Rat Chinese Zodiac Sign

鼠Zi子

The Rat is paired with the 子 (Zi) earthly branch. Below are its calendar years, traditional character, five elements, and traditional compatibility groupings.

Rat years:

Traditional character

Commonly described strengths: adaptable, observant, resourceful
Commonly described challenges: restless, overly cautious

Traditional interpretation

These traits are part of cultural and traditional interpretation. They are provided for educational and cultural purposes only — not as a personality assessment.

Five Rat elements

Wood
Born in years ending in 41924, 1984, 2044
Fire
Born in years ending in 61936, 1996, 2056
Earth
Born in years ending in 81948, 2008, 2068
Metal
Born in years ending in 01960, 2020, 2080
Water
Born in years ending in 21912, 1972, 2032

Compatibility overview

Ox Dragon Monkey

Often paired with Ox, Dragon, Monkey.

Horse

Traditionally more challenging with Horse.

See compatibility guide

Rat years and exact dates

Every Rat year, with its element and exact Chinese New Year dates
Rat year	Element	Complete name	Begins	Ends
1912	Water	Yang Water Rat	18 February 1912	5 February 1913
1924	Wood	Yang Wood Rat	5 February 1924	23 January 1925
1936	Fire	Yang Fire Rat	24 January 1936	10 February 1937
1948	Earth	Yang Earth Rat	10 February 1948	28 January 1949
1960	Metal	Yang Metal Rat	28 January 1960	14 February 1961
1972	Water	Yang Water Rat	15 February 1972	2 February 1973
1984	Wood	Yang Wood Rat	2 February 1984	19 February 1985
1996	Fire	Yang Fire Rat	19 February 1996	6 February 1997
2008	Earth	Yang Earth Rat	7 February 2008	25 January 2009
2020	Metal	Yang Metal Rat	25 January 2020	11 February 2021
2032	Water	Yang Water Rat	11 February 2032	30 January 2033
2044	Wood	Yang Wood Rat	30 January 2044	16 February 2045
2056	Fire	Yang Fire Rat	15 February 2056	3 February 2057
2068	Earth	Yang Earth Rat	3 February 2068	22 January 2069
2080	Metal	Yang Metal Rat	22 January 2080	8 February 2081
2092	Water	Yang Water Rat	7 February 2092	26 January 2093

People born before Chinese New Year belong to the preceding animal year — check an exact birth date with the calculator.