The mujina, fox and rabbit are combined under the zodiacal sign of the rabbit. The tanuki, leopard, and tiger are combined under the zodiacal sign of the tiger.^[6][5]

Chinese calendar

Main article: Chinese calendar

Years

Main article: Sexagenary cycle

Within the Four Pillars, the year is the pillar representing information about the person's family background and society or relationship with their grandparents. The person's age can also be easily deduced from their sign, the current sign of the year, and the person's generational disposition (teens, mid-20s, and so on). For example, a person born a Tiger is 12, 24, 36, (etc.) years old in the year of the Tiger (2022); in the year of the Rabbit (2023), that person is one year older.

The following table shows the 60-year cycle matched up to the Gregorian calendar for the years 1924–2043. The sexagenary cycle begins at lichun about February 4 according to some astrological sources.^[7][8]

	Year	Year	Associated element	Heavenly stem	Earthly branch	Associated animal
	1924–1983	1984–2043
1	Feb 05 1924–Jan 23 1925	Feb 02 1984–Feb 19 1985	Yang Wood	甲	子	Rat
2	Jan 24 1925–Feb 12 1926	Feb 20 1985–Feb 08 1986	Yin Wood	乙	丑	Ox
3	Feb 13 1926–Feb 01 1927	Feb 09 1986–Jan 28 1987	Yang Fire	丙	寅	Tiger
4	Feb 02 1927–Jan 22 1928	Jan 29 1987–Feb 16 1988	Yin Fire	丁	卯	Rabbit
5	Jan 23 1928–Feb 09 1929	Feb 17 1988–Feb 05 1989	Yang Earth	戊	辰	Dragon
6	Feb 10 1929–Jan 29 1930	Feb 06 1989–Jan 26 1990	Yin Earth	己	巳	Snake
7	Jan 30 1930–Feb 16 1931	Jan 27 1990–Feb 14 1991	Yang Metal	庚	午	Horse
8	Feb 17 1931–Feb 05 1932	Feb 15 1991–Feb 03 1992	Yin Metal	辛	未	Goat
9	Feb 06 1932–Jan 25 1933	Feb 04 1992–Jan 22 1993	Yang Water	壬	申	Monkey
10	Jan 26 1933–Feb 13 1934	Jan 23 1993–Feb 09 1994	Yin Water	癸	酉	Rooster
11	Feb 14 1934–Feb 03 1935	Feb 10 1994–Jan 30 1995	Yang Wood	甲	戌	Dog
12	Feb 04 1935–Jan 23 1936	Jan 31 1995–Feb 18 1996	Yin Wood	乙	亥	Pig
13	Jan 24 1936–Feb 10 1937	Feb 19 1996–Feb 06 1997	Yang Fire	丙	子	Rat
14	Feb 11 1937–Jan 30 1938	Feb 07 1997–Jan 27 1998	Yin Fire	丁	丑	Ox
15	Jan 31 1938–Feb 18 1939	Jan 28 1998–Feb 15 1999	Yang Earth	戊	寅	Tiger
16	Feb 19 1939–Feb 07 1940	Feb 16 1999–Feb 04 2000	Yin Earth	己	卯	Rabbit
17	Feb 08 1940–Jan 26 1941	Feb 05 2000–Jan 23 2001	Yang Metal	庚	辰	Dragon
18	Jan 27 1941–Feb 14 1942	Jan 24 2001–Feb 11 2002	Yin Metal	辛	巳	Snake
19	Feb 15 1942–Feb 04 1943	Feb 12 2002–Jan 31 2003	Yang Water	壬	午	Horse
20	Feb 05 1943–Jan 24 1944	Feb 01 2003–Jan 21 2004	Yin Water	癸	未	Goat
21	Jan 25 1944–Feb 12 1945	Jan 22 2004–Feb 08 2005	Yang Wood	甲	申	Monkey
22	Feb 13 1945–Feb 01 1946	Feb 09 2005–Jan 28 2006	Yin Wood	乙	酉	Rooster
23	Feb 02 1946–Jan 21 1947	Jan 29 2006–Feb 17 2007	Yang Fire	丙	戌	Dog
24	Jan 22 1947–Feb 09 1948	Feb 18 2007–Feb 06 2008	Yin Fire	丁	亥	Pig
25	Feb 10 1948–Jan 28 1949	Feb 07 2008–Jan 25 2009	Yang Earth	戊	子	Rat
26	Jan 29 1949–Feb 16 1950	Jan 26 2009–Feb 13 2010	Yin Earth	己	丑	Ox
27	Feb 17 1950–Feb 05 1951	Feb 14 2010–Feb 02 2011	Yang Metal	庚	寅	Tiger
28	Feb 06 1951–Jan 26 1952	Feb 03 2011–Jan 22 2012	Yin Metal	辛	卯	Rabbit
29	Jan 27 1952–Feb 13 1953	Jan 23 2012–Feb 09 2013	Yang Water	壬	辰	Dragon
30	Feb 14 1953–Feb 02 1954	Feb 10 2013–Jan 30 2014	Yin Water	癸	巳	Snake
