The Monkey is the ninth of the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac. Recent Monkey years are 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004 and 2016, and the next begins on January 26, 2028, right after the Year of the Goat. The year starts on Lunar New Year, not on January 1. People born under the sign are traditionally said to be clever, curious and playful.
What years are Monkey years?
A Monkey year arrives every 12 years. The table shows the first and last day of each one, together with its element.
| Monkey year | First day | Last day | Element |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1932 | February 6, 1932 | January 25, 1933 | Water |
| 1944 | January 25, 1944 | February 12, 1945 | Wood |
| 1956 | February 12, 1956 | January 30, 1957 | Fire |
| 1968 | January 30, 1968 | February 16, 1969 | Earth |
| 1980 | February 16, 1980 | February 4, 1981 | Metal |
| 1992 | February 4, 1992 | January 22, 1993 | Water |
| 2004 | January 22, 2004 | February 8, 2005 | Wood |
| 2016 | February 8, 2016 | January 27, 2017 | Fire |
| 2028 | January 26, 2028 | February 12, 2029 | Earth |
| 2040 | February 12, 2040 | January 31, 2041 | Metal |
Is your birthday in January or February?
Then do not go by the year alone. The zodiac year changes on Lunar New Year, between January 21 and February 20, and the days before it belong to the previous animal, the Goat.
- Born on February 10, 1980? The Monkey year began on February 16. You are a Goat.
- Born on February 1, 2016? A Goat again. The Monkey year started on February 8.
- Born on January 20, 1993? You are a Monkey, although most people born in 1993 are Roosters. The Monkey year ran until January 22.
Check any birthday with the tool below; it gives the animal and the element for the exact date. You can also open it on the Birthday Profile page.
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What is the Monkey's personality said to be?
The Monkey is the zodiac's trickster. People born in a Monkey year are traditionally said to be clever, curious and playful. National Museums Liverpool calls it a mischievous sign: intelligent, sociable and witty, a quick learner, but easily distracted and inclined to lose heart when things get difficult.
The reputation has a famous model. As the Victoria and Albert Museum notes, a monkey is the hero of the classic novel Journey to the West, in which a monkey disciple protects the monk Xuanzang from one danger after another on the road to India to fetch Buddhist scriptures. He is brilliant, unruly and loyal, which is close to the zodiac's picture of the sign.
Traits commonly attached to it:
- Said to be strengths: quick thinking, inventiveness, humor, versatility.
- Said to be weaknesses: restlessness, mischief, a short attention span, a taste for shortcuts.
A reminder of what this is. The V&A observes that tying character to birth year is a fairly recent development that old Chinese texts do not mention. One person in 12 is born in a Monkey year, and nothing about the date makes them alike.
What are the five types of Monkey?
Each year in the traditional calendar has an element as well as an animal: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal or Water. The elements follow a cycle of ten "heavenly stems" that runs beside the 12 animals. That is why one pairing, such as Earth and Monkey, occurs only once in 60 years.
Monkey years end in an even number. The last digit tells you which element.
| Type | Years | Year ends in | The element is traditionally linked with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water Monkey | 1932, 1992 | 2 | Flexibility, intuition and communication |
| Wood Monkey | 1944, 2004 | 4 | Growth, generosity and cooperation |
| Fire Monkey | 1956, 2016 | 6 | Passion, energy and leadership |
| Earth Monkey | 1968, 2028 | 8 | Stability, patience and practicality |
| Metal Monkey | 1980, 2040 | 0 | Determination, discipline and strength |
The element is said to adjust the animal's character. An Earth Monkey is described as a calmer, more reliable Monkey and a Fire Monkey as a more forceful one. Treat it as part of the folklore.
How did the Monkey cross the river in the Great Race?
As part of a team. In the legend, the Jade Emperor called a race across a river to settle the order of the years. The Monkey, the Goat and the Rooster worked together: they found a raft and helped one another get it across. They reached the bank together and took eighth, ninth and tenth place, with the Monkey in the middle.
It is a folktale, and the details vary. The other finishers are on our page about Chinese New Year animals.
Behind the animals is an older set of counters, the 12 "earthly branches." The Monkey's is the ninth, written 申 (shen), and the animal is 猴 (hou). On the traditional clock the branch covers 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
What does a Monkey year mean if you are a Monkey?
Babies born from January 26, 2028 to February 12, 2029 will be Earth Monkeys. For people born in earlier Monkey years it is their own sign's year again, at 12, 24, 36, 48 or 60. Those turning 60 were born in the Earth Monkey year of 1968, so both the animal and the element come back to where they started.
In folk belief, this is not a lucky return. A person's own zodiac year, the ben ming nian, is traditionally seen as a hurdle, and the custom that goes with it is wearing red. It is a belief, not a forecast.
Which signs is the Monkey said to get along with?
Traditional lore groups the Monkey with the Rat and the Dragon and pairs it with the Snake. Its opposite, six places away in the cycle, is the Tiger. The way these sets are built, and why they belong to folklore, is covered in our guide to Chinese zodiac compatibility.
The Monkey follows the Goat and comes before the Rooster. The Goat's year is next on the calendar: see Year of the Goat 2027.