The Pig is the twelfth and last of the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac. Recent Pig years are 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007 and 2019, and the next begins on January 23, 2031. The year starts on Lunar New Year and not on January 1, so January and February birthdays need a second look. People born under the sign are traditionally said to be generous, easygoing and sincere.
What years are Pig years?
A Pig year closes each round of the 12-year cycle. The table gives the first and last day of every Pig year from 1935 to 2043, with its element.
| Pig year | First day | Last day | Element |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1935 | February 4, 1935 | January 23, 1936 | Wood |
| 1947 | January 22, 1947 | February 9, 1948 | Fire |
| 1959 | February 8, 1959 | January 27, 1960 | Earth |
| 1971 | January 27, 1971 | February 14, 1972 | Metal |
| 1983 | February 13, 1983 | February 1, 1984 | Water |
| 1995 | January 31, 1995 | February 18, 1996 | Wood |
| 2007 | February 18, 2007 | February 6, 2008 | Fire |
| 2019 | February 5, 2019 | January 24, 2020 | Earth |
| 2031 | January 23, 2031 | February 10, 2032 | Metal |
| 2043 | February 10, 2043 | January 29, 2044 | Water |
Were you born in January or February?
Then it is worth a minute to check. Lunar New Year falls between January 21 and February 20, and the animal changes only on that day. The Pig year of 2007 started on February 18, close to the latest possible date.
- Born on February 10, 2007? The Pig year was still eight days off. You are a Dog.
- Born on January 25, 1995? A Dog as well. The Pig year began on January 31.
- Born on February 1, 1996? You are a Pig, although most people born in 1996 are Rats. The Pig year ran until February 18.
Enter a birthday in the tool below to see its animal and element. It is the same tool as on the Birthday Profile page.
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What is the Pig's personality said to be?
In English, calling someone a pig is an insult. In the Chinese zodiac it is closer to a compliment. People born in a Pig year are traditionally said to be generous, easygoing and sincere. National Museums Liverpool describes the sign as noble and considerate, genuine and warm-hearted, with friends who last a lifetime, and notes that the pig is a symbol of luck and wealth in Chinese culture.
Traits commonly attached to the sign:
- Said to be strengths: kindness, honesty, good humor, a love of comfort shared with others.
- Said to be weaknesses: naivety, a trusting nature that is easy to take advantage of, self-indulgence.
The animal's good name comes from the farmyard. The Victoria and Albert Museum lists the pig among the common domestic animals of ancient China and shows one carved in jade in the spare Han dynasty style, shaped with only a few cuts.
The usual caution applies. The same museum notes that reading character from the year of birth is a fairly recent development, absent from old Chinese texts. One person in 12 is born in a Pig year, and the symbol of wealth is a symbol, not a promise.
What are the five types of Pig?
Along with its animal, each year has an element: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal or Water. The five elements come from a cycle of ten "heavenly stems" that runs beside the 12 animals, so one pairing, such as Metal and Pig, appears only once every 60 years.
Pig years end in an odd number. The last digit gives the element.
| Type | Years | Year ends in | The element is traditionally linked with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wood Pig | 1935, 1995 | 5 | Growth, generosity and cooperation |
| Fire Pig | 1947, 2007 | 7 | Passion, energy and leadership |
| Earth Pig | 1959, 2019 | 9 | Stability, patience and practicality |
| Metal Pig | 1971, 2031 | 1 | Determination, discipline and strength |
| Water Pig | 1983, 2043 | 3 | Flexibility, intuition and communication |
According to the tradition, the element flavors the sign. A Wood Pig is described as the most open-handed of the five, since Wood is linked with generosity too, and a Metal Pig as a more determined one. All of it is folklore.
Why is the Pig last in the Great Race?
Legend offers two answers. In the usual story, the Jade Emperor set the animals a race across a river, and their finishing order became the order of the years. The Pig was the twelfth and final animal to arrive, behind the Dog.
A more playful version, retold by The China Project, turns on a pun. The Emperor had planned on ten animals. An official taking notes misheard two of his remarks as animal names, the second being "Stop!", which in Mandarin is zhu and sounds like the word for pig. So the Pig was written in at the end.
Neither is history. The rest of the race is on our page about Chinese New Year animals.
The animals are labels for an older set of counters, the 12 "earthly branches." The Pig's is the twelfth, written 亥 (hai), and the animal is 猪 (zhu). On the traditional clock that branch covers the last hours of the evening, from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. The sign is also translated as the Boar.
What does a Pig year mean if you are a Pig?
Babies born from January 23, 2031 to February 10, 2032 will be Metal Pigs. For people born in earlier Pig years it is their own sign's year, which comes at 12, 24, 36, 48 and 60. Those born in the Metal Pig year of 1971 turn 60 and meet the same animal and the same element as at birth.
Folk belief does not count this as a lucky year. A person's own zodiac year, the ben ming nian, is traditionally seen as a hurdle, and wearing red is the custom that goes with it. It is a belief, not a forecast.
Which signs is the Pig said to get along with?
Traditional lore groups the Pig with the Rabbit and the Goat and pairs it with the Tiger. Its opposite, six places away in the cycle, is the Snake. The reasoning behind these sets, and why it is folklore, is explained in our guide to Chinese zodiac compatibility.
The Pig comes after the Dog. After the Pig the cycle starts over with the Rat. The year that begins on February 6, 2027 belongs to one of the Pig's traditional allies: see Year of the Goat 2027.