Goat (zodiac)

The Goat (Chinese: 羊; pinyin: yáng, sometimes also translated Sheep or Ram) is the eighth of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. This zodiacal sign is often[1] referred to as the "Ram" or "Sheep" sign,[2] since the Chinese word yáng is more accurately translated as Caprinae, a taxonomic subfamily that includes both goats and sheep,[3] but contrasts with other animal subfamily types such as Bovinae, Antilopinae, and other taxonomic considerations which may be encountered in the case of the larger family of Bovidae in Chinese mythology, which also includes the Ox (zodiac). The Year of the Goat is associated with the 8th Earthly Branch symbol, 未 (wèi).[4]

Goat
"Goat" in regular Chinese characters
Chinese羊
Zodiac goat, showing the yáng (羊) character for goat/sheep

Goat or Sheep

The Chinese word yáng refers to both goats and sheep,[5] whereas the terms shānyáng (山羊) and miányáng (绵羊; 綿羊) refer exclusively to goats and sheep, respectively.[6][7] In English, the sign (originally based on a horned animal) may be called either. The interpretation of goat or sheep depends on culture.[1] In Vietnamese, the sign is mùi, which is unambiguously goat.[8] In Japan, on the other hand, the sign is hitsuji, sheep;[8] while in Korea[9] and Mongolia, the sign is ram or sheep. Within China, there may be a regional distinction with the zodiacal yáng more likely to be thought of as a goat in the south, while tending to be thought of as a sheep in the north.[10]

Characteristics

The Chinese commonly regard sheep as an auspicious animal, and the year of the sheep, therefore, heralds a year of promise and prosperity.[6] "Yáng" (羊) is a component of another written Chinese characters "xiang" (祥), which means auspiciousness, and the two were interchangeable in ancient Chinese, according to one source.[11] It is also a part of the character "shan" (善), which counts kindness and benevolence as among its meanings.

Individuals born in the zodiac year have been supposed to share certain characteristics with other individuals also born in years of the same animal sign. Similarly, years sharing the same animal sign have been supposed to share certain characteristics, repeating over their 12/60 year cycle. The shared characteristics in this case are traits attributed to goats.

Due to the lunisolar nature of the traditional Chinese calendar system,[12] the zodiacal year does not align with the Gregorian calendar: new years are determined by a system which results in each new year beginning on a new moon sometime between late January to mid-to-late February.[13] Goat aspects can also enter by other chronomantic factors or measures, such as hourly.

In Chinese astrology, Goats are described as peace-loving, kind, and popular.[14] With the addition of the Wood element, the Goat characteristic is thought to love peace and to be helpful and trusting, but yet also to be clinging and of a nature resistant to change.[15]

Years and the Five Elements

People born within these date ranges can be said to have been born in the "Year of the Goat", while also bearing the following elemental sign:

Start dateEnd dateHeavenly branch
13 February 19071 February 1908Fire Goat
1 February 191919 February 1920Earth Goat
17 February 19315 February 1932Metal Goat
5 February 194324 January 1944Water Goat
24 January 195511 February 1956Wood Goat
9 February 196729 January 1968Fire Goat
28 January 197915 February 1980Earth Goat
15 February 19913 February 1992Metal Goat
1 February 200321 January 2004Water Goat
19 February 20157 February 2016Wood Goat
6 February 202725 January 2028Fire Goat
24 January 203911 February 2040Earth Goat
11 February 205131 January 2052Metal Goat
29 January 206316 February 2064Water Goat
15 February 20754 February 2076Wood Goat
3 February 208723 January 2088Fire Goat
21 January 20998 February 2100Earth Goat

Basic astrology elements
Earthly Branches of Birth Year:Wei
The Five Elements:Earth
Yin Yang:Yin
Lunar Month:Sixth
Lucky Numbers:2, 3, 4, 7, 9; Avoid: 6, 8
Lucky Flowers:carnation, primrose
Lucky Colors:green, red, purple; Avoid: gold, brown
Season:Summer

See also

References
  1. Wen Huang, "Year of the Sheep, Goat or Ram?" Chicago Tribune, January 31, 2003. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  2. Theodora Lau and Laura Lau, Chapter 8: "The Sheep: The Eighth Sign of the Lunar Cycle", The Handbook of Chinese Horoscopes, pp. 193–220, Harper Collins, 1979 (paperback edition December 2010) ISBN 978-0061990915
  3. A Lunar New Year With a Name That's a Matter of Opinion, Chris Buckley, New York Times, Feb. 18, 2015: "The reason is that the word for the eighth animal in the Chinese zodiac's 12-year cycle of creatures, yang in Mandarin, does not make the distinction found in English between goats and sheep and other members of the Caprinae subfamily. Without further qualifiers, yang might mean any such hoofed animal that eats grass and bleats."
  4. "Chinese Zodiac – Sheep / Goat / Ram". Travel China Guide. TravelChinaGuide.com. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  5. Sagart, Laurent (1999). "25.5: Goats and Sheep". The Roots of Old Chinese. John Benjamins Publishing. pp. 194–195.
  6. Celebrating The Lunar New Year Archived February 16, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York, Dec. 20 2001; in earlier form here Archived 2015-02-16 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 15 Feb. 2015.
  7. Ankita Varma, "Sheep muscle in on Year of the Goat", The Straits Times, Singapore, Jan 27, 2015. Retrieved 19 February 2015.
  8. 'Year of the Sheep' or 'Year of the Goat'?, CJV Lang. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  9. Erica Pearson, Lunar New Year celebrations to welcome year of 'any ruminant horned animal', New York Daily News, February 7, 2015. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  10. Victor Mair quoted in Sonnad, Nikhil (19 February 2015). "Happy lunar new year! But is it the year of the sheep or something else?". Quartz. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
  11. Fran Wang, "Big Yang Theory: Chinese year of the sheep or the goat?", AFP, Asia One News, Feb 16, 2015. Retrieved 19 Feb. 2015.
  12. Space.com, Lunar New Year's Asian Barnyard Demystified (Video). Retrieved 23 Feb. 2015
  13. Mark Swofford. "When Is Chinese New Year". pinyin.info. Retrieved 19 February 2015.
  14. Hale, Gill, The Practical Encyclopedia of Feng Shui, New York: Barnes and Noble Books (2002). ISBN 0-7607-3741-X, p. 20
  15. Hale, p. 244

Further reading
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