Coordinate Terms > 生肖 zodiac animals

#coordinateTerms #coords #chineseZodiac #zodiacAnimals

Each of these animals corresponds to one of the #zodiacSigns in the Earthly Branches


01 子 Rat 02 Feb 1984
02 丑 Ox 21 Jan 1985
03 寅 Tiger 09 Feb 1986
04 卯 Rabbit 30 Jan 1987
05 辰 Dragon 18 Feb 1988
06 巳 Snake 06 Feb 1989
07 午 Horse 27 Jan 1990
08 未 Goat 15 Feb 1991
09 申 Monkey 04 Feb 1992
10 酉 Rooster 23 Jan 1993
11 戌 Dog 11 Feb 1994
12 亥 Pig 31 Jan 1995
13 子 Rat 19 Feb 1996
14 丑 Ox 07 Feb 1997
15 寅 Tiger 28 Jan 1998
16 卯 Rabbit 16 Feb 1999
17 辰 Dragon 05 Feb 2000
18 巳 Snake 24 Jan 2001
19 午 Horse 12 Feb 2002
20 未 Goat 01 Feb 2003
21 申 Monkey 22 Jan 2004
22 酉 Rooster 09 Feb 2005
23 戌 Dog 30 Jan 2006
24 亥 Pig 18 Feb 2007
25 子 Rat 07 Feb 2008
26 丑 Ox 26 Jan 2009
27 寅 Tiger 14 Feb 2010
28 卯 Rabbit 03 Feb 2011
29 辰 Dragon 23 Jan 2012
30 巳 Snake 10 Feb 2013
31 午 Horse 31 Jan 2014
32 未 Goat 19 Feb 2015
33 申 Monkey 08 Feb 2016
34 酉 Rooster 28 Jan 2017
35 戌 Dog 16 Feb 2018
36 亥 Pig 05 Feb 2019
37 子 Rat 25 Jan 2020
38 丑 Ox 12 Feb 2021
39 寅 Tiger 01 Feb 2022
40 卯 Rabbit 22 Jan 2023
41 辰 Dragon 10 Feb 2024
42 巳 Snake 29 Jan 2025
43 午 Horse 17 Feb 2026
44 未 Goat 06 Feb 2027
45 申 Monkey 26 Jan 2028
46 酉 Rooster 13 Feb 2029
47 戌 Dog 03 Feb 2030
48 亥 Pig 23 Jan 2031
49 子 Rat 11 Feb 2032
50 丑 Ox 31 Jan 2033
51 寅 Tiger 19 Feb 2034
52 卯 Rabbit 08 Feb 2035
53 辰 Dragon 28 Jan 2036
54 巳 Snake 15 Feb 2037
55 午 Horse 04 Feb 2038
56 未 Goat 24 Jan 2039
57 申 Monkey 12 Feb 2040
58 酉 Rooster 01 Feb 2041
59 戌 Dog 22 Jan 2042
60 亥 Pig 10 Feb 2043
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鼠

Kunyomi: ねずみ
Onyomi: ショ, ス, ソ
Stroke count: 13
Radical name: ねずみ,ねずみへん

Radical

鼠

rat, mouse, dark gray

Mnemonics

I saw a

tail

sticking out from underneath my

mortar

臼

and pestle. So{ソ} ,I lifted it up and found

two rats named Lenny*

*two rats named Lenny = レ + ニ x2

Written by: Anonymous123

Show all mnemonics (4)

The three

sticks

that I used to catch that mouse in the big

mortar

are

broken to pieces

and I still can't find it!

Written by: イマンちゃん。

Depicts a rat or mouse or similar rodent with

whiskers

臼

feet

and a

tail

. There are SO→ソ,ショ many mice in the city! The only thing worse than the mice is the cockroaches.

鼠（*hljaʔ）鼠 癙
ソ←ショ←シヨ← /ɕi̯woᵡ/← *hljaʔ

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

A rat holds cheese with it's

front paws

臼

while standing on it's

furry hind legs

-- and has a long

tail

--

Written by: WildAtelier

SO as I opened the door, the

mouse

鼠

ran out and NEver BrUoght MI another visit.

