In love
In love the Goat is romantic, nurturing and loyal, and wants a partner who offers security and appreciation. It does poorly with criticism and coldness.
Animal 8 of 12 · Earth · Yin
Chinese zodiac Goat
The Goat is the eighth animal of the Chinese zodiac — earth, yin. Its traditional traits are gentleness, artistry and a need for security.
- Element
- Earth
- Polarity
- Yin
- Hours
- 1–3 PM
- Lucky numbers
- 3, 4, 9
Character
Goat personality
The Goat — also called the Sheep or Ram — is the animal of gentleness and creativity. Tradition reads it as kind, calm, empathetic and artistic, someone who notices how others feel and wants everyone to be comfortable. Goats have strong taste and imagination, and they often work best behind the scenes.
Their difficulties are indecision, worry and dependence on others' approval. Goats can be pessimistic under pressure, avoid confrontation and need more reassurance than they ask for. In a supportive setting they flourish; in a harsh one they withdraw.
- Strength. Creates things and cares for people without expecting a return.
- Friction. Needs reassurance regularly, and worries about outcomes it cannot influence.
Traits
Creative Sensitive Indecisive Generous AnxiousSeasonSummer
MonthJuly
Lucky colorsgreen, red, purple
Each animal also governs two hours of the day — the Goat holds 1–3 PM. Someone born in those hours is said to carry the Goat as an inner sign regardless of their year.
Work and money
Goats are suited to the arts, design, music, caregiving, teaching and gardening — work that rewards sensitivity. With money they value security and comfort more than accumulation.
Health and pace
The traditional advice for the Goat is emotional: worry and mood affect it physically, so calm surroundings and routine matter.
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Primary source
The goat in a Chinese text of about AD 80
“Chʻou and Wei correspond to earth likewise, Chʻou having as animal the ox, and Wei having the sheep.”
Wang Chong, Lun-hêng, “The Nature of Things”, translated by Alfred Forke, Lun-hêng, Part I: Philosophical Essays of Wang Chʻung (1907), pp. 105–106 — read the original text.
Wang Chong already pairs the earthly branches with the animals still used today — and lists them to argue against the idea that animals fight because of their elements. The sheep of his text is the goat of the modern zodiac, the boar its pig.
Goat years
| Year | Element | New year began |
|---|---|---|
| 1943 | Water Goat | February 5 |
| 1955 | Wood Goat | January 24 |
| 1967 | Fire Goat | February 9 |
| 1979 | Earth Goat | January 28 |
| 1991 | Metal Goat | February 15 |
| 2003 | Water Goat | February 1 |
| 2015 | Wood Goat | February 19 |
| 2027 | Fire Goat | February 6 |
Born in January or early February of one of these years? Check the new year date — you may belong to the previous animal.
The 9 Goat years in the table began as early as January 24 1955 and as late as February 19 2015 — a window of 26 days. Anyone born in 2015 before February 19 is still a Horse.
The five Goats
The Goat's own fixed element is Earth. The element of the year interacts with it differently each time, which is what separates the five versions — and why the cycle runs sixty years.
| Version | Years | Relation to Earth |
|---|---|---|
| Metal Goat | 1931, 1991 | Drains it — productive but costly |
| Water Goat | 1943, 2003 | Dominated by it — most forceful |
| Wood Goat | 1955, 2015 | Controls it — most restrained |
| Fire Goat | 1967, 2027 | Feeds it — best supported |
| Earth Goat | 1979, 2039 | Doubled — strongest expression |
Measured in birth records
The Goat changes how many people are born
The Goat is the sign parents actively avoid. A saying holds that only one in ten people born in a Goat year finds happiness, and birth rates in Chinese-heritage populations dip in Goat years as a result.
The dip has been observed repeatedly, most visibly in the Goat years of 1991, 2003 and 2015, with reported declines in births across Taiwan, Singapore and mainland China compared with adjacent years.
What followed
The belief is far from universal even within China: in several regions the Goat is considered a perfectly auspicious sign.
This is the only part of the Chinese zodiac with an evidence base. It is not evidence that the sign shapes character — it is evidence that the belief shapes behavior, which is a different and much better documented thing.
Calculated from the lunar calendar
Not every Goat year is the same length
The 9 Goat years from 1931 to 2027 last anywhere from 354 to 384 days, so the window for being born under the sign is wider in some years than in others. Two of them have a thirteenth, leap month.
| Year | From | To | Days | Lunar months |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1931 | Feb 17, 1931 | Feb 5, 1932 | 354 | 12 |
| 1943 | Feb 5, 1943 | Jan 24, 1944 | 354 | 12 |
| 1955 | Jan 24, 1955 | Feb 11, 1956 | 384 | 13 — leap year |
| 1967 | Feb 9, 1967 | Jan 29, 1968 | 355 | 12 |
| 1979 | Jan 28, 1979 | Feb 15, 1980 | 384 | 13 — leap year |
| 1991 | Feb 15, 1991 | Feb 3, 1992 | 354 | 12 |
| 2003 | Feb 1, 2003 | Jan 21, 2004 | 355 | 12 |
| 2015 | Feb 19, 2015 | Feb 7, 2016 | 354 | 12 |
| 2027 | Feb 6, 2027 | Jan 25, 2028 | 354 | 12 |
Average length
360.9 days
Longest
1955 — 384 days
Shortest
1931 — 354 days
Difference
30 days
Why some years get a leap month: the calendar adds one seven times every nineteen years to stay in step with the seasons. How the lunar year is built →
The next Goat year is 2027
By tradition a Goat treads carefully in its own year rather than celebrating it. Why your own animal's year is considered unlucky.
Goat compatibility
| With | Relation | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Rabbit | Trine — natural allies | 90% |
| Pig | Trine — natural allies | 90% |
| Horse | Six harmonies — secret friends | 88% |
| Goat | Same sign | 72% |
| Tiger | Neutral | 68% |
| Dragon | Neutral | 68% |
| Snake | Neutral | 68% |
| Monkey | Neutral | 68% |
| Rooster | Neutral | 68% |
| Dog | Punishment | 58% |
| Rat | Six harms | 55% |
| Ox | Clash | 45% |
Sources
Statements of fact on this page were checked against these sources in October 2026. How we choose and check sources: editorial policy.
Cite this page
AstroHot. “Chinese Zodiac Goat: Years, Traits and Compatibility.” Accessed October 29, 2026. https://astrohot.com/chinese-horoscope/sign/goat/
For Wikipedia
{{cite web |title=Chinese Zodiac Goat: Years, Traits and Compatibility |url=https://astrohot.com/chinese-horoscope/sign/goat/ |website=AstroHot |access-date=2026-10-29}}