31	Feb 03 1954–Jan 23 1955	Jan 31 2014–Feb 18 2015	Yang Wood	甲	午	Horse
32	Jan 24 1955–Feb 11 1956	Feb 19 2015–Feb 07 2016	Yin Wood	乙	未	Goat
33	Feb 12 1956–Jan 30 1957	Feb 08 2016–Jan 27 2017	Yang Fire	丙	申	Monkey
34	Jan 31 1957–Feb 17 1958	Jan 28 2017–Feb 15 2018	Yin Fire	丁	酉	Rooster
35	Feb 18 1958–Feb 07 1959	Feb 16 2018–Feb 04 2019	Yang Earth	戊	戌	Dog
36	Feb 08 1959–Jan 27 1960	Feb 05 2019–Jan 24 2020	Yin Earth	己	亥	Pig
37	Jan 28 1960–Feb 14 1961	Jan 25 2020–Feb 11 2021	Yang Metal	庚	子	Rat
38	Feb 15 1961–Feb 04 1962	Feb 12 2021–Jan 31 2022	Yin Metal	辛	丑	Ox
39	Feb 05 1962–Jan 24 1963	Feb 01 2022–Jan 21 2023	Yang Water	壬	寅	Tiger
40	Jan 25 1963–Feb 12 1964	Jan 22 2023–Feb 09 2024	Yin Water	癸	卯	Rabbit
41	Feb 13 1964–Feb 01 1965	Feb 10 2024–Jan 28 2025	Yang Wood	甲	辰	Dragon
42	Feb 02 1965–Jan 20 1966	Jan 29 2025–Feb 16 2026	Yin Wood	乙	巳	Snake
43	Jan 21 1966–Feb 08 1967	Feb 17 2026–Feb 05 2027	Yang Fire	丙	午	Horse
44	Feb 09 1967–Jan 29 1968	Feb 06 2027–Jan 25 2028	Yin Fire	丁	未	Goat
45	Jan 30 1968–Feb 16 1969	Jan 26 2028–Feb 12 2029	Yang Earth	戊	申	Monkey
46	Feb 17 1969–Feb 05 1970	Feb 13 2029–Feb 02 2030	Yin Earth	己	酉	Rooster
47	Feb 06 1970–Jan 26 1971	Feb 03 2030–Jan 22 2031	Yang Metal	庚	戌	Dog
48	Jan 27 1971–Feb 14 1972	Jan 23 2031–Feb 10 2032	Yin Metal	辛	亥	Pig
49	Feb 15 1972–Feb 02 1973	Feb 11 2032–Jan 30 2033	Yang Water	壬	子	Rat
50	Feb 03 1973–Jan 22 1974	Jan 31 2033–Feb 18 2034	Yin Water	癸	丑	Ox
51	Jan 23 1974–Feb 10 1975	Feb 19 2034–Feb 07 2035	Yang Wood	甲	寅	Tiger
52	Feb 11 1975–Jan 30 1976	Feb 08 2035–Jan 27 2036	Yin Wood	乙	卯	Rabbit
53	Jan 31 1976–Feb 17 1977	Jan 28 2036–Feb 14 2037	Yang Fire	丙	辰	Dragon
54	Feb 18 1977–Feb 06 1978	Feb 15 2037–Feb 03 2038	Yin Fire	丁	巳	Snake
55	Feb 07 1978–Jan 27 1979	Feb 04 2038–Jan 23 2039	Yang Earth	戊	午	Horse
56	Jan 28 1979–Feb 15 1980	Jan 24 2039–Feb 11 2040	Yin Earth	己	未	Goat
57	Feb 16 1980–Feb 04 1981	Feb 12 2040–Jan 31 2041	Yang Metal	庚	申	Monkey
58	Feb 05 1981–Jan 24 1982	Feb 01 2041–Jan 21 2042	Yin Metal	辛	酉	Rooster
59	Jan 25 1982–Feb 12 1983	Jan 22 2042–Feb 09 2043	Yang Water	壬	戌	Dog
60	Feb 13 1983–Feb 01 1984	Feb 10 2043–Jan 29 2044	Yin Water	癸	亥	Pig

Months and solar terms

Main article: Solar term

Within the Four Pillars, the month is the pillar representing information about the person's parents or childhood. Many Chinese astrologers consider the month pillar to be the most important one in determining the circumstances of one's adult life.

The twelve animals are also linked to the traditional Chinese agricultural calendar, which runs alongside the better known Lunar calendar. Instead of months, this calendar is divided into 24 two-week segments known as Solar Terms. Each animal is linked to two of these solar terms for a period similar to the Western month. Unlike the 60-year Lunar calendar, which can vary by as much as a month in relation to the Gregorian calendar, the agricultural calendar varies by only one day, beginning on the Gregorian calendar on 3 or 4 February every year. Again, unlike the cycle of the lunar years, which begins with the Rat, the agricultural calendar begins with the Tiger as it is the first animal of spring.

