According to an old Chinese tale, the twelve animals had a bit of a fight about who should be at the front of their yearly cycle.
The gods decided to solve this problem with a competition – the animal that could make it to the other side of the river first would be the winner!
They all jumped in and, unbeknownst to the ox, the rat had hitched a ride on his back. But just as the ox was about to make it to the shore the rat slid off and ran to the finish line, winning the race.
Poor pig, who was feeling a bit lazy, ended up last. And that’s why the rat is in the first year in the cycle, the ox is in the second place, and the pig is last!
The Chinese animal signs are an exciting part of the culture and are a 12-year cycle used to keep track of the years.
This is at odds with the traditional Western linear concept of time and spans from late January to early February. While the Chinese eventually adopted the Western calendar in 1911, they still use the lunar calendar to celebrate festive events such as the Chinese New Year. Most Chinese calendars will display the solar and the Chinese lunar dates in the same place.
On top of this, there’s a fun cultural sidelight to the Chinese animal signs: horoscopes! Much like in the West where we have monthly horoscopes for all twelve zodiac signs, the Chinese have developed an equally entertaining set of horoscopes.
To give you an idea, a horoscope for someone born in the Year of the Horse might say they are cheerful, popular, and great at complimenting others. However, horoscopes are seen as nothing more than a bit of fun and are not taken too seriously.