Written by: ジェン~1984

Related vocabulary

see all words

鼠 / ねずみ - (noun) mouse, rat; dark gray, dark grey, slate (color, colour)

利休鼠 / りきゅうねずみ - (noun) grayish dark green, greyish dark green

殺鼠剤 / さっそざい - (noun) rat poison, rodenticide

窮鼠 / きゅうそ - (noun) cornered rat

大水鼠 / おおみずねずみ - (noun) rakali (Hydromys chrysogaster), water-rat

牛

Kunyomi: うし
Onyomi: ギュウ
Stroke count: 4
Radical name: うし

Radical

牛

cow

Mnemonics

This cow

head

has

two ears

and

two horns with the right one broken off at the tip

Written by: ドみにく

Show all mnemonics (11)

A cow flattened by a steam roller. Found on cartons of milk *ぎゅうにゅう* 牛乳

Cow is basically noon 午 plus a little *head* sticking up on top: Here's how to remember the difference:

The cow has a head that sticks up in the middle. Noon does not have a head because it is an abstract concept, not a physical animal with 8 nipples.

Written by: Samurai_Ash

At

noon

午

, the *cow* stretches its

head

out to eat grass. When people eat *cow*, they call it beef. The best beef in the world is "wagyu"「GYŪ ギュウ」, and a recent trend is to use it for "sushi"「USHI うし」!

Written by: ライトウ ≥^..^≤

Cows love being outside at

noon

午

to eat grass. But in addition to that, they also have little horns sticking out at the top.
Cute!

Written by: こガエル

Do not mistake HORSE

午

and COW

牛

.
Remember that COWS have ^horns^.

**Primitive - when over another element, its tail is cut off

⺧

; when on the left

牜

.

Written by: Abnormalise

The ox or cow is a

horned

ノ

UNGULATE→ギュウ with

four legs

‡

. See also 半.
Not related phonetically to any other character, except possibly 午/ゴ← /ŋuoᵡ/ ← *ŋaːʔ … *ŋʷɯ → /ŋi̯ə̯u/ →ギュウ.

The Ox 牛宿 is the second of the northern mansions of the Black Tortoise. Its primary asterism is six stars centered on the tail of Capricornus. Its determinative star is Dabih, the lucky star of the slaughterer.

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

A: WHO’S SHE {うし}?!
B: She’s the person who turns

cows

into GLUE {ぎゅう} …

Written by: BambiIcedTea

The

cows

in Japan don't say moo, they say -gyuu-!
They even have a

horn on top of them

!

Written by: ミリア♡

Pictogram: A bulls head. Which is the same as cow by species and by designation as “cattle” which also usually is the meaning as well.

The

body

legs

and the emphasized

horns

Written by: フバフバ

When I took the

cow

牛

by the

horns

牛

it tried to pUSHI me out of the KIUUb.

Written by: ジェン~1984

The cow is learning how to spell but can't even write ギ

牛

. I think we're better off just turning her into ぎゅうにく

Written by: Séns

With the

sweep

丿

of its hair, the cow came in

second

二

place at the race to the banquet, only because the rat rode on its head to take the

number one

丨

spot.

Written by: Vee2026

Related vocabulary

see all words

牛 / うし - (noun) cattle (Bos taurus), cow, bull, ox, calf; {food} beef

仔牛 / こうし - (noun) calf; small cow

牛乳 / ぎゅうにゅう - (noun) (cow's) milk

牛肉 / ぎゅうにく - (noun) beef

和牛 / わぎゅう - (noun) Wagyu (any of four breeds of Japanese cattle), Wagyu beef

虎

Kunyomi: とら
Onyomi: コ
Stroke count: 8
Radical name: とらがしら,とらかんむり

Radical

虍

tiger, drunkard

Mnemonics

The drunken

tiger

虍

walks on unstable

legs

儿

.

