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Year of the Horse

Chinese zodiac sign 7 of 12 ยท said to be free-spirited, lively, hard-working

๐ŸŽ‰ It is the year of the Fire Horse now, until February 6, 2027.

Years of the Horse

YearElementDates
2026 Fire Feb 17, 2026 โ€“ Feb 6, 2027
2014 Wood Jan 31, 2014 โ€“ Feb 18, 2015
2002 Water Feb 12, 2002 โ€“ Jan 31, 2003
1990 Metal Jan 27, 1990 โ€“ Feb 14, 1991
1978 Earth Feb 7, 1978 โ€“ Jan 27, 1979
1966 Fire Jan 21, 1966 โ€“ Feb 8, 1967
1954 Wood Feb 4, 1954 โ€“ Jan 23, 1955
1942 Water Feb 15, 1942 โ€“ Feb 4, 1943
1930 Metal Jan 30, 1930 โ€“ Feb 16, 1931

Horse compatibility

Best matches (same trine)

๐Ÿ• Dog ๐Ÿ… Tiger

Secret friend

๐Ÿ Goat

Clashes with

๐Ÿ€ Rat

Traditional Chinese astrology, for fun.

Born in January or February?

Each Horse year starts at Lunar New Year, between January 21 and February 20. If you were born earlier in the year, you belong to the animal before โ€” check your full birth date:

Other animals

About the Chinese Zodiac

Chinese Zodiac tells you your animal sign and element from your birth year โ€” and gets it right for January and February birthdays, which most charts miss. The Chinese zodiac year starts at Lunar New Year, between January 21 and February 20, so someone born before it belongs to the previous yearโ€™s animal. Every year from 1924 to 2035 has a page with its exact start and end dates, its element and yin or yang, and every animal has a page listing its years and its best and worst matches.

How to use it

  1. 1 Enter your birth year, and the month and day if you were born in January or February.
  2. 2 See your animal, element and yin or yang.
  3. 3 Open your year to see when it started and ended.
  4. 4 Check the animals you match and clash with.

Frequently asked questions

What years are the year of the Horse?

Recent years of the Horse are 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014 and 2026. Each starts at Lunar New Year (late January or February), not on January 1.

When is the next year of the Horse?

The Horse comes round every 12 years.

Who is the Horse compatible with?

Traditionally the Dog and the Tiger (the same trine) and the Goat (its โ€œsecret friendโ€). The Rat, six signs away, is the classic clash.

What are the 12 Chinese zodiac animals in order?

Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. The cycle repeats every 12 years, and each year also has one of five elements โ€” Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water โ€” giving a full cycle of 60 years.

What is the Chinese zodiac for 2026?

2026 is the year of the Fire Horse. It starts at Lunar New Year on February 17, 2026 and runs until February 5, 2027, when the year of the Fire Goat begins.

Why is my Chinese zodiac different from my birth year?

Because the Chinese zodiac year begins at Lunar New Year, not on January 1. If you were born in January or early February before that yearโ€™s Lunar New Year, your animal is the one for the year before. Enter your full birth date to check.

Where do the Lunar New Year dates come from?

They are worked out from the Chinese lunisolar calendar (the same calculation used by the Unicode ICU calendar library), which places Lunar New Year on the second new moon after the winter solstice in Chinese time.