What is the Chinese zodiac?+
Your Chinese zodiac sign comes from your birth year, not your birth month, so a January or early-February birthday may fall under the previous year's animal. Twelve animals rotate in a fixed order, one per year: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig, with the cycle turning at Chinese New Year. That year animal is the popular sign; traditional Chinese astrology also assigns animals to your birth month, day, and hour.
How do I find my Chinese zodiac sign?+
Your sign is set by your birth year in the Chinese lunar calendar. Because the Chinese New Year falls between late January and mid-February, anyone born in January or early February may belong to the previous year's animal, so it is best to check with a calculator that accounts for the exact lunar new year date.
What are the 12 Chinese zodiac animals in order?+
In order, the twelve animals are Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. Their sequence comes from the legend of the Great Race, which decided the order in which the animals finished.
Which Chinese zodiac signs are most compatible?+
Traditional compatibility groups the signs into four affinity triangles whose members get along most naturally: Rat, Dragon, and Monkey; Ox, Snake, and Rooster; Tiger, Horse, and Dog; and Rabbit, Goat, and Pig. Signs that sit directly opposite each other on the zodiac wheel, six years apart, are considered the most challenging matches.
What is the Chinese zodiac sign for 2027?+
2027 is the Year of the Fire Goat, which begins at Chinese New Year on February 6, 2027, and runs through January 25, 2028. It is the first Fire Goat year since 1967.
What is the Chinese zodiac sign for 2026?+
2026 is the Year of the Fire Horse, which began at Chinese New Year on February 17, 2026 and runs through February 5, 2027.
How is the Chinese zodiac different from the Western zodiac?+
The Western zodiac assigns a sign by your birth month, a window of about thirty days, while the Chinese zodiac assigns an animal by your birth year within a twelve-year cycle. The Chinese system also pairs each year with one of five elements, forming a longer sixty-year cycle.
What are the five elements in the Chinese zodiac?+
Each zodiac year is paired with one of five elements — Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water — that cycle alongside the twelve animals to create a sixty-year cycle. The element shades the personality traits associated with each animal sign.
Which Chinese zodiac sign is the luckiest?+
No single animal is universally the luckiest; fortune in Chinese astrology depends on the year, its element, and personal compatibility rather than the sign alone. The Dragon is the most culturally prized sign, which is why Dragon years often see a rise in births.