Written by: Karlla

Show all mnemonics (9)

A tiger has

seven

七

stripes from its

top

to its

tail

and

legs

儿

.

Written by: Klobster

Tiger stripes make effective camouflage: all you can see is the

head

虍

/コ and

legs

儿

. A drunkard gets an exaggerated sense of his capabilities: he thinks he is a mighty tiger when he is merely a pussy cat→こねこ→コ.
Note that the radical is phonetic.

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

A tiger has a large

paw

with

long and sharp claws

to pounce on poor animals with swift

legs

儿

Written by: Mystery4869

A pair of

legs

儿

and some

tiger spots

虍

? That's a tiger for sure.

Written by: Luka_ルカ

The character is a pictogram. It came from the appearance of a tiger. There are parts for

ears

,

head and mouth

,

legs

, and

body

Written by: non0230

What do you call a

tiger

虍

with

legs

儿

?
A tiger.

Written by: Billakosama

When the drunkard wanted to KO home, he tried TO RAn, but his

legs

儿

where too wobbly, so he could only crawld like a

tiger

虍

Written by: ジェン~1984

I coached {コ} the drunken •

tiger

虍

in how to use its

legs

儿

to walk in a straight line when faced with a sobriety test.

Written by: オハイオのデビー

In the drunken

tiger

虍

form, you only use your

legs

儿

Written by: Anonymous123

Related vocabulary

see all words

虎 / とら - (noun) tiger (Panthera tigris); {col} drunkard, drunk, sot

大虎 / おおとら - (noun) big tiger; {id} drinker, staggering drunkard

両虎 / りょうこ - (noun) {id} two equal rivals, two tigers

人虎 / じんこ - (noun) werecat

小虎 / ことら - (noun) small tiger; {id} light drinker, occasional drinker

兔

Kunyomi: うさぎ
Onyomi: ト
Stroke count: 8
Radical name: ひとあし,にんにょう

Radical

儿

rabbit, hare

Mnemonics

See 兎: Depicts a rabbit with floppy

ears

𠂊

and a cotton-puff

tail

丶

sitting up

on its

haunches

儿

. Remember, a rabbit TOE→ト is good luck.
See also 菟, 莵, and 毚. Do not confuse with 免. Although they have the same radical, 儿, only the rabbit has a tail.

兔（*tʰaːs）菟 兔兎 鵵 梚
ト← /tʰuoᴴ/ ← *tʰaːs

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

Show all mnemonics (1)

Excuse-me

免

, I'm late because I chased a rabbit. I missed it by a

inch

丶

.

Written by: DYUUKU NYUKKEMU

Related vocabulary

兔 / うさぎ - (noun) rabbit, hare, coney, cony, lagomorph (esp. leporids)

兔の毛 / うのけ - (noun) {id} slight amount, just a hair, hair of a rabbit

龍

Kunyomi: たつ
Onyomi: リュウ, リョウ, リン
Stroke count: 16
Radical name: りゅう

Radical

龍

dragon, imperial

Mnemonics

The dragon

winds

itself up into the sky until it can

stand

立

on the

moon

月

.

Written by: Karlla

Show all mnemonics (3)

Before the Chinese dragon was able to

stand

立

on the

moon

月

they had to do a count down.

Five

,

four*

,

three

, two, one, blastoff. *four = し

Written by: Anonymous123

pictograph breakdown:
This ancient hanzi depicts a chinese dragon with its

comb

立

or horns

atop it's

head with gaping maw

月

, and its

long serpentine body

winding in the space next to it. These

three strokes

are decorative, but I like to see them as the fur彡 along its back.

Written by: 川竜

Ryū→リュウ, the dragon, wears a

crown

立

, reflecting his ROYAL→リョウ imperial nature, and eats

flesh

月

, leaving nothing behind but

cracked bones

⺊

after consuming the

essence

己

of

three

三

whole villages.
The right side of the character may depict a dragon ascending to the sky.

