Year of the Tiger: All About the Chinese Zodiac

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This Sunday, Feb. 14, marks a new year according to the Chinese calendar, which will be moving from the reign of the Ox to the year of the Tiger.

Each year on the Chinese calendar is assigned an animal from the Chinese zodiac, which rotates on a 12-year cycle. People born during a specific year are thought to have attributes of their animal — tigers are confident, daring and unpredictable, for example.

This system of measuring time is based on the lunar calendar, with months that are roughly the length of one moon cycle, or one swing around Earth — 29.5 days. One Chinese year usually includes 12 months, alternating between 29 and 30 days. Because this adds up to a year of 354 days, occasional leap months are added to keep the calendar aligned with the solar cycle  (our planet's complete orbit around the sun) as well, where one year is closer to 365 days.

Chinese New Year generally falls on the second new moon after winter solstice (though this rule can be complicated by leap months). When the moon and the sun are on the same side of Earth, there appears to be no moon in the sky, and it's called a new moon.

Contrary to popular belief, it's not only the years in the Chinese calendar that are associated with zodiac animals. Months and hours are also tied to the 12 creatures, so people can have birth day, month and year animals that influence their personalities.

The 12 animals, and the most recent years they were tied to, are:

  • Tiger – 2010 – courageous, emotional, unpredictable
  • Ox – 2009 - solid, calm, reliable
  • Rat – 2008 – clever, charming, forthright
  • Boar – 2007 – sincere, patient, honest
  • Dog – 2006 – loyal, honest, intelligent
  • Rooster – 2005 – resourceful, organized, decisive
  • Monkey – 2004 – active, fun-loving, curious
  • Ram – 2003 – creative, gentle, compassionate
  • Horse – 2002 – energetic, independent, hard-working
  • Snake – 2001 – seductive, clever, wise
  • Dragon – 2000 – noble, energetic, passionate
  • Rabbit – 1999 – compassionate, sincere, sensitive

And so next year will be the year of the Rabbit.

Clara Moskowitz
Clara Moskowitz
Clara has a bachelor's degree in astronomy and physics from Wesleyan University, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz. She has written for both Space.com and Live Science.