27 August 2026

12 Chinese Zodiac Signs

1963: Year of the Water Rabbit

The 1963 Chinese zodiac year is the Yin Water Rabbit, and it runs from 25 January 1963 to 12 February 1964 — not from 1 January.

Animal
Rabbit
Element and polarity
Yin Water
Gan-Zhi
Gui Mao 癸卯
Age this zodiac year
Born in 1963, a person turns 63 during the 2026 year

Born early in 1963? You may be Tiger, not Rabbit

Chinese New Year 1963 fell on 25 January 1963. Anyone born between 1 January 1963 and 24 January 1963 — a window of 24 days — belongs to the 1962 zodiac year, the Yang Water Tiger, and not to the Rabbit.

Check an exact birth date against the 25 January 1963 boundary.

Exact 1963 zodiac year dates

The 1963 lunar year carried a leap month, stretching it to 384 days — which is why the following Chinese New Year falls comparatively late.

Zodiac year begins25 January 1963
Zodiac year ends12 February 1964
Complete year nameYin Water Rabbit
Day of the week it beganFriday
Length of the lunar year384 days — a leap-month year of thirteen lunar months
Previous zodiac year1962 Yang Water Tiger
Next zodiac year1964 Yang Wood Dragon

Other Rabbit years around 1963

Rabbit yearComplete nameBegins
1927Yin Fire Rabbit2 February 1927
1939Yin Earth Rabbit19 February 1939
1951Yin Metal Rabbit6 February 1951
1975Yin Wood Rabbit11 February 1975
1987Yin Fire Rabbit29 January 1987
1999Yin Earth Rabbit16 February 1999

The exact pairing 癸卯Yin Water Rabbit — returns only once every sixty years: 1903, 2023, 2083.