As each sign is linked to a month of the solar year, it is thereby also linked to a season. Each of the elements are also linked to a season (see above), and the element that shares a season with a sign is known as the sign's fixed element. In other words, that element is believed to impart some of its characteristics to the sign concerned. The fixed element of each sign applies also to the year and hour signs, and not just the monthly sign. The fixed element is separate from the cycle of elements which interact with the signs in the 60-year cycle.

Season	Lunar month	Fixed element	Solar longitude	Solar term	Approx. Gregorian date	Approx. Western zodiac
Spring	1st – 寅 (yin) Tiger	Wood	315°	立春 lìchūn	Feb 4	Aquarius
			330°	雨水 yǔshuǐ	Mar 5	Pisces
	2nd – 卯 (mao) Rabbit	Wood	345°	啓蟄 qǐzhé (驚蟄 jīngzhé)	Mar 6
			0°	春分 chūnfēn	Apr 4	Aries
	3rd – 辰 (chen) Dragon	Earth	15°	清明 qīngmíng	Apr 5
			30°	穀雨 gǔyǔ	May 4	Taurus
Summer	4th – 巳 (si) Snake	Fire	45°	立夏 lìxià	May 5
			60°	小滿 xiǎomǎn	Jun 5	Gemini
	5th – 午 (wu) Horse	Fire	75°	芒種 mángzhòng	Jun 6
			90°	夏至 xiàzhì	Jul 6	Cancer
	6th – 未 (wei) Goat	Earth	105°	小暑 xiǎoshǔ	Jul 7
			120°	大暑 dàshǔ	Aug 6	Leo
Autumn	7th – 申 (shen) Monkey	Metal	135°	立秋 lìqiū	Aug 7
			150°	處暑 chùshǔ	Sep 7	Virgo
	8th – 酉 (you) Rooster	Metal	165°	白露 báilù	Sep 8
			180°	秋分 qiūfēn	Oct 7	Libra
	9th – 戌 (xu) Dog	Earth	195°	寒露 hánlù	Oct 8
			210°	霜降 shuāngjiàng	Nov 6	Scorpio
Winter	10th – 亥 (hai) Pig	Water	225°	立冬 lìdōng	Nov 7
			240°	小雪 xiǎoxuě	Dec 6	Sagittarius
	11th – 子 (zi) Rat	Water	255°	大雪 dàxuě	Dec 7
			270°	冬至 dōngzhì	Jan 5	Capricorn
	12th – 丑 (chou) Ox	Earth	285°	小寒 xiǎohán	Jan 6
			300°	大寒 dàhán	Feb 3	Aquarius

Day

Four pillars calculators can determine the zodiac animal of the day.^[9] Chinese animal signs rule over days of the week, too. The term for them is "True Animals". If one's astrologer wishes to prepare an astrological chart (aka horoscope), it is essential they know the animal and element of one's day of birth. However, due to there being twelve animals and a ten-day week on the ancient Chinese calendar, it is not easy to find one's day element or animal. As the Day Master (element) affects the element of the Hour animal, among other things, caution is required when calculating this part of the chart. A professional will likely have tools for such a calculator on hand, but many online calculators that feature all four animals will also provide an accurate chart.

Compatibility

 

Chinese Zodiac Compatibility-Conflict-Harm Grid in accordance to one's nature, characteristics, and elements

As the Chinese zodiac is derived according to the ancient Five Elements Theory, every Chinese sign is associated with five elements with relations, among those elements, of interpolation, interaction, over-action, and counter-action—believed to be the common law of motions and changes of creatures in the universe. Different people born under each animal sign supposedly have different personalities, and practitioners of Chinese astrology consult such traditional details and compatibilities to offer putative guidance in life or for love and marriage.^[10]

Chinese zodiac compatibility grid^[11]

Sign	Best match (compatible)	Average match (friendly)	Super bad (conflict)	Harmful (best avoid)
Rat	Dragon, Monkey, Rat	Pig, Tiger, Dog, Snake, Rabbit, Rooster, Ox	Horse	Goat
Ox	Snake, Rooster, Ox	Monkey, Dog, Rabbit, Tiger, Dragon, Pig, Rat	Goat	Horse
Tiger	Horse, Dog, Tiger	Rabbit, Dragon, Rooster, Rat, Goat, Ox, Pig	Monkey	Snake
Rabbit	Pig, Goat, Rabbit	Tiger, Monkey, Dog, Ox, Horse, Rat, Snake	Rooster	Dragon
Dragon	Rat, Monkey, Dragon	Tiger, Snake, Horse, Goat, Pig, Ox, Rooster	Dog	Rabbit
Snake	Ox, Rooster, Snake	Horse, Dragon, Goat, Dog, Rabbit, Rat, Monkey	Pig	Tiger
Horse	Dog, Tiger, Horse	Snake, Rabbit, Dragon, Rooster, Pig, Monkey, Goat	Rat	Ox
Goat	Rabbit, Pig, Goat	Snake, Rabbit, Dragon, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Tiger	Ox	Rat
Monkey	Dragon, Rat, Monkey	Dragon, Dog, Ox, Goat, Rabbit, Rooster, Horse	Tiger	Pig
Rooster	Ox, Snake, Rooster	Horse, Snake, Goat, Pig, Tiger, Monkey, Rat	Rabbit	Dog
Dog	Tiger, Horse, Dog	Monkey, Pig, Rat, Ox, Snake, Goat, Rabbit	Dragon	Rooster
Pig	Rabbit, Goat, Pig	Rat, Rooster, Dog, Dragon, Horse, Ox, Tiger	Snake	Monkey