龍（*b·roŋ）驡 龐 瀧 籠 豅 朧 龓 聾 礱 嚨 蘢 櫳 襱 瓏 曨 鸗 蠪 巃 竉 攏 儱 龍 躘 隴 壠 壟 寵 龏
リュウ, ロウ, リン,リョウ← /li̯woŋ/ ← *b·roŋ

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

Related vocabulary

see all words

龍 / たつ - (noun) dragon (esp. a Chinese dragon); naga, semi-divine human-cobra chimera in Hindu and Buddhist mythology

恐龍 / きょうりゅう - (noun) dinosaur

龍 / りょう - (noun) dragon (esp. a Chinese dragon); naga, semi-divine human-cobra chimera in Hindu and Buddhist mythology; {shogi} {abbr} promoted rook

龍王 / りゅうおう - (noun) Dragon King; {shogi} promoted rook

龍 / りゅう - (noun) dragon (esp. a Chinese dragon); naga, semi-divine human-cobra chimera in Hindu and Buddhist mythology; {shogi} {abbr} promoted rook

蛇

Kunyomi: へび
Onyomi: ジャ, ダ
Stroke count: 11
Radical name: むしへん

Radical

虫

snake, serpent, hard drinker

Mnemonics

A snake is like a long

worm

虫

. The

character

它

is a pictogram from a snake’s appearance.

它

was later used to mean 「other」, so the

虫

was added to

它

to convey the original meaning of snake.

Written by: non0230

Show all mnemonics (8)

Snakes are a bit like

insects

虫

, but still

different

它

Written by: Hexador

The dapper {ダ} snake wears a

u-shaped crown

宀

and eats

insects

虫

with a

spoon

匕

. Don't let it sink its heavy {へび} jaws {ジャ} into you!

Written by: Anonymous123

My pet SNAKE is

HOUSE

宀

-trained, he follows the etiquette and eats his

INSECTS

虫

with a

SPOON

匕

.

Written by: Abnormalise

A snake is a

bug

虫

that neither walks nor flies, but

slithers

它

/タ→ダ, ジャ.

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

A snake is like a big

worm

虫

with a wide

maw

宀

, which it uses like a

spoon

匕

to scoop up its prey.

Written by: えらいえら

Just ジャ don’t let me find

insects

虫

or

SNAKES

匕

under my

roof

宀

. They terrify me.

Written by: Jules.33

That man is a heavy へび drinker and a

snake

.

Written by: Jules.33

Snakes may be

temper

虫

with

others

它

of its kind.

Written by: イマンちゃん。

Related vocabulary

see all words

蛇 / へび - (noun) snake; serpent, large snake

蛇口 / じゃぐち - (noun) faucet, tap

牛鬼蛇神 / ぎゅうきだしん - (noun) {yoji} wicked and perverse, weird and incoherent

蛇 / じゃ - (noun) snake; serpent, large snake

蛇の目 / じゃのめ - (noun) bull's-eye (pattern), double ring (pattern); {abbr} umbrella with bull's-eye pattern

馬

Kunyomi: うま, ま
Onyomi: バ
Stroke count: 10
Radical name: うま

Radical

馬

horse

Mnemonics

A horse has a

long neck

, a

mane

, a

tail

and

four legs

灬

.

Written by: Karlla

Show all mnemonics (7)

Oooh ma うま, ma ま! Dad bough-t バ me a

horse

!

Written by: Wolfenspace

My friend "Uma"「UMA うま」has the cutest *horse*! It has a long

mane

and

tail

, but really short

legs

灬

. You'd almost expect to hear it "bah"「BA バ」since it blends in with the sheep!

Written by: ライトウ ≥^..^≤

The stroke order of the Japanese character is different from either Hong Kong or mainland Chinese, essentially an

eye

目

, with lines extending to the right for the mane and, requiring an extra stroke, for the

tail

, all poised over four galloping

legs

灬

.

