The Rat is the first of the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac. Recent Rat years are 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008 and 2020, and the next begins on February 11, 2032. Each one starts on Lunar New Year, not on January 1, so the exact dates matter. People born under the sign are traditionally said to be quick-witted, resourceful and ambitious.
What years are Rat years?
A Rat year comes around every 12 years and opens a new round of the cycle. The table gives the first and last day of each one, along with its element.
| Rat year | First day | Last day | Element |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1924 | February 5, 1924 | January 23, 1925 | Wood |
| 1936 | January 24, 1936 | February 10, 1937 | Fire |
| 1948 | February 10, 1948 | January 28, 1949 | Earth |
| 1960 | January 28, 1960 | February 14, 1961 | Metal |
| 1972 | February 15, 1972 | February 2, 1973 | Water |
| 1984 | February 2, 1984 | February 19, 1985 | Wood |
| 1996 | February 19, 1996 | February 6, 1997 | Fire |
| 2008 | February 7, 2008 | January 25, 2009 | Earth |
| 2020 | January 25, 2020 | February 11, 2021 | Metal |
| 2032 | February 11, 2032 | January 30, 2033 | Water |
Were you born in January or February?
Then check the date before you settle on the Rat. The zodiac year changes on Lunar New Year, which falls between January 21 and February 20, and some Rat years start well into February.
- Born on February 10, 1996? The Rat year did not begin until February 19. You are a Pig.
- Born on February 1, 2021? The Rat year was still running. You are a Rat, even though most 2021 babies are Oxen.
- Born on January 30, 1985? You are a Rat too. The 1984 Rat year lasted until February 19, 1985.
Enter a birthday below to see the animal and element for that exact date. The same tool is on the Birthday Profile page.
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What is the Rat's personality said to be?
In the West a rat is rarely a compliment. In the zodiac it is the animal that came first, and the portrait is one of brains and drive: people born in a Rat year are traditionally said to be quick-witted, resourceful and good with money. National Museums Liverpool, in its guide to the calendar animals, calls the sign ambitious and honest, and adds that it is said to spend freely.
Other traits often attached to the sign:
- Said to be strengths: cleverness, adaptability, thrift, charm, an eye for opportunity.
- Said to be weaknesses: cunning, restlessness, a habit of keeping things to oneself.
Two notes of caution. The Victoria and Albert Museum points out that tying a person's character to their birth year is a fairly recent development, and that old Chinese texts do not mention it. And about one person in 12 is born in a Rat year. They have as little in common as any other group that size, so enjoy the sketch and avoid using it to judge anyone.
What are the five types of Rat?
Each zodiac year also carries one of five elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal or Water. The element comes from a second cycle of ten "heavenly stems" that runs alongside the 12 animals, so a pairing such as Water and Rat returns only once in 60 years.
For Rat years, the last digit of the year tells you the element.
| Type | Years | Year ends in | The element is traditionally linked with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wood Rat | 1924, 1984 | 4 | Growth, generosity and cooperation |
| Fire Rat | 1936, 1996 | 6 | Passion, energy and leadership |
| Earth Rat | 1948, 2008 | 8 | Stability, patience and practicality |
| Metal Rat | 1960, 2020 | 0 | Determination, discipline and strength |
| Water Rat | 1972, 2032 | 2 | Flexibility, intuition and communication |
In the tradition, the element colors the animal's character: a Fire Rat is described as a bolder version of the sign and an Earth Rat as a steadier one. The same caution applies as above.
The Wood Rat years have a distinction of their own. In the traditional count, the first of the ten stems meets the first of the 12 animals only once in each round of 60 years, and that year is a Wood Rat year. The year that began on February 2, 1984 opened the current round.
How did the Rat come first in the Great Race?
By hitching a ride. In the legend, the Jade Emperor set the animals a race across a river and promised each a year in the order they finished. The Rat climbed onto the back of the Ox. Just before the far bank it jumped down and ran ahead, leaving the Ox in second place. In many tellings the Rat also pushed the cat into the water on the way, which is given as the reason there is no Year of the Cat.
It is a folktale, and the details change from teller to teller. The rest of the story is on our page about the Chinese New Year animals.
Behind the tale is a counting system. The Rat stands for the first of the 12 "earthly branches," written 子 (zi); the animal itself is 鼠 (shu). The same branch names the two hours around midnight, from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m., and the direction north. One more detail: the Hong Kong Observatory's calendar tables label these years "year of the Mouse." It is the same sign.
What does a Rat year mean if you are a Rat?
Babies born from February 11, 2032 to January 30, 2033 will be Water Rats. For everyone born in an earlier Rat year, 2032 is their own zodiac year come round again, at age 12, 24, 36, 48 or 60. The 60th is the special one: a person born in the Water Rat year of 1972 sees both the animal and the element of their birth year return.
One folk belief goes with this. A person's own zodiac year, the ben ming nian, is traditionally seen as a hurdle and not as a lucky year, and the custom that answers it is to wear something red. It is a belief, not a forecast.
Which signs is the Rat said to get along with?
Traditional matchmaking lore sorts the 12 animals into sets that are considered harmonious. The Rat is grouped with the Dragon and the Monkey and paired with the Ox, its neighbor in the cycle. Its opposite on the zodiac wheel is the Horse. How those groupings work, and why they are best treated as folklore, is explained in our guide to Chinese zodiac compatibility.
The sign before the Rat is the Pig, which closes the cycle. The year about to begin belongs to neither: see Year of the Goat 2027.