Four Pillars of Destiny

Main article: Four Pillars of Destiny

The Four Pillars of Destiny method can be traced back to the Han dynasty (201 BCE – 220 CE), and is still much used in feng shui astrology and general analysis today. The Four Pillars or columns chart is called such as the Chinese writing causes it to fall into columns. Each pillar or column contains a stem and a branch—and each column relates to the year, month, day and hour of birth. The first column refers to the year animal and element, the second to the month animal and element, the third to the day animal and element, and the last to the hour animal and element.

Within the Four Pillars of Destiny, the year column purports to provide information about one's ancestor or early age, and the month column about one's parents or growing age. The day column purports to offer information about oneself (upper character) and one's spouse (lower character) or adult age, and the hour column about children or late age.^[12]

Animal trines

Further information: Astrological aspect § Trine

First

The first trine consists of the Rat, Dragon, and Monkey. These three signs are said to be intense and powerful individuals capable of great good, who make great leaders but are rather unpredictable. The three are said to be intelligent, magnanimous, charismatic, charming, authoritative, confident, eloquent, and artistic, but can be manipulative, jealous, selfish, aggressive, vindictive, and deceitful.

Second

The second trine consists of the Ox, Snake, and Rooster. These three signs are said to possess endurance and application, with slow accumulation of energy, meticulous at planning but tending to hold fixed opinions. The three are said to be intelligent, hard-working, modest, industrious, loyal, philosophical, patient, goodhearted, and morally upright, but can also be self-righteous, egotistical, vain, judgmental, narrow-minded, and petty.

Third

The third trine consists of the Tiger, Horse, and Dog. These three signs are said to seek true love, to pursue humanitarian causes, to be idealistic and independent but tending to be impulsive. The three are said to be productive, enthusiastic, independent, engaging, dynamic, honorable, loyal, and protective, but can also be rash, rebellious, quarrelsome, anxious, disagreeable, and stubborn.

Fourth

The fourth trine consists of the Rabbit, Goat, and Pig. These three signs are said to have a calm nature and somewhat reasonable approach; they seek aesthetic beauty and are artistic, well-mannered and compassionate, yet detached and resigned to their condition. The three are said to be caring, self-sacrificing, obliging, sensible, creative, empathetic, tactful, and prudent, but can also be naïve, pedantic, insecure, selfish, indecisive, and pessimistic.

Origin stories

There are many stories and fables to explain the beginning of the zodiac. Since the Han Dynasty, the twelve Earthly Branches have been used to record the time of day. However, for the sake of entertainment and convenience^{[citation needed]}, they have been replaced by the twelve animals, and a mnemonic refers to the behavior of the animals:

Earthly Branches may refer to a double-hour period. In the latter case it is the center of the period; for instance, 马 (Horse) means noon as well as a period from 11:00 to 13:00.

Animal	Pronunciation	Period	This is the time when...
Rat	Zishi	23:00 to 00:59	Rats are most active in seeking food. Rats also have a different number of digits on front and hind legs, thus earning Rat the symbol of "turn over" or "new start"
Ox	Choushi	01:00 to 02:59	Oxen begin to chew the cud slowly and comfortably
Tiger	Yinshi	03:00 to 04:59	Tigers hunt their prey more and show their ferocity
Rabbit	Maoshi	05:00 to 06:59	The Jade Rabbit is busy pounding herbal medicine on the Moon according to the tale
Dragon	Chenshi	07:00 to 08:59	Dragons are hovering in the sky to give rain
Snake	Sishi	09:00 to 10:59	Snakes are leaving their caves
Horse	Wushi	11:00 to 12:59	The sun is high overhead and while other animals are lying down for a rest, horses are still standing
Goat	Weishi	13:00 to 14:59	Goats eat grass and urinate frequently
Monkey	Shenshi	15:00 to 16:59	Monkeys are lively
Rooster	Youshi	17:00 to 18:59	Roosters begin to get back to their coops
Dog	Xushi	19:00 to 20:59	Dogs carry out their duty of guarding the houses
Pig	Haishi	21:00 to 22:59	Pigs are sleeping sweetly

Great Race

 

This image depicts a scene from the "Great Race" folk story, in which the Ox carries the Rat across the river.