The /ma/ sound denoting horse is common to a number of languages of central Asia, where horses were first domesticated, and likely arrived with the animal as a loanword wherever horses were introduced. Compare Mandarin “mǎ” with Proto-Indo-European “márkos” and descendants such as English “mare.”

（If “mare” comes from /ma/, then where does “horse” come from? Its PIE root is *ḱr̥sós “vehicle,” which seems suspiciously similar to くるま, or rather, くるま seems suspiciously similar to PIE for vehicle + horse, but I’m probably trying to put the cart before the horse here.）

In Japanese, the initial /m/ sound of ま was apparently emphasized, possibly similar to *mma, becoming then バ or むま or うま.

馬（*mraːʔ）馬 碼 罵 鷌 鰢 瑪 榪 傌 禡 媽
バ← /maᵡ/ ← *mraːʔ

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

A

comb

馬

for the horse's

mane

灬

.

馬

Written by: mperfs

Unlike a bird 鳥 a horse 馬 has a

big head

and a beautiful

flowing mane

as it gallops.

Written by: rnavega

The

Jockeys

灬

need to get on their HORSEs in the

stable

before the

gate opens

Written by: Davidn

The sheep goes BA, not the horse.
Every MAre has a

MAne

, four

legs

and a

tail

.

Written by: レイん|レナ

Related vocabulary

see all words

馬 / うま - (noun) horse; horse racing; {shogi} {abbr} promoted bishop; {cards} knight (court card in mekuri karuta and unsun karuta)

伝馬 / てんま - (noun) post horse

馬鹿 / ばか - (Adjective/-な) idiot, moron, fool; {adj-na} stupid, foolish, dull, absurd, ridiculous; trivial, insignificant, disappointing; malfunctioning, defective, losing sensation; {sl} incredibly, unusually, exceptionally; {sl} fervent enthusiast, nut, person singularly obsessed with something (usu. in compounds); {abbr} Mactra chinensis (species of trough shell)

馬鹿らしい / ばからしい - (Adjective/-い) absurd, foolish, stupid, silly, nonsense, ludicrous, preposterous, laughable, ridiculous

競馬 / けいば - (noun) horse racing

羊

Kunyomi: ひつじ
Onyomi: ヨウ
Stroke count: 6
Radical name: ひつじ,ひつじへん

Radical

羊

sheep

Mnemonics

This is a male sheep. Behold the

horns

, the

head and ears

, the

spine and tail

, the

front legs

and the

back legs

.

Written by: オハイオのデビー

Show all mnemonics (4)

One sheep follows another

in a

line

to the

pit

.

Written by: Mystery4869

One

wolf attacked

eight

sheep gaurded by

three

dogs.

Written by: イマンちゃん。

The

king

sheep with

2 horns

and one big

goatee

Written by: ケンパチ

Depicts the

horns

䒑

of a ram on a

four-legged

‡

ungulate. Used for any caprid, such as sheep, goat, antelope, etc. Also written 𦍌, ⺶. Homonym of 陽. Compare 未, 羋.

羊（*laŋ）样 佯 詳 洋 翔 庠 祥 痒 姜 羌 蜣 猐 唴 羊 徉 烊 蛘 眻 鴹 恙 羕𣴎 樣様 漾瀁
ヨウ← /i̯aŋ/ ← *laŋ

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

Related vocabulary

see all words

仔羊 / こひつじ - (noun) lamb

子羊 / こひつじ - (noun) lamb

羊毛 / ようもう - (noun) wool

亡羊補牢 / ぼうようほろう - (noun) {yoji} locking the barn door after the horse has bolted, doing something too late, mending the pen after the sheep are lost

公羊伝 / くようでん - (noun) {work} Gongyang Zhuan (Chinese classical work), Gongyang Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals, Commentary of Gongyang

猴

Kunyomi: さる
Onyomi: コウ
Stroke count: 12
Radical name: けものへん

Radical

犭

monkey

Mnemonics

A different kind of monkey from 猿, used especially for the macaque, a

beast

⺨

that forms large social groups presided over by a

matriarch

侯

/コウ.

