Born in January or February: why your Chinese sign differs between sites

Were you born in January or February, and two sites give you two different animals? The explanation can be simple: they do not start the year at the same moment. Some follow Lunar New Year; Saju at Traits de vous follows Lichun, the start of solar spring. These are two legitimate conventions, like two clocks ringing in the New Year at different times.

1. One birth, several calendars

On official documents, the year starts on 1 January. That is the civil reference point. To find your yearly animal, you also need to know when the calendar you are consulting starts its year. A birth in 2027 may therefore belong to the previous traditional year.

Lunar New Year marks the celebration in a lunisolar calendar. Saju at Traits de vous uses Lichun.

Here, “Chinese sign” means the yearly animal. In a Saju chart, it sits alongside the month, day and known birth time.

2. In 2027, remember 4 and 6 February

Lunar New Year falls on 6 February 2027. The Hong Kong Observatory places the start of solar spring on 4 February. Our engine uses this transition at 01:46 UTC, or 02:46 in Paris, to the stated minute.

Before their respective transitions, both conventions remain in the Year of the Fire Horse, 丙午. Afterwards, they enter the Year of the Fire Goat, 丁未. Between the two dates, the same birth can therefore be assigned two different animals.

The official sources at the bottom of the page confirm the dates; the precise time comes from our engine. For another birth year, check that year’s dates.

3. Two examples to make things clearer

Imagine a birth on 5 February 2027 at noon in Paris. Lichun on 4 February has passed; Lunar New Year on the 6th is still ahead. The result: Goat under Saju at Traits de vous, Horse under the lunar calendar.

Now take 10 February 2027 at noon in Paris. Both transitions have taken place. This time, both conventions give the Goat as the annual animal.

These two fictional examples show why the interval between the transitions matters.

4. On the day of the transition, the time makes the difference

The solar transition happens at a precise moment. If you were born that day, your birth time places you before or after it. The date alone may leave two possibilities.

The place provides the time-zone context. In 2027, the transition at 01:46 UTC reads 02:46 on a clock in Paris. To compare two results, first put the times in the same time zone.

If you don’t know your birth time, simply say so. The guide to calculating without a birth time explains what can be established and when this detail becomes necessary.

5. Making sense of two different sites

First, look for the stated convention: Lunar New Year or Lichun? Then check whether the calculation uses your full date. Near a solar transition, also check how it uses the time and place.

Keep both results by specifying their convention: "lunar" or "Saju". If the method remains unclear, ask the site which calendar it uses.

To discover the reference points used in our method, you can create your free Saju identity chart. It follows the solar convention. It is a symbolic reading, not a prediction.