Zodiac animals are a set of twelve numbered animals to determine the time (day, hour, month, and year), and signs.
This cyclic system has been used in East Asian cultures, including China, Vietnam, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, and Singapore.
Many Feng Shui books recorded that 12 zodiac animals originated in China, also known as the sexagenary cycle (can chi). The starting is a rat, and the ending is a pig.
In this article, Vietnamdrive would like to introduce you to 12 animals in Vietnamese and Chinese zodiac signs with their legend, order, and horoscope.
12 animals in Chinese vs Vietnamese zodiac signs and their order
12 animals of Vietnamese and Chinese zodiac signs are nearly the same. There are two different ones: an ox and a rabbit in the Chinese zodiac become a buffalo, and a cat in the Vietnamese zodiac.
What are animals in the zodiac signs?
Oriental culture chooses the top 12 animals for zodiac signs, including Rat, Ox (in China) or Buffalo (in Vietnam), Tiger, Rabbit (in China) or Cat (in Vietnam), Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.
Why is the rat ranked very high?
The rat has the top rank, the first one out of twelve zodiac animals. It is because all mice are intelligent, which most people want to have in life. So, mice can present their wishes.
Does the zodiac animal influence the character of a person?
Yes, it does. According to oriental culture, each animal represents each year, so each person has a specific zodiac animal. Following the features of zodiac animals, the Feng shui master can predict characters, even the obstructions in life, and how successful one person can get.
Here is the table of 12 Chinese zodiacs vs Vietnamese to compare easily:
| Chinese Zodiac | Vietnamese Zodiac | Zodiac in Vietnamese Language |
|---|---|---|
| Rat | Rat | Tí = Con chuột |
| Ox | Buffalo | Sửu = Con trâu |
| Tiger | Tiger | Dần = Con Hổ |
| Rabbit | Cat | Mão = Con Mèo |
| Dragon | Dragon | Thìn = Con Rồng |
| Snake | Snake | Tỵ = Con rắn |
| Horse | Horse | Ngọ = Con ngựa |
| Goat | Goat | Mùi = Con dê |
| Monkey | Monkey | Thân = Con khỉ |
| Rooster | Rooster | Dậu = Con gà |
| Dog | Dog | Tuất = Con chó |
| Pig | Pig | Hợi = con heo |
Counting the time of a day with zodiac animals
Besides using for years, the zodiac animals are also used to count the time of the day.
Check the time for each animal below to know when the zodiac time is.
- Rat (or Mouse) has time from 23 – 1: 00 am. This is considered the time when the mouse is the most active.
- Buffalo has time from 1:00 am – 3:00 am when the buffalo starts going to plow.
- Tiger has time from 3:00 am – 5:00 am when tigers are very aggressive and the most dangerous.
- Rabbit in the Chinese zodiac or cat in the Vietnamese zodiac has time from 5:00 am – 7:00 am when the cat goes to sleep.
- Dragon fits from 7:00 am – 9:00 am, according to legend, when the dragon hovered, and it created rain.
- Snake fits from 9:00 am – 11:00 am when snakes do not often harm people.
- Horse covers the time from 11:00 am – 1:00 pm. Horses are highly positive.
- Goat covers the time from 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm. Goats eat grass without affecting the ability to regrow plants.
- Monkey covers the time from 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm when monkeys like howling.
- Rooster has time from 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm when the chickens come back barns.
- The dog time is from 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm. Dogs must look after the house.
- Pig has time from 9:00 pm – 11:00 pm when pigs sleep well.
So, you know how the zodiac is. Next, we go to the horoscope and feng shui for 12 zodiac animals.
Finding your year in 12 zodiac animals
As you know, each year is represented by a zodiac animal. Thus, each person also has a specific zodiac animal, depending on which year he/she was born.
Check which animal belongs to you; please see it in the table:
Years are from 1924 to 1959:
| 1924 | 1936 | 1948 | Rat |
| 1925 | 1937 | 1949 | Ox/Buffalo |
| 1926 | 1938 | 1950 | Tiger |
| 1927 | 1939 | 1951 | Cat/Rabbit |
| 1928 | 1940 | 1952 | Dragon |
| 1929 | 1941 | 1953 | Snake |
| 1930 | 1942 | 1954 | Horse |
| 1931 | 1943 | 1955 | Goat |
| 1932 | 1944 | 1956 | Monkey |
| 1933 | 1945 | 1957 | Rooster |
| 1934 | 1946 | 1958 | Dog |
| 1935 | 1947 | 1959 | Pig |
Years are from 1960 to 1995:
| 1960 | 1972 | 1984 | Rat |
| 1961 | 1973 | 1985 | Ox/Buffalo |
| 1962 | 1974 | 1986 | Tiger |
| 1963 | 1975 | 1987 | Cat/Rabbit |
| 1964 | 1976 | 1988 | Dragon |
| 1965 | 1977 | 1989 | Snake |
| 1966 | 1978 | 1990 | Horse |
| 1967 | 1979 | 1991 | Goat |
| 1968 | 1980 | 1992 | Monkey |
| 1969 | 1981 | 1993 | Rooster |
| 1970 | 1982 | 1994 | Dog |
| 1971 | 1983 | 1995 | Pig |
Years are from 1996 to 2031:
| 1996 | 2008 | 2020 | Rat |
| 1997 | 2009 | 2021 | Ox/Buffalo |
| 1998 | 2010 | 2022 | Tiger |
| 1999 | 2011 | 2023 | Cat/Rabbit |
| 2000 | 2012 | 2024 | Dragon |
| 2001 | 2013 | 2025 | Snake |
| 2002 | 2014 | 2026 | Horse |
| 2003 | 2015 | 2027 | Goat |
| 2004 | 2016 | 2028 | Monkey |
| 2005 | 2017 | 2029 | Rooster |
| 2006 | 2018 | 2030 | Dog |
| 2007 | 2019 | 2031 | Pig |
Legend of the 12 zodiac animals
On the birthday of the Heaven Emperor, he organized running contests for all the animals.
The purpose of the competition was to choose 12 animals which won the race. The big obstacle was going through a dense forest and across a vast river.
Knowing the buffalo was healthy and kind, the cat and rat immediately discussed how to trick the buffalo.
They asked him to hitchhike and promised that let him win. When the three of them reached their destination, the mouse jumped forward.
So, the mouse came to the target first, and he was at the top of the 12 zodiac animals.
Next was the buffalo, the cat felt down to be the fourth winner, and the tiger was the third one.
The dragon could fly but only finished on the 5th one. The dragon explained that he took the time to make rain to put out the fire on the road.
While the horse was about to run to the finish, the snake crawled forward. The horse panicked and finished after the snake. So the snake was ranked sixth, and the horse was ranked seventh.
The goat, monkey, and rooster found they were small, so they became friends to help each other in the race. Therefore, the winner in the eighth was the goat, the ninth was the monkey, and the tenth was the rooster.
The dog came at the eleventh level and finally was the pig. It is because the pig wanted to eat and sleep, so he was slow. Luckily the pig had reached the finish line at the twelfth.
Then, the Heaven Emperor chose these twelve animals to be listed in the zodiac to remember them.