An ancient folk story^[13] called the "Great Race" tells that the Jade Emperor decreed that the years on the calendar would be named for each animal in the order they reached him. To get there, the animals would have to cross a river.

The Cat and the Rat were not good at swimming, but they were both quite intelligent. They decided that the best and fastest way to cross the river was to hop on the back of the Ox. The Ox, being kindhearted and naïve, agreed to carry them both across. As the Ox was about to reach the other side of the river, the Rat pushed the Cat into the water, and then jumped off the Ox and rushed to the Jade Emperor. It was named as the first animal of the zodiac calendar. The Ox had to settle in second place.

The third one to come, was the Tiger. Even though it was strong and powerful, it explained to the Jade Emperor that the currents were pushing him downstream.

Suddenly, from a distance came a thumping sound, and the Rabbit arrived. It explained how it crossed the river: by jumping from one stone to another, in a nimble fashion. Halfway through, it almost lost the race, but it was lucky enough to grab hold of a floating log that later washed him to shore. For that, it became the fourth animal in the zodiac cycle.

In fifth place, was the flying Dragon. The Jade Emperor was wondering why such a swift airborne creature such as the Dragon did not come in first. The Dragon explained that it had to stop by a village and brought rain for all the people, and therefore it was held back. Then, on its way to the finish, it saw the helpless Rabbit clinging onto a log, so it did a good deed and gave a puff of breath to the poor creature so that it could land on the shore. The Jade Emperor was astonished by the Dragon's good nature, and it was named as the fifth animal.

As soon as it had done so, a galloping sound was heard, and the Horse appeared. Hidden on the Horse's hoof was the Snake, whose sudden appearance gave it a fright, thus making it fall back and giving the Snake the sixth spot while the Horse placed seventh.

After a while, the Goat, Monkey, and Rooster came to the heavenly gate. With combined efforts, they managed to arrive to the other side. The Rooster found a raft, and the Monkey and the Goat tugged and pulled, trying to get all the weeds out of the way. The Jade Emperor was pleased with their teamwork and decided to name the Goat as the eighth animal, followed by the Monkey and then the Rooster.

The eleventh animal placed in the zodiac cycle was the Dog. Although it should have been the best swimmer and runner, it spent its time to play in the water. Though his explanation for being late was because it needed a good bath after a long spell. For that, it almost did not make it to the finish line.

Right when the Emperor was going to end the race, an "oink" sound was heard: it was the Pig. The Pig felt hungry in the middle of the race, so it stopped, ate something, and then fell asleep. After it awoke, it finished the race in twelfth place and became the last animal to arrive.

The cat eventually drowned and failed to be in the zodiac. It is said that this is the reason cats always hunt rats and also hate water as well.

Variations

Another folk story tells that the Rat deceived the Ox into letting it jump on its back, in order for the Ox to hear the Rat sing,^[14] before jumping off at the finish line and finishing first. Another variant says that the Rat had cheated the Cat out its place at the finishing line, having stowed-away on the dog's back, who was too focused to notice that he had a stow-away; this is said to account for the antagonistic dynamic between cats and rats, beyond normal predator-and-prey behaviour; and also why dogs and cats fight, the cat having tried to attack the rat in retaliation, only to get the dog by accident.

In Chinese mythology, a story tells that the cat was tricked by the Rat so it could not go to the banquet. This is why the cat is ultimately not part of the Chinese zodiac.^{[citation needed]}

In Buddhism, legend has it that Gautama Buddha summoned all of the animals of the Earth to come before him before his departure from this Earth, but only twelve animals actually came to bid him farewell. To reward the animals who came to him, he named a year after each of them. The years were given to them in the order they had arrived.

The twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac were developed in the early stages of Chinese civilization, therefore it is difficult to investigate its real origins. Most historians agree that the cat is not included, as they had not yet been introduced to China from India with the arrival of Buddhism. However, the Vietnamese, unlike all other countries who follow the Sino lunar calendar, have the cat instead of the rabbit as a zodiac animal. The most common explanation is that the ancient word for Rabbit (Mao) sounds like cat (Meo).^[15]

Problems with English translation

Due to confusion with synonyms during translation, some of the animals depicted by the English words did not exist in ancient China.^{[citation needed]} For example:

• The term 鼠 Rat can be translated as Mouse, as there are no distinctive words for the two genera in Chinese. However, Rat is the most commonly used one among all the synonyms.^{[citation needed]}
• The term 牛 Ox, a castrated Bull, can be translated interchangeably with other terms related to Cattle (male Bull, female Cow) and Buffalo. However, Ox is the most commonly used one among all the synonyms.^{[citation needed]}
• The term 卯 Rabbit can be translated as Hare, as 卯 (and 兔) do not distinguish between the two genera of leporids. As hares are native to China and most of Asia and rabbits are not, this would be more accurate. However, in colloquial English Rabbit can encompass hares as well.
• The term 蛇 Snake can be translated as Serpent, which refers to a large species of snake and has the same behavior, although this term is rarely used.
• The term 羊 Goat can be translated as Sheep and Ram, a male Sheep. However, Goat is the most commonly used one among all the synonyms.^{[citation needed]}
• The term 雞 Rooster can be translated interchangeably with Chicken, as well as the female Hen. However, Rooster is the most commonly used one among all the synonyms in English-speaking countries.^{[citation needed]}

Adaptations

The Chinese zodiac signs are also used by cultures other than Chinese. For one example, they usually appear on Korean New Year and Japanese New Year's cards and stamps. The United States Postal Service and several other countries' postal services issue a "Year of the ____" postage stamp each year to honor this Chinese heritage.

