The Chinese Zodiac initially originated from the division of time. Nowadays, we divide a day and night into 24 hours while ancient astronomers divide it into 12 shichen, which is a two-hour period, namely, zi, chou, yin, mao, chen, si, wu, wei, shen, you, xu and hai. In astronomical observation, they choose 12 animal signs corresponding to each shichen according to the living habits and the time of activity of the animals.
夜间十一点至次日凌晨一点,属子时,正是老鼠趁夜深人静,频繁活动之时,故称“子鼠”。
From 11 pm to 1 am of the next day, it is the time of “zi”. It is the time for rats to run around while people fall asleep, so we have zi, rat.
凌晨一点至三点,属丑时。牛习惯夜间吃草,农家常在深夜起来挑灯喂牛,故称“丑牛”。
From 1 am to 3 am, it is the time of “chou”. The ox is used to eating grass at night and farmers often get up in the midnight and feed them, so we have chou, ox.
凌晨三点至五点,属寅时。此时昼伏夜行的老虎最凶猛,古人常会在此时听到虎啸声,故称“寅虎”。
From 3 am to 5 am, it is the time of “yin”. Because the tiger often moves about at night and ancient people often hear them roaring at this time, we call it yin, tiger.
清晨五点至七点,属卯时。天刚亮,兔子出窝,喜欢吃带有晨露的青草,故为“卯兔”。
From 5 am to 7am, it is the time of “mao”. The hare goes out of its nest and eats green grass with morning dew on it, so we call it mao, hare.
早晨七点至九点,属辰时。此时一般容易起雾,传说龙喜腾云驾雾,又值旭日东升,蒸蒸日上,故称“辰龙”。
From 7 am to 9 am, it is the time of “chen“. It often mists at this time and legend says that dragons like to ride clouds and mist. It's also the time for the sun to rise, so we have chen, dragon.
上午九点至十一时,属巳时。大雾散去,艳阳高照,蛇类出洞觅食,故作“巳蛇“。
It is the time of “si“ from 9 am to 11 am. The mist has vanished and the sun has risen up in the sky. Snakes will go out to find food, so we call it si, snake.
中午十一点至一点,属午时。古时野马未被人类驯服,每当午时,四处奔跑嘶鸣,故称“午马”。
It is the time of “wu” from 11 am to 1 pm. Before the wild horse was domesticated in the ancient time, they usually ran around and neighed at this time. That's why we call wu, horse.
午后一点至三点,属未时。有的地方管此时为“羊出坡”,意思是放羊的好时候,故称“未羊”。
From 1 pm to 3 pm, it is the time of “wei”. In some places, people call this period “sheep on the slope” because it's the right time for herding sheep. That's why we call it wei, sheep.
下午三点至五点,属申时。太阳偏西了,猴子喜在此时啼叫,故为“申猴”。
It's the time of “shen” from 3 pm to 5 pm. The sun has moved to the western half of the sky. Monkeys love to screech at this time, so we call it shen, monkey.
下午五点至七点,属酉时。太阳落山了,鸡在窝前打转,故称“酉鸡”。
It's the time of “you” from 5 pm to 7 pm. The sun has set. Roosters go back to their nest, so we call it you, rooster.
傍晚七点至九点,属戌时。人劳碌一天,闩门准备休息了。狗卧门前守护,一有动静,就汪汪大叫,故为“戌狗”。
From 7 pm to 9 pm, it's the time of “xu”. After a busy day, people close their gates and go to sleep. Dogs guard the gates and will bark in case of any noise, so we call it xu, dog.
夜间九点至十一点,属亥时。夜深人静,能听见猪拱槽的声音,于是称作“亥猪”。
It's the time of “hai” from 9 pm to 11 pm. In the still of night, we can hear pigs dig the trough with their snouts, so we call it hai, pig.
就这样,一天的时辰和动物搭配就排列了下来:子鼠、丑牛、寅虎、卯兔、辰龙、巳蛇、午马、未羊、申猴、酉鸡、戌狗、亥猪。后来人们把这种计时法用于纪年,就出现了十二生肖。
In this way, the 12 shichen and animals are matched and sequenced: zi rat, chou ox, yin tiger, mao hare, chen dragon, si snake, wu horse, wei sheep, shen monkey, you rooster, xu dog and hai pig. Later, people use this method of time labeling in counting years. This is why we have the Chinese Zodiac. 作者: jssh365 时间: 2015-8-27 01:47
1. Personality of people born in the Year of the Rat
① Active, hard working, with a resourceful mind and nimble hands.
② Treats people kindly, with self discipline, thinking of others .
③ With strong adaptability, good at making good friends in all communities.
④ Sentimental, slightly introverted, but acts lively and treats others warmly.
⑤ Observes things meticulously, thinking in a methodical way.
