Chinese Zodiac by Year 生肖

The twelve Chinese zodiac signs （生肖）, each with every year 1901–2100 and the exact instants that decide which animal a January–February birth belongs to. All dates computed by the same astronomical kernel as our public API.

Why two new years exist: BaZi flips the year at the exact Lichun instant; the folk calendar at the new moon — up to weeks apart.

Born in January or February? Read this first

Your zodiac year — and your BaZi year pillar — switches at the exact Lichun instant (around February 4), not at Chinese New Year, and not at midnight January 1. Three different tools can give you three different answers for the same birthday, each honestly following a different rule. Our tools show all conventions side by side: start with the Kua calculator (it prints the exact Lichun instant it applied), or the three-engine comparison for the full picture.

Common questions

What is my Chinese zodiac sign? — the animal of your Lichun-rule year pillar. Enter your birth date and the year pillar is computed with the exact instant. Is the year number the same under both conventions? — the animal attached to Gregorian year N is the same under both for most of the year; only the boundary weeks differ, and every year page shows its exact window. What about the element? — the heavenly stem of the year pillar carries it (甲乙 Wood … 壬癸 Water, yin/yang alternating); each year page lists it.