Chinese zodiac vs Western zodiac · Aquarius
Aquarius: the sign Lunar New Year cuts in two
Lunar New Year lands in the middle of Aquarius season in almost every year. Two Aquarians born a week apart can be different Chinese animals. Here is exactly where the line falls, year by year.
Johann Bayer, Uranometria, 1603
At a glance
Lunar New Year splits Aquarius. In 2026: Jan 20 to Feb 16, 2026: Wood Snake; Feb 17 to Feb 18, 2026: Fire Horse. In 2027: Jan 20 to Feb 5, 2027: Fire Horse; Feb 6 to Feb 18, 2027: Fire Goat.
- Sun in Aquarius, 2026
- Jan 20 to Feb 18, 2026fixed air sign
- Aquarius month animals
- Ox, then TigerLichun (Start of Spring) turns it, Feb 4, 2026
- Lunar New Year in this sign
- 118 of 120 years1924 to 2043, by China midnight on New Year's Day
fixed air
Aquarius: the sign Lunar New Year cuts in two
Try this today
- Check your exact birthday in the tool. If you were told your animal from your birth year alone, there is a real chance it was wrong.
- Find out if you were born before or after Lunar New Year in your birth year. It makes a great party fact.
- If you share a birthday week with a friend, compare animals. Aquarius loves a technicality.
Aquarius is the sign of doing things differently, and the Chinese calendar takes that personally. Western astrology reads the Aquarius Sun as original, independent and future-minded, a fixed air sign with a soft spot for causes and strangers.
It is also the sign where the Chinese New Year almost always happens. Lunar New Year falls on the new moon between January 21 and February 20, and the Sun is in Aquarius for nearly all of that window. So in most years, Aquarius season is split: the first part belongs to the old animal, the rest to the new one.
That means you cannot get an Aquarian's Chinese sign from their birth year alone. An Aquarius born the week before Lunar New Year 1990 is a 1989 Snake; one born the week after is a Horse. Same sign, same school year, different animal.
The tool below shows every Aquarius window from 1924 to 2043 with the exact dates, computed from the new moons themselves.
The sky behind it
The Sun was in Aquarius from Jan 20, 2026, 01:45 UTC to Feb 18, 2026, 15:52 UTC. Lunar New Year fell on February 17, 2026. In 2027 the Sun enters Aquarius on Jan 20, 2027, 07:30 UTC and Lunar New Year is February 6, 2027.
Bing Wu, 2026
A Aquarius Fire Horse
In 2026 Lunar New Year fell on February 17, almost at the end of Aquarius season. That makes the Fire Horse window for 2026 Aquarians tiny: only the last day or two of the sign, before the Sun moves into Pisces. Everyone born in Aquarius before that is a Wood Snake.
The bigger Fire Horse Aquarius group comes a year later. Aquarians born from late January 2027 up to the eve of Lunar New Year 2027 are Fire Horses; from Lunar New Year 2027 onward, they are Fire Goats. Tradition reads an Aquarius Fire Horse as the independent spirit squared: original, restless, outspoken and allergic to fences. The shadow is detachment: running so free nobody can keep up.
Born Feb 17 to Feb 18, 2026 and Jan 20 to Feb 5, 2027: a Aquarius Fire Horse.
The solar months
Aquarius's two month animals: the Ox and the Tiger
Aquarius holds the Ox month and the start of the Tiger month. It opens at Dahan, Major Cold, the coldest term of the Chinese year, and turns at 15 degrees Aquarius with Lichun, Start of Spring.
Lichun matters twice. It begins the Tiger month, and in Four Pillars (BaZi) astrology it also begins the year. So there are two Chinese new years inside Aquarius: Lichun, the solar one, and Lunar New Year, the lunar one. They can fall up to about two weeks apart, and Aquarians born between them get one animal by one rule and another by the other.
The sky behind it
Lichun, Feb 4, 2026 in China (UTC+8).
All twelve
Aquarius Rat to Aquarius Pig
Aquarius Rat (Water branch). Inventive networker. The Aquarius Rat knows a little about everything and someone for every problem.
Aquarius Ox (Earth branch). Steady reformer. Original ideas backed by patience and a very long attention span.
Aquarius Tiger (Wood branch). Revolutionary. Brave, idealistic and always ready to shake things up.
Aquarius Rabbit (Wood branch). Gentle visionary. Quiet, kind and full of ideas about how things could be better.
Aquarius Dragon (Earth branch). Big-picture leader. Ambitious about changing the world and not shy about saying so.
Aquarius Snake (Fire branch). Cool mind. Detached, wise and surprisingly mysterious.
Aquarius Horse (Fire branch). Free spirit squared. Independent, restless and impossible to pin down.
Aquarius Goat (Earth branch). Kind idealist. Gentle, creative and devoted to a good cause.
Aquarius Monkey (Metal branch). Mad scientist. Brilliant, inventive and always tinkering with something.
Aquarius Rooster (Metal branch). Principled eccentric. Exacting, honest and uniquely itself.
Aquarius Dog (Earth branch). Humanitarian. Loyal to people and causes, and fiercely fair.
Aquarius Pig (Water branch). Open-hearted friend. Generous, tolerant and happy to welcome anyone.
Find your combo
Aquarius Ox, or another?
238 Aquarius windows, 1924 to 2043.
Pick a Chinese animal
Aquarius Ox
Steady reformer. Original ideas backed by patience and a very long attention span.
The Ox in folk tradition: steady, patient, hardworking. Fixed element: Earth.
