Rooster

The Rooster dossier

Traits. Observant, proud and precise — the perfectionist performer who notices everything and says most of it.

Fixed element — Metal. precision, resolve and edge — a Metal year sharpens the animal: more determined, more exacting, harder to bend. A Metal Dragon (born in a Dragon year ending in 0, like 2000), for example, is the Dragon's boldness with a steel core — ambitious, precise and uncompromising. Every Rooster carries Metal underneath, whatever the year adds on top.

The year’s own element rotates by its final digit — 0 or 1 Metal, 2 or 3 Water, 4 or 5 Wood, 6 or 7 Fire, 8 or 9 Earth — so across the 60-year cycle the Rooster returns in five element forms, each one read against the fixed element beneath it.

The Rooster through the cycle

Every Rooster year in the table the record holds, with the year’s element and the Lunar New Year that year began on. A birthday in January or February before that date belongs to the previous animal.

The five Roosters

Wood Rooster — 2005. growth, generosity and expansion — a Wood year broadens the animal: more idealistic, more cooperative, always growing toward something.

Fire Rooster — 2017. passion, visibility and speed — a Fire year heats the animal up: bolder, faster, more dramatic, impossible to ignore.

Earth Rooster — 1969, 2029. stability, patience and practicality — an Earth year grounds the animal: steadier, more methodical, focused on what lasts.

Metal Rooster — 1981. precision, resolve and edge — a Metal year sharpens the animal: more determined, more exacting, harder to bend. A Metal Dragon (born in a Dragon year ending in 0, like 2000), for example, is the Dragon's boldness with a steel core — ambitious, precise and uncompromising.

Water Rooster — 1993. intuition, flow and diplomacy — a Water year deepens the animal: more perceptive, more adaptable, quieter about its power.

Alliances and clashes

The Rooster sits in the Thought trine (the thinkers) with the Ox and the Snake. Animals in the same affinity triangle are the classic harmonious pairings of the Chinese system.

Its secret friend is the Dragon — one of the six secret-friend pairs, the quiet alliances: loyal, low-drama, mutually protective. Directly opposite in the cycle sits the Rabbit — the classic clash pairing: real friction, and the fascination that can come with it.

Rooster questions

What years are Rooster years?
Rooster years in the table the record holds (1960–2032): 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017, 2029. The Chinese year begins at Lunar New Year — late January to mid-February — so a birthday before that year's new year date belongs to the previous animal.

What is the Rooster's element?
The Rooster's fixed element is Metal — every Rooster carries it underneath. precision, resolve and edge — a Metal year sharpens the animal: more determined, more exacting, harder to bend. A Metal Dragon (born in a Dragon year ending in 0, like 2000), for example, is the Dragon's boldness with a steel core — ambitious, precise and uncompromising. The year adds a rotating element on top: in the recorded cycle the Rooster appears as Wood Rooster (2005); Fire Rooster (2017); Earth Rooster (1969, 2029); Metal Rooster (1981); Water Rooster (1993).

Who does the Rooster harmonize with?
The Rooster sits in the Thought trine (the thinkers) with the Ox and the Snake — one of the classic harmonious pairings of the Chinese system. Its secret friend is the Dragon, the quiet alliance; and the animal opposite in the cycle, the Rabbit, is its clash.

How does Match By Zodiac read my Chinese sign?
Match By Zodiac works your Chinese animal and element out from your birth date — with the real Lunar New Year boundary, so January and February birthdays land on the right animal — and reads them alongside your Sun, Moon and Rising signs in pair reads. The Western and Chinese systems are kept separate, never averaged.

Find your Chinese sign

The free Finder reads your animal and element from one birth date — with the real Lunar New Year boundary — and your Sun, Moon and Rising signs in the same pass.