1949 Chinese Zodiac: Earth Ox

01 / Check the boundary

What is my Chinese zodiac if I was born in 1949?

Two zodiac signs fall within the Gregorian year 1949. Choose the row containing your birthday. These dates include both the first and last day; the animal changes at Chinese New Year, not on January 1.

1949 birth dates and zodiac signs
Gregorian birthday	Animal & year element
January 1, 1949 – January 28, 1949	Earth Rat 鼠
January 29, 1949 – December 31, 1949	Earth Ox 牛

The full 1949 lunar year continues into 1950, through February 16, 1950. A birthday on January 28, 1949 belongs to the Rat; a birthday one day later, on January 29, 1949, belongs to the Ox.

YOUR STORY STARTS HERE

When were you born?

02 / The story of the year

What kind of Ox is 1949?

1949 is a Earth Ox year. Its stem-branch name is 己丑 (jǐ-chǒu): the heavenly stem 己 carries yin earth, and the earthly branch 丑 corresponds to the Ox.

Zodiac animal: Ox · 牛
Year element: Earth
Stem & branch: 己丑 · jǐ-chǒu
Lunar year length: 384 days

Ox personality in tradition

The Ox is associated with patient work and perseverance, reflecting its longstanding role in farming.

The phrase “steady & dependable” describes a traditional association with this animal, rather than a rule about everyone born in 1949. The year element is one part of the calendar; it does not establish a person's complete five-elements or Bāzì chart.

我属牛。

Wǒ shǔ niú. “I was born in the Year of the Ox.”

Ox compatibility in folklore

Ox, Snake and Rooster form a traditional harmony group of three. Goat sits opposite Ox, six places away in the twelve-animal cycle. These describe symbolic positions, not evidence of who will make a good partner.

Explore traditional pairings →

03 / A closer look at the dates

1949 lunar calendar at a glance

This Ox year contains 13 lunar months and 384 days. Month 7 repeats as a leap month, starting August 24, 1949. A leap month keeps the same animal and year element. The table follows the full lunar year, so its final months extend into 1950.

Lunar months of 1949: Gregorian start and end dates
Lunar month	Begins	Ends	Days
Month 1	January 29, 1949	February 27, 1949	30
Month 2	February 28, 1949	March 28, 1949	29
Month 3	March 29, 1949	April 27, 1949	30
Month 4	April 28, 1949	May 27, 1949	30
Month 5	May 28, 1949	June 25, 1949	29
Month 6	June 26, 1949	July 25, 1949	30
Month 7	July 26, 1949	August 23, 1949	29
Leap month 7	August 24, 1949	September 21, 1949	29
Month 8	September 22, 1949	October 21, 1949	30
Month 9	October 22, 1949	November 19, 1949	29
Month 10	November 20, 1949	December 19, 1949	30
Month 11	December 20, 1949	January 17, 1950	29
Month 12	January 18, 1950	February 16, 1950	30

04 / Follow the cycle

Other Years of the Ox

The Ox returns every 12 years; the same Earth Ox combination returns every 60. These are the other Ox years in our 1901–2100 directory. Their New Year dates differ, so open a year to check its exact birthday boundary.

1901Metal Ox 1913Water Ox 1925Wood Ox 1937Fire Ox 1961Metal Ox 1973Water Ox 1985Wood Ox 1997Fire Ox 2009Earth Ox 2021Metal Ox 2033Water Ox 2045Wood Ox 2057Fire Ox 2069Earth Ox 2081Metal Ox 2093Water Ox

Sources & calendar convention

Dates are calculated from our local lunar-month dataset. The links below provide the Observatory’s calendar for this Gregorian year and an explanation of the stem-branch cycle. Cultural interpretations are introductory folklore, not predictions.