1953 Chinese Zodiac: Water Snake

01 / Check the boundary

What is my Chinese zodiac if I was born in 1953?

Two zodiac signs fall within the Gregorian year 1953. 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.

1953 birth dates and zodiac signs
Gregorian birthday	Animal & year element
January 1, 1953 – February 13, 1953	Water Dragon 龙
February 14, 1953 – December 31, 1953	Water Snake 蛇

The full 1953 lunar year continues into 1954, through February 2, 1954. A birthday on February 13, 1953 belongs to the Dragon; a birthday one day later, on February 14, 1953, belongs to the Snake.

YOUR STORY STARTS HERE

When were you born?

02 / The story of the year

What kind of Snake is 1953?

1953 is a Water Snake year. Its stem-branch name is 癸巳 (guǐ-sì): the heavenly stem 癸 carries yin water, and the earthly branch 巳 corresponds to the Snake.

Zodiac animal: Snake · 蛇
Year element: Water
Stem & branch: 癸巳 · guǐ-sì
Lunar year length: 354 days

Snake personality in tradition

The Snake is traditionally associated with thoughtfulness and intuition. These are cultural associations, not personality measurements.

The phrase “reflective & perceptive” describes a traditional association with this animal, rather than a rule about everyone born in 1953. The year element is one part of the calendar; it does not establish a person's complete five-elements or Bāzì chart.

我属蛇。

Wǒ shǔ shé. “I was born in the Year of the Snake.”

Snake compatibility in folklore

Snake, Rooster and Ox form a traditional harmony group of three. Pig sits opposite Snake, 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

1953 lunar calendar at a glance

This Snake year contains 12 lunar months and 354 days. There is no leap lunar month in this year. A leap month keeps the same animal and year element. The table follows the full lunar year, so its final months extend into 1954.

Lunar months of 1953: Gregorian start and end dates
Lunar month	Begins	Ends	Days
Month 1	February 14, 1953	March 14, 1953	29
Month 2	March 15, 1953	April 13, 1953	30
Month 3	April 14, 1953	May 12, 1953	29
Month 4	May 13, 1953	June 10, 1953	29
Month 5	June 11, 1953	July 10, 1953	30
Month 6	July 11, 1953	August 9, 1953	30
Month 7	August 10, 1953	September 7, 1953	29
Month 8	September 8, 1953	October 7, 1953	30
Month 9	October 8, 1953	November 6, 1953	30
Month 10	November 7, 1953	December 5, 1953	29
Month 11	December 6, 1953	January 4, 1954	30
Month 12	January 5, 1954	February 2, 1954	29

04 / Follow the cycle

Other Years of the Snake

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

1905Wood Snake 1917Fire Snake 1929Earth Snake 1941Metal Snake 1965Wood Snake 1977Fire Snake 1989Earth Snake 2001Metal Snake 2013Water Snake 2025Wood Snake 2037Fire Snake 2049Earth Snake 2061Metal Snake 2073Water Snake 2085Wood Snake 2097Fire Snake

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.