Chinese zodiac

The Chinese zodiac is a mathematical cycle of 12 animals. Each animal represents one year. People are associated with the zodiac animal for the year that they are born. The 12 animals in order are: Pig, Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, and Dog. Although it is called the Chinese zodiac, this system is also used in several other countries in Asia such as Korea, Japan, and Vietnam. The animals in the zodiac vary in different cultures.

Personality
Some Chinese people believe that each zodiac animal has a personality, and people born in the same year may have similar personalities. Theodora Lau, The Handbook of Chinese Horoscopes, pp. 2–8, 30–5, 60–4, 88–94, 118–24, 148–53, 178–84, 208–13, 238–44, 270–78, 306–12, 338–44, Souvenir Press, New York, 2006

Rat
years: 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020
Simple, hard working, strong, peace-loving, trusting. Can be naive, gullible, materialistic, clingy.

Ox
years: 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021
Honest, freedom, hard working, charming. Can be selfish, ruthless, controlling, scheming.

Tiger
years: 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010, 2022
Smart, calm, patient, inspiring, modest. Can be stubborn, narrow-minded, demanding, rigid.

Rabbit
years: 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2023
Aggressive, rebellious, strong, daring, generous. Can be restless, clumsy, hot-temper, impatient.

Dragon
years: 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012, 2024
Kind, sensitive, elegant, artistic, cautious. Can be moody, shy, lazy, opportunistic.

Snake
years: 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013, 2025
Strong, proud, direct, eccentric, show off. Can be arrogant, violent, brash, controlling.

Horse
years: 1930, 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014, 2026
Wise, graceful, calm, mystic, shrewd. Can be a loner, bad communicator, possessive, distrustful.

Goat
years:  1931, 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015, 2027
Cheerful, popular, talkative, witty, earthly, responsible. Can be fickle, rude, gullible, stubborn.

Monkey
years: 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016, 2028
Righteous, honest, shy, artistic, understanding. Can be moody, a worrier, a complainer, and soft.

Rooster
years: 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017, 2029
Witty, curious, flexible, sociable, smart. Can be vain, clumsy, trickster, snobbish.

Dog
years: 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018, 2030
Neat, organized, alert, scientific, responsible. Can be critical, egotistical, rough, opinionated.

Pig
years: 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019, 2031
Honest, smart, loyal, sense of justice, affectionate. Can be lazy, cold, stubborn, quarrelsome.

Hours
In the old days, China, Korea, and Japan used a 12-hour system to tell the time of day and night (unlike the 24 hour system used today). The 12 hour system divides the day of 24 hours into 12 hours, each of which has a sign of the zodiac:
12:00 AM to 2:00 AM is the hour of the Pig.
2:00 AM to 4:00 AM is the hour of the Rat.
4:00 AM to 6:00 AM is the hour of the Ox.
6:00 AM to 8:00 AM is the hour of the Tiger.
8:00 AM to 10:00 AM is the hour of the Rabbit.
10:00 AM to 12:00 PM is the hour of the Dragon.
12:00 PM to 2:00 PM is the hour of the Snake.
2:00 PM to 4:00 PM is the hour of the Horse.
4:00 PM to 6:00 PM is the hour of the Goat.
6:00 PM to 8:00 PM is the hour of the Monkey.
8:00 PM to 10:00 PM is the hour of the Rooster.
10:00 PM to 12:00 AM is the hour of the Dog

Directions
The Chinese and Japanese would call the different directions (North, Northwest, North, Northeast, East, South, Southeast, Southwest, West), based on the names of the zodiac animals.

 Pig (Water, North-Northwest)
 Rat (Water, North)
 Ox (Earth, North-Northeast)
 Tiger (Wood,  East-Northeast)
 Rabbit (Wood, East)
 Dragon (Earth, East-Southeast)
 Snake (Fire, South-Southeast)
 Horse (Fire, South)
 Goat (Earth, South-Southwest)
 Monkey (Metal, West-Southwest)
 Rooster (Metal, West)
 Dog (Earth, West-Northwest)

References

Other websites


Category:Asian mythology