What Is My Chinese Zodiac Sign And Element

To exactly answer the question what is my Chinese zodiac sign, you need to take into account the year, the month and the day of your birth. Chinese zodiac or Earthly Branches is a recurring 12-year cycle of zodiac animal signs. However, the separation of signs in the Chinese zodiac happens by years, but not by months as in Western zodiac. To determine what is my Chinese zodiac sign, it is also important to remember that in the Chinese calendar the new year does not begin on January 1, as in the Gregorian calendar. Chinese calendar is the lunisolar calendar in which the new year begins between 21 January and 20 February depending on the year (second or third new moon after the winter solstice).

In Chinese Astrology, beside the 12-year cycle of animal signs, there is also a 10-year cycle, called Heavenly Stems. In this cycle, Wood element, Fire element, Earth element, Metal element and Water element cover two consecutive years each (first year in their Yang form and second in Yin form. 10-year cycle of Heavenly Stems and 12-year-old Earthly Branches are believed to interact with each other. Combinations of these two cycles together form the sexagenary cycle which lasts 60 years and consists of sixty Stem-Branches. Thus, your Chinese zodiac sign can be, for example, Wood Rat or Fire Rat or Wood Ox, etc.