Chinese Astrology Calendar Animal Signs

From LoveToKnow Horoscopes

Chinese astrology calendar animal signs have an established order that’s repeated every twelve years. One animal is assigned for each year of the Chinese twelve-year cycle. Unlike Western astrology, traditional Chinese astrology is based on lunar cycles. However, some Chinese astrologers began to incorporate solar astrology in the early 1900s for a unique combination of astrological divination.

Chinese animal signs are in a fixed order.

Twelve Chinese Animal Signs

Chinese animal signs are used to describe the characteristics of individuals born during the year of the assigned zodiac sign. For example, a person born between February 17, 1988 and Feb 05, 1989 would have the same characteristics of the Chinese dragon; the ruling animal for that birth year.

Assigned Order: Chinese Astrology Calendar Animal Signs

The Chinese zodiac animals have a set order just as Western astrological signs have a set order. Chinese legend states Buddha invited all of the animals in his kingdom to his New Year’s Party. The first twelve animals that arrived became the calendar animals assigned by the order of their arrival. Another legend claims Buddha held a race, and the order was determined by the first twelve as they crossed the finish line.

Below is a chart showing the proper order of the Chinese zodiac animals.

**ORDER OF CHINESE ANIMAL SIGNS**
ORDER	ANIMAL
Number 1	Rat
Number 2	Ox (Bull)
Number 3	Tiger
Number 4	Rabbit
Number 5	Dragon
Number 6	Snake
Number 7	Horse
Number 8	Sheep (Goat)
Number 9	Monkey
Number 10	Rooster
Number 11	Dog
Number 12	Pig

Calculate Your Calendar Animal Sign

Since 2009 is the Year of the Ox (or as in some Chinese regions, the Bull) you’ll want to understand the Ox’s influence over your life for the coming year. To do this, you first need to find your individual zodiac animal sign. You can use one of many charts available online or you can use a simple equation to accurately determine your Chinese calendar animal sign.

The following example demonstrates the method used to determine your animal sign.

Begin with the year of your birth.
Advance it in 12-year increments until the closest date possible to thecurrent year is reached. For example, if you were born in 1968, your equation would look something like this:

1968 + 12 = 1980 + 12 = 1992 + 12 = 2004

How To Determine Animal Years

Now that you have calculated the closest year with the above formula, you can figure out what the 2004 animal sign was without referring to a chart or text book. Begin with the Chinese animal sign for the current year and move backwards.

For 2009, the animal sign is the Ox. Since the animals are in an assigned order as depicted in the previous chart, it’s easy to begin moving backwards to find the correct animal sign from five years ago.

2009 = Ox
2008 = Rat
2007 = Pig
2006 = Dog
2005 = Rooster
2004 = Monkey

If you were born in 2004, your Chinese zodiac animal sign is the monkey.

Chinese Zodiac Animal Year

Not only is your birth year governed by an animal zodiac sign, each New Year is also governed by a Chinese zodiac animal. This sign changes each year and lasts until the following year. For example, 2009 is the Year of the Ox. The year will be governed by the characteristics of the Ox.

2009 is the 4,706 year of the Chinese calendar. Below is a twelve-year progression of the Chinese calendar and the astrological animal signs for each.

**12-YEAR PROGRESSION CHINESE CALENDAR**
YEAR	CHINESE ZODIAC ANIMAL
2009	Ox (Bull)
2010	Tiger
2011	Rabbit
2012	Dragon
2013	Snake
2014	Horse
2015	Sheep (Goat)
2016	Monkey
2017	Rooster
2018	Dog
2019	Pig
2020	Rat