When you’re getting to know someone in China, instead of asking you “你多大了？” “Nǐ duō dà le?” (How old are you?), your new friend might ask you “你属什么?” “Nǐ shǔ shénme?” (What’s your Chinese zodiac sign?)
The question is actually quite clever – not only can it give more superstitious people a read on your potential personality, but it can also reveal your age without asking bluntly.
How? Because there are 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac, and they rotate every year. So with a little maths and an educated guess, you can work out how old someone is just by knowing what animal they are.
The story of the Chinese zodiac animals
In the ancient legend, the heavenly Jade Emperor decided to create a calendar to help people measure time – a zodiac spanning 12 years.
He invited all the animals of the land to take part in a great race across a river. As a reward for being the fastest animals, the first 12 who crossed the river would have years of the zodiac named after them, in order of their arrival at the finishing line.
There were many strong contenders, but the winner of them all was the rat. Small but smart, the rat hitched a ride on the ox’s back for most of the race. At the very last moment, he hopped off onto the riverbank ahead of the ox.
Here’s the resulting zodiac in order of who crossed the river first, along with a couple of their key personality traits. Which one are you? Now you can say “我属_” “Wǒ shǔ_” (I’m the year of the _).
Rat/Mouse 鼠 (Shǔ)
Years: 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020, 2032
Personality: clever, creative
Ox 牛 (Niú)
Years: 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021, 2033
Personality: dependable, determined
Tiger 虎 (Hǔ)
Years: 2974, 1986, 1998, 2010, 2022, 2034
Personality: brave, confident
Rabbit 兔 (Tù)
Years: 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2023, 2035
Personality: kind, elegant
Dragon 龙 (Lóng)
Years: 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012, 2024, 2036
Personality: intelligent, passionate
Snake 蛇 (Shé)
Years: 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013, 2025, 2037
Personality: wise, intuitive
Horse 马 (Mǎ)
Years: 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014, 2026, 2038
Personality: energetic, independent
Goat/Sheep 羊 (Yáng)
Years: 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015, 2027, 2039
Personality: peaceful, gentle
Monkey 猴 (Hóu)
Years: 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016, 2028, 2040
Personality: witty, curious
Rooster 鸡 (Jī)
Years: 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017, 2029, 2041
Personality: honest, hardworking
Dog 狗 (Gǒu)
Years: 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018, 2030, 2042
Personality: loyal, warm-hearted
Pig 猪 (Zhū)
Years: 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019, 2031, 2043
Personality: generous, compassionate
Why all these common animals, but not a cat?
Not all cats hate water, and they’re very fast. As the same story goes, the rat knew this – so he told his cat friend the wrong time for the race, making sure he didn’t turn up to compete at all. That’s why, to this day, cats and rats are no longer friends!
Want to learn more about Chinese culture and language? Check out our range of immersive courses where you can learn Mandarin the best possible way: while exploring a country where it’s the native language.
