1982 Chinese Zodiac: Water Dog

01 / Check the boundary

What is my Chinese zodiac if I was born in 1982?

Two zodiac signs fall within the Gregorian year 1982. 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.

1982 birth dates and zodiac signs
Gregorian birthday	Animal & year element
January 1, 1982 – January 24, 1982	Metal Rooster 鸡
January 25, 1982 – December 31, 1982	Water Dog 狗

The full 1982 lunar year continues into 1983, through February 12, 1983. A birthday on January 24, 1982 belongs to the Rooster; a birthday one day later, on January 25, 1982, belongs to the Dog.

YOUR STORY STARTS HERE

When were you born?

02 / The story of the year

What kind of Dog is 1982?

1982 is a Water Dog year. Its stem-branch name is 壬戌 (rén-xū): the heavenly stem 壬 carries yang water, and the earthly branch 戌 corresponds to the Dog.

Zodiac animal: Dog · 狗
Year element: Water
Stem & branch: 壬戌 · rén-xū
Lunar year length: 384 days

Dog personality in tradition

The Dog commonly symbolizes loyalty and companionship in popular accounts of the zodiac.

The phrase “loyal & sincere” describes a traditional association with this animal, rather than a rule about everyone born in 1982. The year element is one part of the calendar; it does not establish a person's complete five-elements or Bāzì chart.

我属狗。

Wǒ shǔ gǒu. “I was born in the Year of the Dog.”

Dog compatibility in folklore

Dog, Tiger and Horse form a traditional harmony group of three. Dragon sits opposite Dog, 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

1982 lunar calendar at a glance

This Dog year contains 13 lunar months and 384 days. Month 4 repeats as a leap month, starting May 23, 1982. A leap month keeps the same animal and year element. The table follows the full lunar year, so its final months extend into 1983.

Lunar months of 1982: Gregorian start and end dates
Lunar month	Begins	Ends	Days
Month 1	January 25, 1982	February 23, 1982	30
Month 2	February 24, 1982	March 24, 1982	29
Month 3	March 25, 1982	April 23, 1982	30
Month 4	April 24, 1982	May 22, 1982	29
Leap month 4	May 23, 1982	June 20, 1982	29
Month 5	June 21, 1982	July 20, 1982	30
Month 6	July 21, 1982	August 18, 1982	29
Month 7	August 19, 1982	September 16, 1982	29
Month 8	September 17, 1982	October 16, 1982	30
Month 9	October 17, 1982	November 14, 1982	29
Month 10	November 15, 1982	December 14, 1982	30
Month 11	December 15, 1982	January 13, 1983	30
Month 12	January 14, 1983	February 12, 1983	30

04 / Follow the cycle

Other Years of the Dog

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

1910Metal Dog 1922Water Dog 1934Wood Dog 1946Fire Dog 1958Earth Dog 1970Metal Dog 1994Wood Dog 2006Fire Dog 2018Earth Dog 2030Metal Dog 2042Water Dog 2054Wood Dog 2066Fire Dog 2078Earth Dog 2090Metal Dog

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.