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Chinese New Year  Most people are familiar with western star signs: Aries, Taurus etc., but many do not know their Chinese year sign, nor the characteristics of that sign.  The Chinese Lunar Calendar names each of the twelve years after an animal. Legend has it that the Lord Buddha summoned all the animals to come to him before he departed from earth. Only twelve came to bid him farewell and as a reward he named a year after each one in the order they arrived. The Chinese believe the animal ruling the year in which a person is born has a profound influence on personality, saying: "This is the animal that hides in your heart."  The Chinese Year of the Tiger If you were born under the Chinese sign of the Tiger, it doesn't pay to argue with you! Tigers are usually larger than life, warm-hearted extroverts.  The Chinese Year of the Snake If you were born under the Chinese sign of the Snake, you are a classy one! Snakes are wise and subtle, achieving through wit, cunning and stealth.  The Chinese Year of the Ox If you were born under the Chinese sign of the Ox, you would make a great friend! Ox people are as honest as the day is long.  The Chinese Year of the Horse If you were born under the Chinese year sign of the Horse, you're great fun! Horses are usually strong, handsome people with bags of energy, natural athletes often drawn to outdoor sporty activities.  The Chinese Year of the Dog If you or your child was born under the Chinese year sign for the Dog your friends will be glad you were! Meeting people for the first time can be difficult for Dogs who tend to be cautious about trusting people.  The Chinese Year of the Pig If you were born during the Chinese sign of the Pig, you will make a great pal. Pigs are everything you would want in a friend: kind hearted and easy going, they forgive easily and don't bear grudges.   The Chinese Year of the Rabbit If you are born under the Chinese sign of the Rabbit, you will make a great diplomat! Rabbits are clean and neat, quiet and often softly spoken. They dislike conflict and will go to great lengths to avoid discord.  The Chinese Year of the Rat People born under the Chinese sign of the Rat are lucky! Rats are intelligent and great with people, surrounding themselves with many friends. The Rat's natural charisma ensures they are the centre of attention at social gatherings.  The Chinese Year of the Dragon If the dragon is your Chinese year sign or the Chinese sign of your child, you'll be glad to know that dragons are often good humoured and excellent company. They tend to see the larger picture and have a dislike of detail. Born leaders and original thinkers, Dragons can be very successful, although they have a tendency to plough on regardless and are reluctant to admit mistakes.  The Chinese Year of the Goat Goats are gentle people, kind hearted and caring about the well-being of others. They are possibly the nicest personalities in the Chinese zodiac. If they accidentally cause others unhappiness they will be distraught.  The Chinese Year of the Monkey People born under the Chinese sign of the Monkey are great fun to be around. Monkeys are bouncy people, always young at heart, born entertainers, loving pranks and riddles. Happiest when they have an audience, they love social gatherings that are light-hearted. Others forgive their tendency to show off because they are such fun to have around. You will find a chart of the dates and signs below. Rat   1924 1936 1948 1960 1972 1984 1996 Ox   1925 1937 1949 1961 1973 1985 1997 Tiger   1926 1938 1950 1962 1974 1986 1998 Rabbit   1927 1939 1951 1963 1975 1987 1999 Dragon   1928 1940 1952 1964 1976 1988 2000 Snake   1929 1941 1953 1965 1977 1989 2001 Horse   1930 1942 1954 1966 1978 1990 2002 Sheep   1931 1943 1955 1967 1979 1991 2003 Monkey   1932 1944 1956 1968 1980 1992 2004 Rooster   1933 1945 1957 1969 1981 1993 2005 Dog   1934 1946 1958 1970 1982 1994 2006 Boar   1935 1947 1959 1971 1983 1995 2007   Chinese Years: February 9, 2005 - January 28, 2006: Rooster January 22, 2004 - February 8, 2005: Monkey February 1, 2003 - January 21, 2004: Goat February 12, 2002 - January 31, 2003: Horse January 24, 2001 - February 11, 2002: Snake February 5, 2000 - January 23, 2001: Dragon February 6, 1999 - February 4, 2000: Rabbit January 28, 1998 - February 5, 1999: Tiger February 8, 1997 - January 27, 1998: Ox February 19,1996 - February 7, 1997: Rat January 31, 1995 - February 18, 1996: Pig February 10, 1994 - January 30, 1995: Dog January 23, 1993 - February 9, 1994: Rooster February 4, 1992 - January 22, 1993: Monkey February 15, 1991 - February 3,1992: Goat January 27, 1990 - February 14, 1991: Horse February 6, 1989 - January 26, 1990: Snake February 17, 1988 - February 5, 1989: Dragon January 29, 1987 - February 16, 1988: Rabbit February 9, 1986 - January 28, 1987: Tiger February 20, 1985 - February 8, 1986: Ox February 2, 1984 - February 19, 1985: Rat February 13, 1983 - February 1, 1984: Pig February 25, 1982 - February 12, 1983: Dog February 5, 1981 - January 24, 1982: Rooster February 16, 1980 - February 4, 1981: Monkey January 28, 1979 - February 15, 1980: Goat February 7, 1978 - January 27, 1979: Horse February 18, 1977 - February 6, 1978: Snake January 31, 1976 - February 17, 1977: Dragon February 11, 1975 - January 30, 1976: Rabbit January 23, 1974 - February 10, 1975: Tiger February 3, 1973 - January 22, 1974: Ox February 15, 1972 - February 2, 1973: Rat January 27, 1971 - February 14, 1972: Pig February 6, 1970 - January 26, 1971: Dog February 17, 1969 - February 5, 1970: Rooster January 30, 1968 - February 16, 1969: Monkey February 9, 1967 - January 29, 1968: Goat January 21, 1966 - February 8, 1967: Horse February 2, 1965 - January 20, 1966: Snake The Chinese Lunar New Year is the longest chronological record in history, dating from 2600BC, when the Emperor Huang Ti introduced the first cycle of the zodiac. Like the Western calendar, The Chinese Lunar Calendar is a yearly one, with the start of the lunar year being based on the cycles of the moon. Therefore, because of this cyclical dating, the beginning of the year can fall anywhere between late January and the middle of February. This year it falls on February 12th. A complete cycle takes 60 years and is made up of five cycles of 12 years each.

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