Began February 12, 2021 · 354 days long
2021: year of the Metal Ox
The Ox year started on February 12, not on January 1 — so anyone born in 2021 before that date is a Rat.
- Opening new moon
- Feb 11, 2021 7:06 PM UTC
- In Beijing
- 3:06 AM Fri, Feb 12 · sets the date
- Year of the Ox
- 354 days 12 lunar months
- It ends
- Feb 1, 2022 5:46 AM UTC
New moons: NASA JPL DE440. New-year dates: Hong Kong Observatory.
Exact times
Chinese New Year 2021: the new moon in your city
The Metal Ox year opened with the new moon at 7:06 PM UTC on February 11, 2021 — 3:06 AM on February 12 in Beijing, the time the calendar reckons by, and 2:06 PM on February 11 in New York, 7:06 PM on February 11 in London and 6:06 AM on February 12 in Sydney.
| City | New moon that opens the year |
|---|---|
| UTC | Thu, Feb 11, 2021 |
| Honolulu United States | 9:06 AM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−10 |
| Anchorage United States | 10:06 AM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−9 |
| Los Angeles United States | 11:06 AM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−8 |
| Phoenix United States | 12:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−7 |
| Denver United States | 12:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−7 |
| Chicago United States | 1:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−6 |
| Mexico City Mexico | 1:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−6 |
| New York United States | 2:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−5 |
| Toronto Canada | 2:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−5 |
| Bogotá Colombia | 2:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−5 |
| Lima Peru | 2:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−5 |
| Caracas Venezuela | 3:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−4 |
| Santiago Chile | 4:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−3 |
| Buenos Aires Argentina | 4:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−3 |
| São Paulo Brazil | 4:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC−3 |
| Reykjavík Iceland | 7:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC |
| London United Kingdom | 7:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC |
| Lagos Nigeria | 8:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC+1 |
| Paris France | 8:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC+1 |
| Berlin Germany | 8:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC+1 |
| Johannesburg South Africa | 9:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC+2 |
| Cairo Egypt | 9:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC+2 |
| Athens Greece | 9:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC+2 |
| Istanbul Turkey | 10:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC+3 |
| Moscow Russia | 10:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC+3 |
| Nairobi Kenya | 10:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC+3 |
| Tehran Iran | 10:36 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC+3:30 |
| Dubai United Arab Emirates | 11:06 PM Thu, Feb 11, 2021 · UTC+4 |
| Karachi Pakistan | 12:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+5 |
| New Delhi India | 12:36 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+5:30 |
| Kathmandu Nepal | 12:51 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+5:45 |
| Dhaka Bangladesh | 1:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+6 |
| Bangkok Thailand | 2:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+7 |
| Jakarta Indonesia | 2:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+7 |
| Singapore | 3:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+8 |
| Beijing China | 3:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+8 |
| Manila Philippines | 3:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+8 |
| Perth Australia | 3:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+8 |
| Seoul South Korea | 4:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+9 |
| Tokyo Japan | 4:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+9 |
| Adelaide Australia | 5:36 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+10:30 |
| Brisbane Australia | 5:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+10 |
| Sydney Australia | 6:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+11 |
| Auckland New Zealand | 8:06 AM Fri, Feb 12, 2021 · UTC+13 |
New moon: JPL DE440 (Swiss Ephemeris within 8 s); 2021 date as in the Hong Kong Observatory calendar. Local times: IANA time zones, to the minute.
18 pages · printable
The 2027 Sky Calendar — free PDF
Every retrograde, eclipse, new and full moon of 2027 to the minute, already converted to your city. A month to a page, ready to print.
Personality
The Metal Ox personality
Anyone born from February 12, 2021 through January 31, 2022 is a Metal Ox: the yin metal stem 辛 over the 丑 branch.
The Ox's own Earth feeds Metal here, which drains as much as it gives: productive, but inclined to spend itself. Metal brings discipline, resolve and sharp edges — traditionally the most determined version, and the least willing to bend.
Stem and branch
2021 is 辛丑 (Xīnchǒu)
Na yin — the sounding element
Earth on the Wall 壁上土
Plaster and earth bound into the walls of a house. Associated with support that holds a structure together — reliable, protective, and dependent on the frame around it.
2021 therefore carries metal from its stem and earth from its na yin. What na yin is →
Li Chun inside the year
A "blind" year with no spring
The two Li Chun dates around it are February 3, 2021 and February 4, 2022, Beijing time. The Ox year spans February 12, 2021 to January 31, 2022, so neither date sits inside it: a blind year (无春年). What double spring and blind years mean →
Who clashes with a 2021 Ox
The 丑 branch puts a 2021 Ox opposite the Goat on the wheel, the traditional clash; the nearest Goat year after it is 2027. Its harmony partner is the Rat, due 11 years later, in 2032. How the Ox and Goat get on →
Oxen born in 2021 turn 5 in 2026 — 6 by the traditional count, which starts at one.
If you were born in 2021
- Born January 1 – February 11, 2021: a Metal Rat, the animal of 2020.
- Born February 12, 2021 or later in the year: a Metal Ox.
This is one of the late new years: 42 days, from New Year's Day to February 11, still belong to the Rat. That is about one US birth in 9 (11.1%, SSA records 2000–2014). Check your exact date →
The Ox across the cycle
The animal returns every 12 years but the element every 60, so each of these years is a different Ox.
The lunar calendar of 2021
Why 354 days, and not 365
No leap month this time: from February 12, 2021 to January 31, 2022, 2021 ran twelve months, six of 30 days and six of 29 — 354 days.
The 30-day months were the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th and 11th.
Festival dates in the 2021 lunar year
| Festival | Lunar date | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Lantern Festival 元宵节 | first month, day 15 | Fri, Feb 26, 2021 |
| Dragon Boat Festival 端午节 | fifth month, day 5 | Mon, Jun 14, 2021 |
| Qixi, the Double Seventh 七夕 | seventh month, day 7 | Sat, Aug 14, 2021 |
| Ghost Festival 中元节 | seventh month, day 15 | Sun, Aug 22, 2021 |
| Mid-Autumn Festival 中秋节 | eighth month, day 15 | Tue, Sep 21, 2021 |
| Double Ninth Festival 重阳节 | ninth month, day 9 | Thu, Oct 14, 2021 |
| Winter solstice 冬至 | solar term, Sun at 270° | Tue, Dec 21, 2021 |
| Laba Festival 腊八节 | twelfth month, day 8 | Mon, Jan 10, 2022 |
The year's first full moon arrived at 4:17 PM on February 27, the day after the Lantern Festival. This time the calendar and the sky agreed: the Moon was exactly full on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, at 7:54 AM Beijing time on September 21.
Dates follow Beijing time (UTC+8), the reference clock of the Chinese calendar. Why lunar years differ in length →
Lunar years around 2021
Lengths differ because a leap month is inserted every two or three years. This is what makes the new year date jump rather than drift.
Only 27 of the 110 new years in the table fall later in the calendar than February 12. Two other years share the date. Twelve years earlier, 2009 began on January 26; twelve years later, 2033 begins on January 31 — both marked in lavender with the other Ox years.
Cite this page
AstroHot. “Chinese Horoscope 2021: Zodiac Year of the Metal Ox.” Accessed October 28, 2026. https://astrohot.com/chinese-horoscope/year/2021/
For Wikipedia
{{cite web |title=Chinese Horoscope 2021: Zodiac Year of the Metal Ox |url=https://astrohot.com/chinese-horoscope/year/2021/ |website=AstroHot |access-date=2026-10-28}}