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

Related vocabulary

沐猴 / もっこう - (noun) {rare} monkey

猿猴 / えんこう - (noun) monkey (esp. a gibbon); hand of the puppeteer (puppet theatre); kappa; {arch} menstrual period

猿猴捉月 / えんこうそくげつ - (noun) {yoji} trying to reach above one's station and failing, trying to accomplish something beyond one's abilities and failing, monkey catching (a reflection of) the moon (in the water)

猿猴鶏頭 / えんこうげいとう - (noun) love-lies-bleeding (Amaranthus caudatus), tassel flower, velvet flower, foxtail amaranth

沐猴にして冠す / もっこうにしてかんす - (noun) {id} to only look the part (but otherwise be wholly unsuited for it), a monkey wearing a crown

雞

Kunyomi: にわとり, とり
Onyomi: ケイ
Stroke count: 18
Radical name: ふるとり

Radical

隹

chickens, domestic fowl

Mnemonics

See 鷄: (Puppet)

奚

/ケイ (bird)

隹

: chicken. KFC.

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

Related vocabulary

雞 / にわとり - (noun) chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus), domestic chicken; chicken meat

雞 / とり - (noun) chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus), domestic chicken; chicken meat

雞 / かけ - (noun) chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus), domestic chicken; chicken meat

雞 / くたかけ - (noun) chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus), domestic chicken; chicken meat

狗

Kunyomi: いぬ
Onyomi: ク, コウ
Stroke count: 8
Radical name: けものへん

Radical

犭

puppy, dog

Mnemonics

A

dog

⺨

that is still

small

句

is called a puppy.

Written by: Karlla

Show all mnemonics (4)

A

dog

fluttering its

tail

with its

mouth

wide open

Written by: クリスティーナー。

A

dog

⺨

that is basically just a hungry

mouth

口

enclosed

勹

in a whelping box is a PUPPY.

Written by: Jules.33

As opposed to 犬, which presents the

dog

⺨

in a mostly positive light, 狗’s take is rather negative, one

complaint

句

/ク after another: they’re small, weak, beastly, etc.

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

That

phrase

句

about puppy dog

tails

⺨

is cute{ク}.

Written by: Anonymous123

Related vocabulary

see all words

狗 / いぬ - (noun) dog (Canis (lupus) familiaris); {derog} squealer, rat, snitch, informer, informant, spy; {derog} loser, asshole; {n-pref} counterfeit, inferior, useless, wasteful

喪家の狗 / そうかのいぬ - (noun) feeling lost like a stray dog

狗子仏性 / くしぶっしょう - (noun) {Buddh} the Mu koan ("does a dog have Buddha nature?")

狗屠 / くと - (noun) {arch} dog slaughter, killing of dogs; {arch} dog butcher

虎を画きて狗に類す / とらをえがきていぬにるいす - (expression) {id} attempting to be something you are not, drawing a tiger that ends up looking like a dog

猪

Kunyomi: い, いのしし
Onyomi: チョ
Stroke count: 11
Radical name: けものへん

Radical

犭

boar

Mnemonics

Is that

someone's

者

dog

?

⺨

i-NU? i-NO! SHE is a boar.

Written by: オハイオのデビー

Show all mnemonics (3)

The boar quickly chose{チョ} to rush

someone

者

after it had its

tail

⺨

pulled.

Written by: Anonymous123

Via 豬: the boar is a

beast

⺨

that is

someone

者

/チョ. いのしし＝🐗の🦁

Written by: ポールおじちゃん

Someone

者

saw a

dog

⺨

and yelled "BOAR!"

Written by: 梟ちゃん

Related vocabulary

see all words

猪目 / いめ - (noun) {Shinto} heart symbol (to ward off evil spirits)

猪 / いのしし - (noun) wild boar, wild pig

猪突 / ちょとつ - (noun/する verb) recklessness, foolhardiness

河猪 / かわいのしし - (noun) bush pig

猪年 / いのししどし - (noun) year of the Boar, year of the Pig

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