Weakness: A little timid, suspicious, conservative, slightly shortsighted on some issues, lack of in-depth knowledge. 作者: jssh365 时间: 2015-8-27 01:48
2. Personality of people born in the Year of the Ox
① Hard working, with a strong entrepreneurial spirit;
② Honest, pragmatic, responsible, with endurance;
③ With a sense of justice, loving fighting against bully;
④ Frugal and stable.
Weakness: Slightly intransigent, lack of accommodation; sometimes sticking with "dead ends", subjective and arbitrary. 作者: jssh365 时间: 2015-8-27 01:49
3. Personality of people born in the Year of the Tiger
① Energetic, ambitious;
② With bold vision and courage, aggressive;
③Warmhearted and generous, stubborn self-confidence, self-willed.
④ With a sense of justice, helpful.
Weaknesses: Passionate, opinionated, a little bit arrogant and willful.
4. Personality of people born in the Year of the Hare
① Gentle, kind, optimistic, sensitive;
② Smart, flexible, considers others;
③ Elegant, delicate mind;
④ With good patience and humility, not fond of arguments.
Weaknesses: a little vain, volatile temperament, easily irritable, more often satisfied with the status quo.
5. Personality of people born in the Year of the Dragon
① Courageous, with a strong entrepreneurial spirit;
② Dedicated, decisive, working hard.
③ With filial piety, generous, good at financial management;
④ smart, talented, high tolerance.
Weaknesses: Sometimes easily irritable, arrogant, subjective, stubborn, a little feisty, never admits defeat. 作者: jssh365 时间: 2015-8-27 01:51
6、属蛇人的性格
①专心致志,认真负责;
②心灵手巧,思路敏捷;
③精力充沛,随和开朗;
④表面沉着,有时口快。
弱点:有时动摇不定,心胸狭窄,有时钻"牛角尖",性情多疑,不太信任他人。
6. Personality of people born in the Year of the Snake
① Dedicated, serious and responsible;
② Ingenuity, thinking quickly;
③ Energetic, easygoing, cheerful;
④ Calm on the surface, sometimes quick and thoughtless in speech.
Weaknesses: Sometimes wavering, petty, and sometimes staying with "dead ends", suspicious, not trusting others. 作者: jssh365 时间: 2015-8-27 01:51
7、属马人的性格
①精力旺盛,刚毅果断;
②善恶分明,耿直热情;
③能言善辩,不怕困难,勇往直前。
弱点;欠缺冷静有时急躁,个性略为倔强。
7. Personality of people born in the Year of the Horse
① Energetic, resolute and decisive;
② Identifying good and evil decisively, honest, enthusiastic;
③ Eloquent, not afraid of difficulties, aggressive.
Weakness: Lack of calmness, sometimes irritable, with a slightly stubborn personality. 作者: jssh365 时间: 2015-8-27 01:51
8、属羊人的性格
①研究欲强,富有创造性;
②善良、宽容、顺从;
③有耐心,不惹是非。适应环境快。
弱点:易动感情,主观性差,随波逐流优柔寡断。
8. Personality of people born in the Year of the Sheep
① With a strong desire to study, creative;
② Kind, tolerant, obedient;
③ Patient, staying out of trouble, quickly adapting to the environment.
Weaknesses: Passionate, not assertive, following other indecisively.
9. Personality of people born in the Year of the Monkey
① Aggressive, fond of competition;
② Versatile, with multiple skills;
③ With a little vanity, fond of romantic life, free from restraint;
④ Gets along well with others, good at entertaining others.
Weaknesses: Jealousy, undisciplined, with volatile temperament, a little lack of integrity. 作者: jssh365 时间: 2015-8-27 01:53
10. Personality of people born in the Year of the Rooster
① Energetic, good at conversation;
② Good at investigation and research, paying attention to efficiency;
③ Sharp, fond of showing off;
④ Decisive, aggressive, and always wanting to be an overnight success.
Weaknesses: Eccentric, eloquent, fond of argument, intransigent, a little selfish. 作者: jssh365 时间: 2015-8-27 01:53
11. Personality of people born in the Year of the Dog
① Strong-willed, loyal and reliable;
② With justice, fairness, agility;
③ Smart, knowledgeable, organized;
④ Useful to others, being able to listen to others and endure hardship, paying attention to reality.
Weaknesses: Sometimes impatient, with tendency towards blind action, stubborn, reckless, should keep away from being utilized for trivial interest without righteous cause. 作者: jssh365 时间: 2015-8-27 01:54
12、属猪人的性格
①真挚、诚实、有同情心;
②精力旺盛,待人诚实;
③专心致志,凡事热心;
④信任别人,开朗乐观。
弱点:易动感情,固执保守,目光短浅,有时脾气不稳。
12. Personality of people born in the Year of the Pig
① Sincere, honest, compassionate;
② Energetic, honest;
③ Dedicated, always enthusiastic;
④ Trusting others, optimistic, cheerful.
Weaknesses: Passionate, stubborn, conservative, shortsighted, and sometimes suffering unstable temper.