Rabbit (zodiac)
Encyclopedia
The Chinese Year of the Rabbit
( 兔 ) is actually the Chinese Year of the Hare, as China has seven native species of hare
s and no native species of rabbits. The Chinese applied their word for hare to the first rabbits to be taken to China, and the word is now erroneously back-translated into English
as "rabbit". The hare is the fourth animal in the 12-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac
. The Year of the Hare is associated with the earthly branch
symbol 卯.
In the related Vietnam
ese zodiac, the cat
takes the place of the hare.
Rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...
( 兔 ) is actually the Chinese Year of the Hare, as China has seven native species of hare
Hare
Hares and jackrabbits are leporids belonging to the genus Lepus. Hares less than one year old are called leverets. Four species commonly known as types of hare are classified outside of Lepus: the hispid hare , and three species known as red rock hares .Hares are very fast-moving...
s and no native species of rabbits. The Chinese applied their word for hare to the first rabbits to be taken to China, and the word is now erroneously back-translated into English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
as "rabbit". The hare is the fourth animal in the 12-year cycle of the Chinese zodiac
Chinese zodiac
The Shēngxiào , better known in English as the Chinese Zodiac, is a scheme that relates each year to an animal and its reputed attributes, according to a 12-year mathematical cycle...
. The Year of the Hare is associated with the earthly branch
Earthly Branches
The Earthly Branches provide one Chinese system for reckoning time.This system was built from observations of the orbit of Jupiter. Chinese astronomers divided the celestial circle into 12 sections to follow the orbit of Suìxīng . Astronomers rounded the orbit of Suixing to 12 years...
symbol 卯.
In the related Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
ese zodiac, the cat
Cat (zodiac)
The cat is the fourth animal symbol in the 12-year cycle of the Vietnamese zodiac, taking place of the rabbit in the Chinese zodiac. Cats are 'smooth talkers', talented and ambitious, and will succeed in studies. They are in conflict with the rat. A cat person has a supple mind and patient...
takes the place of the hare.
Years and the Five Elements
Persons born within these date ranges can be said to have been born in the "Year of the Hare", while also bearing the following elemental sign:- 29 January 1903 – 15 February 1904: WaterWater (Wu Xing)Water , is the low point of the matter, or the matter's dying or hiding stage. Water is the fifth stage of Wu Xing.Water is the most yin in character of the Five elements. Its motion is downward and inward and its energy is stillness and conserving...
Hare - 14 February 1915 – 2 February 1916: Wood Hare
- 2 February 1927 – 22 January 1928: FireFire (Wu Xing)Fire , is the prosper of the matter, or the matter's prosperity stage. Fire is the second phase of Wu Xing.Fire is yang in character. Its motion is upward and its energy is expansive...
Hare - 19 February 1939 – 7 February 1940: EarthEarth (Wu Xing)Earth , is the changing point of the matter. Earth is the third one of Wu Xing.Earth is a balance of both yin and yang, the feminine and masculine together. Its motion is inward and centering, and its energy is stabilizing and conserving. It is associated with the color yellow and the planet...
Hare - 6 February 1951 – 26 January 1952: Metal Hare
- 25 January 1963 – 12 February 1964: Water Hare
- 11 February 1975 – 30 January 1976: Wood Hare
- 29 January 1987 – 16 February 1988: Fire Hare
- 16 February 1999 – 4 February 2000 Earth Hare
- 3 February 2011 – 22 January 2012: Metal Hare
- 22 January 2023 – 9 February 2024: Water Hare
- 8 February 2035 – 27 January 2036: Wood Hare
Traditional Hare attributes and associations
| Attribute | |
|---|---|
| Zodiac Location | 4th |
| Ruling hours | 5am-7am |
| Direction | East |
| Motto | "I Relax" |
| Season and month | Spring, March |
| Fixed element | Wood |
| Stem | Negative |
| Gemstone | Pearl Pearl A pearl is a hard object produced within the soft tissue of a living shelled mollusk. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is made up of calcium carbonate in minute crystalline form, which has been deposited in concentric layers. The ideal pearl is perfectly round and smooth, but many other... |
| Color | Grey |
| Roughly equivalent western sign | Pisces |
| Polarity | Yin Yin and yang In Asian philosophy, the concept of yin yang , which is often referred to in the West as "yin and yang", is used to describe how polar opposites or seemingly contrary forces are interconnected and interdependent in the natural world, and how they give rise to each other in turn. Opposites thus only... |
| Ruling Countries |  Oman,  Iraq,  Malaysia,  Independent State of Croatia,  Chile,  Syria |