The Goat is the eighth sign of the 12-year cycle of animals that appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. The sign is also referred to as the Ram or Sheep sign. The Year of the Goat (or Year of the Ram) is associated with the 8th Earthly Branch symbol, (wèi).
Goat or sheep
The Chinese word yáng refers both to goats and sheep, with shānyáng specifically goats and miányáng sheep. In English, the sign may be called either. The interpretation of sheep or goat depends on culture. In Vietnamese, the sign is mui, which is unambiguously goat. In Japan, on the other hand, the sign is hitsuji, sheep; while in Korea and Mongolia the sign is also sheep or ram.
Characteristics
The Chinese commonly regard sheep as an auspicious animal, and the Year of the Sheep, therefore, heralds a year of promise and prosperity. Individuals born in this zodiac year have been supposed to share certain characteristics with other individuals also born in years of the same animal sign. Similarly, years sharing the same animal sign have been supposed to share certain characteristics, repeating over their 12/60 year cycle. The shared characteristics in this case are traits attributed to goats.
Due to the luni-solar nature of the traditional Chinese calendar system, the "zodiacal" year does not align with the Western calendar: new years are determined by a system which results in each new year beginning on a new moon sometime between late January to mid-to-late February. Goat aspects can also enter by other chronomantic factors or measures, such as hourly.
In Chinese astrology Goats are described as loving-peace and "kind" and "popular". With the addition of the wood element, the Goat characteristic is thought to love peace and to be helpful and trusting, but yet also to be "clinging" and of a nature resistant to change.
Years and the Five Elements
Persons born within these date ranges can be said to have been born in the "Year of the Goat" or "Year of the Ram".
| Start Date | End Date | Heavenly Branch |
|---|---|---|
| 13 February 1907 | 1 February 1908 | Fire Goat |
| 1 February 1919 | 19 February 1920 | Earth Goat |
| 17 February 1931 | 5 February 1932 | Metal Goat |
| 5 February 1943 | 24 January 1944 | Water Goat |
| 24 January 1955 | 11 February 1956 | Wood Goat |
| 9 February 1967 | 22 January 1968 | Fire Goat |
| 28 January 1979 | 15 February 1980 | Earth Goat |
| 15 February 1991 | 3 February 1992 | Metal Goat |
| 1 February 2003 | 21 January 2004 | Water Goat |
| 19 February 2015 | 7 February 2016 | Wood Goat |
| 6 February 2027 | 25 January 2028 | Fire Goat |
| 24 January 2039 | 11 February 2040 | Earth Goat |
| 11 February 2051 | 31 January 2052 | Metal Goat |
Basic Astrology Elements
| Earthly Branch of Birth Year: | Wei |
| The Five Elements: | Earth (Tu) |
| Yin Yang: | Yin |
| Lucky Numbers: | 3, 4, 9; Avoid: 6, 7, 8 |
| Lucky Flowers: | carnation, primrose, alice flower |
| Lucky Colors: | green, red, purple; Avoid: gold, coffee |
In popular culture
Every twelve years the Year of the Goat / Year of the Sheep is celebrated during world-wide Chinese New Year festivals.
Related Post : Source : en.wikipedia