The Chinese lunar coins, depicting the zodiac animals, inspired the Canadian Silver Maple Leaf coins, as well as varieties from Australia, South Korea, and Mongolia.

The Chinese zodiac is also used in some other Asian countries that have been under the cultural influence of China. However, some of the animals in the zodiac may differ by country.

Asian

Further information: Bulgar calendar and Vietnamese zodiac

The Korean zodiac includes the Sheep (yang) instead of the Goat (which would be yeomso), although the Chinese source of the loanword yang may refer to any goat-antelope.^{[citation needed]}

The Japanese zodiac includes the Sheep (hitsuji) instead of the Goat (which would be yagi), and the Wild boar (inoshishi, i) instead of the Pig (buta).^[16] Since 1873, the Japanese have celebrated the beginning of the new year on 1 January as per the Gregorian calendar.^{[citation needed]}

The Vietnamese zodiac varies from the Chinese zodiac with the second animal being the Water Buffalo instead of the Ox, and the fourth animal being the Cat instead of the Rabbit.^{[citation needed]}

The Cambodian zodiac is exactly identical to that of the Chinese although the dragon is interchangeable with the Neak (nāga) Cambodian sea snake.^[17] Sheep and Goat are interchangeable as well. The Cambodian New Year is celebrated in April, rather than in January or February as it is in China and most countries.^[18][19]

The Cham zodiac uses the same order as the Chinese zodiac, but replaces the Monkey with the turtle (known locally as kra).

Animal	Akhar Cam ꨀꨇꩉ ꨌꩌ	Roman
Rat	ꨓꨪꨆꨭꩍ	Tikuh
Ox	ꨆꨭꨯꨝꨱ	Kubao
Tiger	ꨣꨪꨠꨯꨱꨮ	Rimaong
Rabbit	ꨓꨚꩈ	Tapay
Dragon	꩓ꨘꨈꨪꨣꨰ	Inagirai
Snake	ꨂꨤꨘꨰꩍ	Ulanaih
Horse	ꨀꨔꨰꩍ	Athaih
Goat	ꨚꨝꨰꩈ	Pabaiy
Turtle	ꨆꨴ	Kra
Rooster	ꨠꨘꨭꩀ	Manuk
Dog	ꨀꨔꨭꨮ	Athau
Pig	ꨚꩇꨥꨪꩈ	Papwiy

Similarly the Malay zodiac is identical to the Chinese but replaces the Rabbit with the mousedeer (pelanduk) and the Pig with the tortoise (kura or kura-kura).^[20] The Dragon (Loong) is normally equated with the nāga but it is sometimes called Big Snake (ular besar) while the Snake sign is called Second Snake (ular sani). This is also recorded in a 19th-century manuscript compiled by John Leyden.^[21]

Animal	Rumi	Jawi جاوي
Rat	Tikus	تيکوس
Ox	Kerbau	کرباو
Tiger	Rimau	ريماو
Mousedeer	Pelanduk	ڤلندوق
Nāga	Ular Besar	اولر بسر
Snake	Ular Sani	اولر ثاني
Horse	Kuda	کودا
Goat	Kambing	کمبيڠ
Monkey	Monyet	موڽيت
Rooster	Ayam	أيم
Dog	Anjing	أنجيڠ
Tortoise	Kura	کورا

The Thai zodiac includes a nāga in place of the Dragon^[22] and begins, not at the Chinese New Year, but either on the first day of the fifth month in the Thai lunar calendar, or during the Songkran New Year festival (now celebrated every 13–15 April), depending on the purpose of the use.^[23] Historically, Lan Na (Kingdom around Northern Thailand) also replace pig with Elephant. Modern Thai are changed back into pig, but the name กุน (gu̜n) which was meant elephant are still stuck as zodiac pronunciation ^[24]

The Gurung zodiac in Nepal includes a Cow instead of Ox, Cat instead of Rabbit, Eagle instead of Dragon (Loong), Bird instead of Rooster, and Deer instead of Pig.^{[citation needed]}

The Bulgar calendar used from the 2nd century^[25] and that has been only partially reconstructed uses a similar sixty-year cycle of twelve animal-named years groups which are:^[26]

Number	Animal	In Bulgar
1	Mouse	Somor
2	Ox	Shegor
3	Uncertain, probably Tiger/Wolf	Ver?
4	Rabbit	Dvan[sh]
5	Uncertain, probably Loong	Ver[eni]?
6	Snake	Dilom
7	Horse	Imen[shegor]?
8	Ram	Teku[chitem]?
9	Unattested, probably Monkey
10	Hen or Rooster	Toh
11	Dog	Eth
12	Boar	Dohs

The Old Mongol calendar uses the Mouse, the Ox, the Leopard, the Hare, the Crocodile, the Serpent, the Horse, the Sheep, the Monkey, the Hen, the Dog and the Hog.^[27]

The Tibetan calendar replaces the Rooster with the bird.

