1986 / Chinese zodiac
1986 Chinese Zodiac: Fire Tiger
1986 is the Year of the Fire Tiger. It begins on February 9, 1986 and ends on January 28, 1987. If you were born before February 9, 1986, your sign is the Wood Ox.
01 / Check the boundary
What is my Chinese zodiac if I was born in 1986?
Two zodiac signs fall within the Gregorian year 1986. 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.
| Gregorian birthday | Animal & year element |
|---|---|
| – | Wood Ox 牛 |
| – | Fire Tiger 虎 |
The full 1986 lunar year continues into 1987, through January 28, 1987. A birthday on February 8, 1986 belongs to the Ox; a birthday one day later, on February 9, 1986, belongs to the Tiger.
YOUR STORY STARTS HERE
When were you born?
YOUR RESULT
02 / The story of the year
What kind of Tiger is 1986?
1986 is a Fire Tiger year. Its stem-branch name is 丙寅 (bǐng-yín): the heavenly stem 丙 carries yang fire, and the earthly branch 寅 corresponds to the Tiger.
- Zodiac animal
- Tiger · 虎
- Year element
- Fire
- Stem & branch
- 丙寅 · bǐng-yín
- Lunar year length
- 354 days
Tiger personality in tradition
The Tiger commonly represents courage and protective strength in Chinese art and storytelling.
The phrase “brave & spirited” describes a traditional association with this animal, rather than a rule about everyone born in 1986. The year element is one part of the calendar; it does not establish a person's complete five-elements or Bāzì chart.
我属虎。
Wǒ shǔ hǔ. “I was born in the Year of the Tiger.”
Tiger compatibility in folklore
Tiger, Horse and Dog form a traditional harmony group of three. Monkey sits opposite Tiger, 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
1986 lunar calendar at a glance
This Tiger 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 1987.
| Lunar month | Begins | Ends | Days |
|---|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | 29 | ||
| Month 2 | 30 | ||
| Month 3 | 30 | ||
| Month 4 | 29 | ||
| Month 5 | 30 | ||
| Month 6 | 30 | ||
| Month 7 | 29 | ||
| Month 8 | 30 | ||
| Month 9 | 29 | ||
| Month 10 | 30 | ||
| Month 11 | 29 | ||
| Month 12 | 29 |
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.