Find Your Chinese Zodiac Sign

A cartoon rendering of the 12 animals of the Chinese Zodia: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.
In Chinese astrology, each lunar year has its own animal and people born in that year all get the same zodiac sign. (Image: Mikel Davis via Nspirement)

The characteristics of Chinese zodiac signs can be surprisingly accurate. To find your Chinese zodiac sign, you can use the Chinese calendars and charts that we have prepared for our readers. Here’s how to use them.

The Chinese zodiac cycle repeats every 12 years, starting with the Rat sign. You are assigned an animal sign according to the year you were born. For example, everyone born in 2021 has the sign of the Ox. Use the Chinese calendar chart in this article to work out your zodiac year.

If your birthday is in January or February, you need to check a more detailed calendar carefully, because the start of the Chinese calendar doesn’t start on the same dates as the Western or Gregorian calendar.

For example, if you were born in 1970, your Chinese zodiac sign would be a Dog. But if you were born in January 1970, you would be a Rooster, because the Chinese year in 1970 started on February 6 of the Gregorian calendar.

A chart showing the Chinese zodiac animals per year starting with the Year of the Rat in 1912 and ending with the Year of the Pig in 2043.
The Chinese zodiac cycle repeats every 12 years, starting with the Rat sign. (Image: Mikel Davis via Nspirement)

According to Chinese astrology, the Chinese calendar is divided into 60-year cycles. Each 60-year period consists of another two cycles that are separate, yet influence each other:

  • Five Elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water
  • Twelve Zodiac Animal Signs: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig

Find the element of your Chinese Zodiac sign

So once you know which Chinese year you were born in, and therefore your Chinese zodiac sign, you can then find out the element using more detailed charts.

Table of the 60 year cycle of the Chinese zodiac starting with the Year of the Rat, Feb 2, 1984.
The latest 60-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac began in 1984. (Image: Mikel Davis via Nspirement)

In the Western world, people look to the monthly horoscopes based on star sign astrology to unlock the secret knowledge of their futures. However, in the East, Chinese astrology uses the Chinese calendar according to when you were born to predict your destiny and help you identify the strengths and weaknesses of your true self.

Chinese astrology is the oldest horoscope system in the world. Its origins date back to almost 3,000 B.C. It is a system that the Chinese believe wasn’t worked out by them, but was imparted to them by heavenly gods or deities to help them lead more spiritual lives and be closer to the heavens.

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