Born a Aquarius Ox, 1924 to 2043 (19 windows):
- Jan 24 to Feb 19, 1925Wood Ox
- Jan 20 to Feb 12, 1926Wood Ox
- Feb 11 to Feb 19, 1937Fire Ox
- Jan 20 to Jan 30, 1938Fire Ox
- Jan 29 to Feb 18, 1949Earth Ox
- Jan 20 to Feb 16, 1950Earth Ox
- Feb 15 to Feb 18, 1961Metal Ox
- Jan 20 to Feb 4, 1962Metal Ox
- Feb 3 to Feb 18, 1973Water Ox
- Jan 20 to Jan 22, 1974Water Ox
- Jan 20 to Feb 8, 1986Wood Ox
- Feb 7 to Feb 18, 1997Fire Ox
- Jan 20 to Jan 27, 1998Fire Ox
- Jan 26 to Feb 18, 2009Earth Ox
- Jan 20 to Feb 13, 2010Earth Ox
- Feb 12 to Feb 18, 2021Metal Ox
- Jan 20 to Jan 31, 2022Metal Ox
- Jan 31 to Feb 18, 2033Water Ox
- 2034Water Ox · Jan 20 to Feb 18
Next Aquarius Ox birthdays: Jan 31, 2033 to Feb 18, 2033.
More to read
Shorter reads. Each opens in place.
The hard side
Aquarius's shadow
Aquarius can already feel like the outsider. Discovering you have been reading the wrong Chinese animal can feel oddly on brand. Take it as an invitation to read both, and keep whichever one teaches you more.
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Plan ahead
Aquarius in Ding Wei
Fire Goat Aquarians are born from Lunar New Year 2027 to the end of Aquarius season 2027, and again in late January 2028 before Lunar New Year. A Goat Aquarius is the kind idealist: gentle, artistic and devoted to a cause.
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Born Feb 6 to Feb 18, 2027 and Jan 20 to Jan 25, 2028: a Aquarius Fire Goat.
Either side
Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces
Capricorn Dec 21, 2025 to Jan 20, 2026, with the Rat and Ox months. Pisces Feb 18 to Mar 20, 2026, with the Tiger and Rabbit. Lunar New Year landed in Aquarius in 118 of the 120 years from 1924 to 2043.
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Aquarius, year by year
| Year | Dates |
|---|---|
| 2020 Metal Rat | Jan 25 to Feb 19, 2020 |
| 2020 Metal Rat | Jan 19 to Feb 11, 2021 |
| 2021 Metal Ox | Feb 12 to Feb 18, 2021 |
| 2021 Metal Ox | Jan 20 to Jan 31, 2022 |
| 2022 Water Tiger | Feb 1 to Feb 18, 2022 |
| 2022 Water Tiger | Jan 20 to Jan 21, 2023 |
| 2023 Water Rabbit | Jan 22 to Feb 18, 2023 |
| 2023 Water Rabbit | Jan 20 to Feb 9, 2024 |
| 2024 Wood Dragon | Feb 10 to Feb 19, 2024 |
| 2024 Wood Dragon | Jan 19 to Jan 28, 2025 |
| 2025 Wood Snake | Jan 29 to Feb 18, 2025 |
| 2025 Wood Snake | Jan 20 to Feb 16, 2026 |
| 2026 Fire Horse | Feb 17 to Feb 18, 2026 |
| 2026 Fire Horse | Jan 20 to Feb 5, 2027 |
| 2027 Fire Goat | Feb 6 to Feb 18, 2027 |
| 2027 Fire Goat | Jan 20 to Jan 25, 2028 |
| 2028 Earth Monkey | Jan 26 to Feb 19, 2028 |
| 2028 Earth Monkey | Jan 19 to Feb 12, 2029 |
| 2029 Earth Rooster | Feb 13 to Feb 18, 2029 |
| 2029 Earth Rooster | Jan 20 to Feb 2, 2030 |
| 2030 Metal Dog | Feb 3 to Feb 18, 2030 |
| 2030 Metal Dog | Jan 20 to Jan 22, 2031 |
| 2031 Metal Pig | Jan 23 to Feb 18, 2031 |
| 2031 Metal Pig | Jan 20 to Feb 10, 2032 |
| Sun at | Term | This cycle | Next |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0° Aquarius | Dahan (Major Cold) | Jan 20, 2026, 01:45 UTC | Jan 20, 2027, 07:30 UTC |
| 15° Aquarius | Lichun (Start of Spring), starts the Tiger month | Feb 3, 2026, 20:02 UTC | Feb 4, 2027, 01:46 UTC |
All times are UTC. In the Americas the local date can be a day earlier; in Asia and Australia a day later.
Quick answers
What Chinese zodiac am I if I am an Aquarius?
It depends on your exact birthday. Lunar New Year usually falls during Aquarius season, so Aquarians born before it belong to the previous year's animal and those born after it to the new one. Use the date checker on this page.
Is an Aquarius born in February 2026 a Fire Horse?
Only if born on or after February 17, 2026, Lunar New Year. The Sun left Aquarius for Pisces the next day, so very few 2026 Aquarians are Fire Horses; most are Wood Snakes.
Why does Lunar New Year always fall in Aquarius?
Lunar New Year is the second new moon after the December solstice in most years, which puts it between January 21 and February 20. The Sun is in Aquarius for almost all of that window, so the new year lands in Aquarius in nearly every year.
What is the difference between Lichun and Lunar New Year?
Lichun is a solar term, the Sun at 315 degrees (15 degrees Aquarius), around February 4. Four Pillars (BaZi) astrology starts the year there. Lunar New Year is set by the new moon and moves between late January and late February. Popular zodiac charts use Lunar New Year.