The Volga Bulgars, Kazars and other Turkic peoples replaced some animals by local fauna: Leopard (instead of Tiger), Fish or Crocodile (instead of Dragon/Loong), Hedgehog (instead of Monkey), Elephant (instead of Pig), and Camel (instead of Rat/Mouse).^[28][29]

In the Persian version of the Eastern zodiac brought by Mongols during the Middle Ages, the Chinese word lóng and Mongol word lū (Dragon) was translated as nahang meaning "water beast", and may refer to any dangerous aquatic animal both mythical and real (crocodiles, hippos, sharks, sea serpents, etc.). In the 20th century the term nahang is used almost exclusively as meaning Whale, thus switching the Loong for the Whale in the Persian variant.^[30][31]

In the traditional Kazakh version of the 12-year animal cycle (Kazakh: мүшел, müşel), the Dragon is substituted by a snail (Kazakh: ұлу, ulw), and the Tiger appears as a leopard (Kazakh: барыс, barıs).^[32]

In the Kyrgyz version of the Chinese zodiac (Kyrgyz: мүчөл, müçöl) the words for the Dragon (Kyrgyz: улуу, uluu), Monkey (Kyrgyz: мечин, meçin) and Tiger (Kyrgyz: барс, bars) are only found in Chinese zodiac names, other animal names are regular words used in everyday speech like Mouse, Cow, Rabbit, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Chicken, Dog and Wild boar.^[33]

Emoji

All early Japanese emoji sets had at least one suitable pictograph for each Eastern zodiac. They also had either a symbol or a pictograph subset for all the Western zodiac signs.

During the harmonization and standardization phase led by Unicode, some additional animals to represent local variants were added. Also, most signs got both a facial pictograph and a full-body one. For the full-body animals (U+1F400...4C), the local variant is recorded in the respective code point annotation. Some original emojis for applicable animals according to the previous subsection do not have such a note and all animal emojis that have been added in subsequent versions of Unicode are also not annotated for zodiac use:

1. 🐭 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🐀 default
   • 🐁 Persia
   • 🐪🐫 (no annotation in Unicode)
2. 🐮 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🐂 default
   • 🐄 Persia
   • 🐃 Vietnam
3. 🐯 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🐅 default
   • 🐆 Persia
   • 🐺 (no annotation in Unicode)
4. 🐰🐱 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🐇 default
   • 🐈 Vietnam
5. 🐲 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🐉 default
   • 🐊 Persia
   • 🐋 Persia, 🐳 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🐌 Kazakhstan
   • 🦈 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🐟 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🦛 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🦅 (no annotation in Unicode)
6. 🐍
7. 🐴 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🐎
8. 🐏 default
   • 🐐 Vietnam, Malaysia
   • 🐑 Persia
9. 🐵 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🐒 default
   • 🐢 (no annotation in Unicode)
   • 🦔 (no annotation in Unicode)
10. 🐔 Persia
    • 🐓 default
    • 🐦 (no annotation in Unicode)
11. 🐶 (no annotation in Unicode)
    • 🐕 default
    • 🐩🦮🐕‍🦺 (no annotation in Unicode)
12. 🐷 (no annotation in Unicode)
    • 🐖 default
    • 🐗 Japan
    • 🐘 Thailand
    • 🐢 Malaysia
    • 🦌 (no annotation in Unicode)

Gallery

•  

  A chart indicating good and bad bloodletting days and when to guard against demons. Detail: The chart contains a sme ba (9 figures symbolizing the elements in geomancy) in the center with the Chinese pa-kua (eight trigrams) surrounded by twelve animals of months and years.

•  

  Soyombo and several Buddhist, Tengrist, and Chinese zodiac symbols in a wall mosaic.

•  

  Twelve Chinese zodiac jade figurines. Capital Museum, Beijing, China.

