1998 Chinese Zodiac: Year of the Earth Tiger

沉浸 TeamAugust 26, 20264 min read

The 1998 Chinese zodiac animal is the Tiger. More precisely, 1998 was the Year of the Earth Tiger (戊寅 wùyín): the zodiac year ran from January 28, 1998 to February 15, 1999. If you were born in that window, your Chinese zodiac sign is the Tiger (虎 hǔ).

One catch before anything else: the zodiac year follows the lunar calendar, not January 1. Born in 1998 before January 28? Then you belong to the previous animal, the Fire Ox. The next section has the exact dates.

1998 Chinese zodiac at a glance

Animal: Tiger (虎 hǔ), the third of the 12 zodiac animals
Element: Earth (土 tǔ)
Traditional name: 戊寅 (wùyín) in the 60-year cycle
Dates: January 28, 1998 to February 15, 1999
Lucky numbers: 1, 3, 4
Lucky colors: blue, grey, orange

Born in January or February 1998?

Chinese New Year fell on January 28 in 1998. So:

Born January 1 to January 27, 1998: you're a Fire Ox (ox year 1997), not a Tiger.
Born January 28 or later in 1998: you're a Earth Tiger.

This is the single most common mistake people make with the Chinese zodiac. When a January or February birthday is involved, always check the new year date before assuming the animal.

The Earth Tiger personality

Tigers are born leaders: brave, confident, and allergic to being told what to do. They act on conviction, protect their people fiercely, and bring drama wherever they go. Caution isn't their strong suit; neither is waiting.

Earth is the element of stability. It adds patience, reliability, and a practical, grounded streak. In the 60-year cycle each animal pairs with one of five elements, so a Earth Tiger (born 1998) reads a little different from Tigers of other years: the earth side colors how the tiger's core traits show up.

Strengths:

Courageous and decisive
Natural authority
Loyal protector
Magnetic confidence

Watch out for:

Impulsive and headstrong
Hates taking orders
Can burn out or overreach

Tigers thrive as founders, leaders, athletes, and advocates, in any role with real stakes and real freedom.

1998 zodiac compatibility

Traditional Chinese astrology groups the 12 animals into "trines" of three signs that share a temperament, and pairs each sign with a "secret friend" and one clash.

Best matches for the Tiger: the Horse and the Dog (trine partners), plus the Pig, the Tiger's secret friend.
Trickiest match: the Monkey, the Tiger's opposite on the zodiac wheel.

Treat this as folk wisdom rather than fate. Plenty of happy couples "clash" on paper, and Chinese families today read these charts with a wink more often than a frown.

How to say it in Chinese

虎 (hǔ): tiger
生肖 (shēngxiào): Chinese zodiac sign
我属虎 (wǒ shǔ hǔ): "I'm a Tiger." The verb 属 (shǔ) means "to belong to"
本命年 (běnmìngnián): your own zodiac year, when your animal comes back around

Born in 1998? Your next 本命年 is 2034, the next Tiger year after 2026. Tradition says to wear red that year for luck.

Want to go beyond the zodiac? Create a free Chenjin account to hear words like 虎 and 生肖 pronounced by native-quality audio, save them as flashcards, and start reading real Chinese stories at your level.

Other Tiger years

1962: Water Tiger (February 5, 1962 to January 24, 1963)
1974: Wood Tiger (January 23, 1974 to February 10, 1975)
1986: Fire Tiger (February 9, 1986 to January 28, 1987)
2010: Metal Tiger (February 14, 2010 to February 2, 2011)
2022: Water Tiger (February 1, 2022 to January 21, 2023)

Read the full Year of the Tiger guide for the personality in depth, or look up a different birth year on the Chinese zodiac overview.

1998 Chinese zodiac FAQ

What animal is 1998 in the Chinese zodiac?

1998 is the Year of the Tiger. Anyone born from January 28, 1998 to February 15, 1999 is a Tiger; a birthday earlier in 1998 belongs to the Year of the Ox.

What element is 1998?

Earth. The full sign for 1998 is the Earth Tiger (戊寅 wùyín), a combination that repeats only once every 60 years.

How old is someone born in 1998?

Someone born in 1998 turns 28 in 2026, or is still 27 if their birthday hasn't come around yet this year. In traditional Chinese age counting (虚岁 xūsuì), you'd add one more, since babies are counted as one year old at birth.