1 of 12 · branch Zi (子) · element Water · last Rat year 2020
The Rat opens the cycle. In the ranking story it rode on the Ox’s back and leapt off at the river bank, which is why cleverness is held to beat raw strength. Rats are associated with the midnight hour, with surplus and with the ability to spot an opening before anyone else does.
The branch repeats every twelve years, but the stem in front of it moves by two each time, so the element cycles through all five. That is why two Rat years can feel quite different.
The table above treats a whole Gregorian year as one animal, which is true for most of it. January and early February are the exception: the zodiac turns at the Start of Spring (around 4 February, exact to the minute) in divination, and at the lunar new year in festival usage. Between those two dates the animal is still the previous one.
Pick the exact date in the zodiac lookup, or open this year’s New Year date to see where the line falls.