Chinese Zodiac: The 12 Animals, Elements, and Your Birth Year

沉浸 TeamAugust 26, 20266 min read

The Chinese zodiac (生肖 shēngxiào) is a repeating 12-year cycle in which every year belongs to an animal: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig, in that order. Your sign comes from your birth year, it shapes everything from red-envelope teasing to wedding-date picking, and 2026 is the Year of the Horse. This guide covers all 12 animals, the five elements behind them, and the one date trap that makes people get their own sign wrong.

Two quick warnings before the fun part. First, the zodiac year starts at Chinese New Year (late January or early-to-mid February), not on January 1, so January and February babies often belong to the previous year's animal. Second, "what's your sign" in China can also mean your western star sign; that's a different system called 星座 (xīngzuò), covered in zodiac signs in Chinese.

The 12 Chinese zodiac animals in order

Find your Chinese zodiac sign by birth year

Click your birth year for its full profile: exact dates, element, personality, and compatibility. If you were born in January or February, open your year and check whether your birthday falls before or after that year's Chinese New Year date.

1960s: 1960 Rat · 1961 Ox · 1962 Tiger · 1963 Rabbit · 1964 Dragon · 1965 Snake · 1966 Horse · 1967 Goat · 1968 Monkey · 1969 Rooster

1970s: 1970 Dog · 1971 Pig · 1972 Rat · 1973 Ox · 1974 Tiger · 1975 Rabbit · 1976 Dragon · 1977 Snake · 1978 Horse · 1979 Goat

1980s: 1980 Monkey · 1981 Rooster · 1982 Dog · 1983 Pig · 1984 Rat · 1985 Ox · 1986 Tiger · 1987 Rabbit · 1988 Dragon · 1989 Snake

1990s: 1990 Horse · 1991 Goat · 1992 Monkey · 1993 Rooster · 1994 Dog · 1995 Pig · 1996 Rat · 1997 Ox · 1998 Tiger · 1999 Rabbit

2000s: 2000 Dragon · 2001 Snake · 2002 Horse · 2003 Goat · 2004 Monkey · 2005 Rooster · 2006 Dog · 2007 Pig · 2008 Rat · 2009 Ox

2010s: 2010 Tiger · 2011 Rabbit · 2012 Dragon · 2013 Snake · 2014 Horse · 2015 Goat · 2016 Monkey · 2017 Rooster · 2018 Dog · 2019 Pig

2020s: 2020 Rat · 2021 Ox · 2022 Tiger · 2023 Rabbit · 2024 Dragon · 2025 Snake · 2026 Horse · 2027 Goat · 2028 Monkey · 2029 Rooster

2030s: 2030 Dog · 2031 Pig

How the cycle works: 12 animals, 5 elements, 60 years

The animal is only half of a year's identity. Each year also carries one of the five elements of Chinese cosmology: wood (木 mù), fire (火 huǒ), earth (土 tǔ), metal (金 jīn), and water (水 shuǐ). Elements run in pairs of years, so the full combination (say, the Wood Dragon of 2024) repeats only once every 60 years. That 60-year loop, the sexagenary cycle, is the same one traditional Chinese calendars have used for millennia, and it's why a 60th birthday is a major milestone in Chinese culture: you've completed one full cycle of the calendar.

The element tempers the animal. A Fire Horse burns louder than a Water Horse; a Metal Ox is even more immovable than the average Ox. Every year page on this site names both halves.

When does the zodiac year start? (The January trap)

The zodiac follows the lunisolar calendar, so each animal's year begins on Chinese New Year, which lands anywhere from January 21 to February 20. Example: Chinese New Year 2026 fell on February 17, 2026, so someone born on February 1, 2026 is a Snake (2025's animal), not a Horse. Quiz apps and paper placemats that map animals to whole calendar years silently get every early-year birthday wrong.

本命年: your own zodiac year isn't lucky

Here's the twist newcomers never expect: when your animal's year comes back around (your 本命年 běnmìngnián, once every 12 years), tradition says it brings bad luck, not good. The classic defense is wearing red all year: red bracelets, red belts, and famously red underwear, ideally received as a gift. If you see someone stocking up on red socks in January, there's a decent chance it's their year.

Why this order? The Great Race

The standard legend says the Jade Emperor held a river-crossing race to decide the calendar. The clever Rat rode the diligent Ox's back and leapt off at the bank to claim first place. The Tiger and Rabbit powered and hopped across. The Dragon, who could have flown straight in, stopped to make rain for a drought-struck village. The Snake startled the Horse at the finish; the Goat, Monkey, and Rooster shared a raft; the Dog stopped for a swim; and the Pig had lunch and a nap, strolling in last. Twelve finishers, twelve years, and the Cat, tricked out of a wake-up call by the Rat, is why cats hunt rats to this day.

Chinese zodiac words to know

生肖 (shēngxiào): the Chinese zodiac; literally "birth likeness"
属 (shǔ): to belong to a sign, as in 我属马 (wǒ shǔ mǎ), "I'm a Horse"
本命年 (běnmìngnián): your own zodiac year
新年 (xīnnián) and 春节 (Chūnjié): New Year and the Spring Festival, when the animal changes over
The 12 animals: 鼠 shǔ, 牛 niú, 虎 hǔ, 兔 tù, 龙 lóng, 蛇 shé, 马 mǎ, 羊 yáng, 猴 hóu, 鸡 jī, 狗 gǒu, 猪 zhū

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

Chinese zodiac FAQ

What is my Chinese zodiac sign?

Find your birth year in the list above and click through. If you were born after that year's Chinese New Year date, that year's animal is yours; if before, you belong to the previous animal.

What animal year is 2026?

2026 is the Year of the Fire Horse. It began on February 17, 2026 and ends on February 5, 2027.

Are the elements part of my sign too?

Yes. Each year pairs its animal with one of five elements, so your full sign is a combination like Water Rooster or Wood Dragon, repeating every 60 years. Your year page names yours.

Is the Chinese zodiac the same as a horoscope?

They're cousins. The zodiac assigns animals by year and is mostly read for personality and compatibility. Daily horoscope culture in China today more often uses the western star signs (星座); see zodiac signs in Chinese.