See also

•  China portal
•  Asia portal
•  History portal

• Chinese astrology
• Chinese spiritual world concepts
• Earthly Branches
• Astrology and science
• Chinese New Year

References

1. Abe, Namiko. "The Twelve Japanese Zodiac Signs". ThoughtCo. from the original on 2017-10-14. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
2. "Chinese Zodiac and Chinese Year Animals". astroica.com. from the original on 2011-03-24. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
3. "Animals of the Thai Zodiac and the Twelve Year Cycle". Thaizer. 2011-09-08. from the original on 2012-08-14. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
4. Theodora Lau, The Handbook of Chinese Horoscopes, pp. 2–8, 30–35, 60–64, 88–94, 118–124, 148–153, 178–184, 208–213, 238–244, 270–278, 306–312, 338–344, Souvenir Press, New York, 2005
5. "三十六禽" [Thirty-Six Animals]. Buddhist Dictionary. Buddhistdoor International. Archived from the original on 2015-02-18. Retrieved 2021-01-24.
6. Dekane und Dekansterbilder by Wilhelm Gundel, pub. J.J. Augustin, Glückstadt und Hamburg, 1936, p. 216-221, 225
7. ""Almanac" "lunar" zodiac beginning of spring as the boundary dislocation?". China Network. 16 February 2009. from the original on 14 June 2011. Retrieved 5 January 2011.
8. "What is Your Chinese Zodiac Sign and Chinese Horoscope Zodiac Birth Chart?". from the original on 2019-09-05. Retrieved 2020-01-01.
9. "Online Four Pillars Calculator". from the original on 2017-07-16. Retrieved 2016-06-15.
10. "Chinese Compatibility Matching". Jan 2016.
11. "Chinese Zodiac Animal Signs Compatibility". yourchineseastrology.com/.
12. "chinesefortunecalendar.com". from the original on 2017-10-27. Retrieved 2009-06-17.
13. "Legend of the Chinese Zodiac". www.thingsasian.com. 3 March 2003. from the original on 2022-03-20. Retrieved 2022-02-01.
14. Cyndi Chen (2013-02-26). . Archived from the original on March 6, 2013. Retrieved October 11, 2013.
15. "Year of the Cat OR Year of the Rabbit?". www.nwasianweekly.com. 3 February 2011. from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
16. "Japanese Zodiac Signs and Symbols". japanesezodiac.org/. 5 January 2012. from the original on 17 December 2014. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
17. . windowintochina.wordpress.com. Archived from the original on 19 July 2019. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
18. "The Khmer Calendar | Cambodian Religion, Festivals and Zodiac Astrology". humanoriginproject.com. 2019-04-25. from the original on 2019-07-19. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
19. "Khmer Chhankitek Calendar". cam-cc.org. from the original on 30 October 2009. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
20. Farouk Yahya (2015). "Glossary". Malay Magic and Divination in Illuminated Manuscripts. Brill. pp. 296–306. ISBN 978-90-04-30172-6.
21. Leyden, John. "Cycle of years used by the Malays". Notes and vocabularies in Malay, Thai, Burmese and other minor languages. The British Library. p. 104. Retrieved 16 June 2022 – via Digitised Manuscripts.
22. . ประชาชาติธุรกิจ. 5 January 2012. Archived from the original on 1 January 2015. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
23. . Archived from the original on 2011-01-03.
24. "ตุงตั๋วเปิ้ง".
25. . theo.inrne.bas.bg. Archived from the original on 2012-02-04. Retrieved 2009-04-15.
26. Именник на българските ханове – ново тълкуване. М.Москов. С. 1988 г. § 80,70
27. Grahame, F. R. (1860). The archer and the steppe; or, The empires of Scythia, a history of Russia. p. 258. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
28. Davletshin1, Gamirzan M. (2015). "The Calendar and the Time Account of the Turko-Tatars". Journal of Sustainable Development. 8 (5).
29. Dani, A. H.; Mohen, J.-P. History of Humanity. Vol. II: From the Third Millennium to the Seventh Century B.C. UNESCO. from the original on 14 June 2020. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
30. Rasulid Hexaglot. P. B. Golden, ed., The King’s Dictionary: The Rasūlid Hexaglot – Fourteenth Century Vocabularies in Arabic, Persian, Turkic, Greek, Armenian and Mongol, tr. T. Halasi-Kun, P. B. Golden, L. Ligeti, and E. Schütz, HO VIII/4, Leiden, 2000.
31. Jan Gyllenbok, Encyclopaedia of Historical Metrology, Weights, and Measures, Volume 1, 2018, p. 244.
32. А. Мухамбетова (A. Mukhambetova), Казахский традиционный календарь "The traditional Kazakh calendar" 2022-01-15 at the Wayback Machine (in Russian)
33. "Chinese Lunar Calendar Stamps from Kyrgyzstan". 2003.

Sources

• Shelly H. Wu. (2005). Chinese Astrology. Publisher: The Career Press, Inc. ISBN 1-56414-796-7.

External links

• "The Year of the Rooster: On Seeing"
• "The Year of the Rooster, On Eating, Injecting, Imbibing & Speaking"
• "2016: The Golden Monkey, A Year to Remember"
• "The Dragon Raises its Head 龍抬頭"
• "2019 year of the Pig"
• "From the Year of the Ape to the Year of the Monkey 2020-04-11 at the Wayback Machine" (on use of Zodiac figures for political criticism)
•   Media related to Chinese zodiac at Wikimedia Commons

1. In Vietnam, rabbits are replaced by cats.