What is your Chinese zodiac animal?

Lunar New Year dates and animals

Lunar New Year is the second new moon after the winter solstice in most years, so its date moves between 21 January and 20 February.

Why a January or February birthday can change the animal

A year chart gives one animal for each calendar year. The Chinese year does not start on 1 January. It starts on Lunar New Year, three to seven weeks later. A person born in those first weeks belongs to the Chinese year before, and has the animal before in the order.

About one birthday in ten falls in that part of the year. The finder at the top of this page compares the birth date with the day of Lunar New Year in that year, and says so when the animal is not the one from the chart.

The Great Race: why the animals are in this order

In the best-known folk tale, the Jade Emperor called the animals to a race across a river. The first twelve to arrive each got a year, in the order they finished.

1. 1The Rat crossed the river on the back of the Ox, then jumped off at the bank and finished first.
2. 2The Ox was the strongest swimmer and carried the Rat across. It finished second, one jump behind its passenger.
3. 3The Tiger fought the current all the way across and came in third.
4. 4The Rabbit hopped across on stones and then on a floating log, and finished fourth.
5. 5The Dragon could fly, but it stopped to bring rain to a dry village and to blow the Rabbit's log to the shore. It finished fifth.
6. 6The Snake rode across hidden on the Horse's hoof, and slid ahead at the bank to finish sixth.
7. 7The Horse was about to finish sixth when the Snake appeared at its feet. It jumped back in surprise and came in seventh.
8. 8The Goat crossed on a raft with the Monkey and the Rooster. The three worked together, and the Goat stepped off eighth.
9. 9The Monkey cleared the weeds from the raft it shared with the Goat and the Rooster, and finished ninth.
10. 10The Rooster found the raft that carried it across with the Goat and the Monkey, and finished tenth.
11. 11The Dog was a fine swimmer, but the water was so good that it stayed to play. It finished eleventh.
12. 12The Pig stopped for a meal and then a nap on the way. It woke up, crossed the river and finished twelfth.

The tale has many versions. In a common one the Cat missed the race because the Rat did not wake it, which is the story of why cats chase rats and why there is no Year of the Cat in China.

Quick answers

How do I find my Chinese zodiac animal?

Enter your birth date in the finder at the top of this page. Each Chinese year has one of twelve animals, and the year starts on Lunar New Year, a day between 21 January and 20 February. The finder looks up the Chinese year your birthday falls in and shows its animal.

I was born in January or February. Which animal is mine?

It depends on the day. A birthday before Lunar New Year belongs to the Chinese year before. Example: in 1990, Lunar New Year was on 27 January. A person born on 20 January 1990 is in the Year of the Snake, and not in the Year of the Horse, which year charts give for 1990. The finder checks the exact day for you.

Which animal is 2027?

Lunar New Year is on 6 February 2027. It starts the Year of the Goat (Sheep or Ram), which ends on 25 January 2028.

Is it the Year of the Goat, the Sheep or the Ram?

All three names are in use. The Chinese word for this animal, yáng, covers both goats and sheep, so English translations differ. Other animals have two English names for the same reason: Ox or Buffalo, Rabbit or Hare, Rooster or Chicken, and Pig or Boar.

Do all countries use the same twelve animals?

Most do, with a few differences. In Vietnam the Cat takes the place of the Rabbit and the Water Buffalo takes the place of the Ox. In Japan the last animal is the Wild Boar, and the animal year starts on 1 January. This finder follows the calendar used in China.

Which dates does the finder use?

The date of Lunar New Year for each year from 1900 to 2050, in China's time zone. The list was checked against published calendar tables, and the three years where the new moon falls close to midnight (1954, 2027 and 2030) against the Hong Kong Observatory tables. Some almanacs start the animal year at Lichun, the start of spring on about 4 February. This finder uses Lunar New Year, which is the common convention.

What does my Chinese zodiac animal say about my personality?

This page does not say. The animal comes from a birth year, and everyone born in that year shares it. Here you get the dates, the order of the animals and the folk tale. For an animal based on how you act, take the free animal personality quiz: 20 everyday scenarios, six traits, and one of 31 animals.