In the Chinese zodiac, 1985 is the Year of the Ox, with Wood as its element. The Wood Ox year began on Wednesday, February 20, 1985 and ended on Saturday, February 8, 1986. That start is as late as Lunar New Year ever falls. As a result, anyone born from January 1 to February 19, 1985 is a Wood Rat and not an Ox.
When did the Year of the Ox start and end in 1985?
| Birthday | Sign |
|---|---|
| January 1 to February 19, 1985 | Wood Rat |
| February 20, 1985 to February 8, 1986 | Wood Ox |
| February 9, 1986 and later | Fire Tiger |
The Ox year lasted 354 days. Fifty days of 1985 came before it, and 39 days of 1986 fell inside it.
The latest Lunar New Year of the century
Lunar New Year moves around within a fixed window, from January 21 to February 20. February 20 is the far edge of it, and the new year reached that edge only twice in the twentieth century: in 1920 and in 1985.
The reason lies in the year before. The Rat year that began on February 2, 1984 had 13 lunar months; the Hong Kong Observatory's table shows the tenth month twice. That leap month made the Rat year 384 days long and carried it deep into February 1985.
For people born in 1985 the effect is simple. Almost one in seven of them, everyone born in the first 50 days, belongs to the Rat. In that century only 1920 gave as many of its birthdays to the animal before.
Were you born in January or February?
- Born on January 10, 1985? You are a Rat. Read about the sign in the Rat in the Chinese zodiac.
- Born on February 19, 1985? Still a Rat, on the last day of the Rat year.
- Born on February 20, 1985? You are an Ox, born on Lunar New Year's Day.
- Born on February 1, 1986? An Ox too. The Tiger year began on February 9.
Enter any birthday below to see its animal and element. The same tool is on the Birthday Profile page.
Loading the tool…
What does Wood Ox mean?
The Ox is traditionally said to be dependable, patient and hard-working; National Museums Liverpool calls the sign bright, patient and inspiring to others. Wood is the element linked with growth, generosity and cooperation. A Wood Ox, as the tradition has it, is a steady worker with a generous, cooperative side. This is folklore and describes a symbol, not a person.
One thing does not change at the February 20 boundary: the element. Each element covers two years in a row, so the Rats of early 1985 and the Oxen of the rest of the year are all "Wood."
In the old system of year names, 1985 is yi-chou. Yi is the second of the ten "heavenly stems," and chou is the "earthly branch" of the Ox. The 60-year cycle they form is explained on our page about Chinese New Year animals. All Ox years, traits and element types are in the Ox in the Chinese zodiac.
When was the last Wood Ox year, and when is the next?
| Wood Ox year | First day | Last day |
|---|---|---|
| 1925 | January 24, 1925 | February 12, 1926 |
| 1985 | February 20, 1985 | February 8, 1986 |
| 2045 | February 17, 2045 | February 5, 2046 |
The pairing of Wood and Ox returns every 60 years, but the dates do not repeat: the 1925 Wood Ox year started almost four weeks earlier in the calendar than the 1985 one.
How old are people born in 1985, and when is their next Ox year?
People born in 1985 turn 42 in 2027. The Ox has returned three times since their birth, in 1997, 2009 and 2021. The next Year of the Ox runs from January 31, 2033 to February 18, 2034.
Tradition calls a person's own zodiac year the ben ming nian. In folk belief it is a hurdle and not a lucky year, and people wear red during it.
The years on either side
- 1984 was a Wood Rat year: February 2, 1984 to February 19, 1985.
- 1986 was a Fire Tiger year: February 9, 1986 to January 28, 1987. See 1986 in the Chinese zodiac.