Fengshui Zen

Born in January or February? How to find your Chinese zodiac animal

Last checked · written by the Fengshui Zen team; figures calculated from the same checked data as the calendar pages

Most zodiac charts list one animal per year, as if the year started on January 1. It does not. The Chinese zodiac year starts on Chinese New Year, the first day of the first lunar month, which from 1901 to 2100 falls between Jan 21 and Feb 20. In 70 of those 200 years it falls in January and in the other 130 in February.

So everyone born before January 21, most people born later in January and many born in February belong to the previous year's animal. On average the first 35 days of a Gregorian year are still in the previous zodiac year.

Three dates to check

  1. 1
    Find the Chinese New Year date of your birth year. Every year from 1920 to 2040 has its own page, for example 1990, and the Chinese New Year page lists the dates.
  2. 2
    If you were born before that date, your animal is the previous year's. Born on or after it, you have the animal of your birth year. This is the popular rule, used by most zodiac charts and for Chinese New Year celebrations.
  3. 3
    If you follow the Four Pillars (BaZi) system, check Lichun, the Start of Spring, instead. It falls on February 3, 4 or 5 at an exact time, and a birth on that day can go either way depending on the hour. The birth date finder applies both rules.

Example: 1990

The 1990 Year of the Metal Horse began on January 27, 1990. A baby born on January 26, 1990 is an Earth Snake; one born a day later is a Metal Horse. Lichun 1990 was February 4, 1990 at 10:14 Beijing time, so under the Four Pillars rule the boundary is later than under the New Year rule.

New Year and Lichun dates for sample years

Anyone born from January 1 to the day before the New Year date belongs to the animal shown in the third column.

Birth yearChinese New YearBefore itFrom itLichun (Beijing time)
1960Jan 28, 1960Earth PigMetal RatFeb 5 03:23
1970Feb 6, 1970Earth RoosterMetal DogFeb 4 13:45
1980Feb 16, 1980Earth GoatMetal MonkeyFeb 5 00:09
1985Feb 20, 1985Wood RatWood OxFeb 4 05:11
1990Jan 27, 1990Earth SnakeMetal HorseFeb 4 10:14
1995Jan 31, 1995Wood DogWood PigFeb 4 15:12
2000Feb 5, 2000Earth RabbitMetal DragonFeb 4 20:40
2005Feb 9, 2005Wood MonkeyWood RoosterFeb 4 01:43
2010Feb 14, 2010Earth OxMetal TigerFeb 4 06:47
2015Feb 19, 2015Wood HorseWood GoatFeb 4 11:58
2020Jan 25, 2020Earth PigMetal RatFeb 4 17:03
2025Jan 29, 2025Wood DragonWood SnakeFeb 3 22:10

Why the date moves

Chinese New Year follows the Moon: it is the day of a new moon, roughly the second after the winter solstice, so it moves by up to a month from year to year. Lichun follows the Sun and stays on February 3, 4 or 5 (from 1901 to 2100: February 4 in 127 years, February 3 in 39 and February 5 in 34). Why Chinese New Year moves explains the rule, and Lichun vs Chinese New Year compares the two starts.

FAQ

Is someone born on January 15, 1990 an Earth Snake or a Metal Horse?

An Earth Snake. The 1990 Year of the Horse began on January 27, 1990, so January 15, 1990 still belonged to the Snake year that began in 1989.

Does the Chinese zodiac change on January 1?

No. The animal changes on Chinese New Year, which from 1901 to 2100 falls between Jan 21 and Feb 20. Under the Four Pillars rule it changes at Lichun, on February 3, 4 or 5.

Why do websites give different animals for the same birthday?

Some list only the Gregorian year and ignore the New Year date. Others use the Lichun (Start of Spring) rule instead of the Chinese New Year rule. For a birthday between Lichun and Chinese New Year, the two rules give different animals.

Data pages for this guide

Find your animal by exact dateChinese New Year dates1990 zodiac year

More guides

This guide explains the traditional calendar; it is not a prediction or advice. How the dates are calculated.