Chinese New Year Animals Origin

What is the chinese zodiac.

Chinese new year animals origin. In order the 12 chinese horoscope animals are. As far as the abilities of this sign are concerned the people born with this sign are believed to have adaptability smartness acuteness and positivity as their character strengths. The first year in the chinese zodiac calendar is therefore named the year of the rat after the cunning rat and the second year is the year of the ox.

The chinese zodiac is generally believed to have derived out of animal worship and started more than 2 000 years ago during the qin dynasty. The origin of the festival can be traced back to the worshiping activities in china s ancient agrarian society. Chinese new year has a far reaching history of over 3 800 years.

According to tales and legends the beginning of chinese new year started with the fight against a mythical beast called the year the year looked like an ox with the head of a lion and was believed to inhabit the sea. The chinese zodiac is a cycle of 12 years where each year is represented by one of twelve animals. Over time the animals were each given their own unique set of characteristics and were gradually integrated into everyday life.

Hence the rat was the first to arrive followed by the ox. Chinese new year has evolved over a long period of time and its customs have undergone a long development process. The tiger had some trouble crossing the river.

Two main variations of the myth exist. The chinese zodiac or shengxiao shnng sshyao born resembling is a repeating cycle of 12 years with each year being represented by an animal and its reputed attributes. So the chinese new year 2021 will also be called the year of the rat.

Rat ox tiger rabbit dragon snake horse goat monkey rooster dog pig. The date for the ceremony wasn t fixed till the han dynasty 202 bc 220 ad when emperor wudi commanded to use the lunar calendar. Chinese new year also known as the lunar new year or the spring festival is the most important among the traditional chinese festivals.