{"id":14985,"date":"2020-02-05T09:00:37","date_gmt":"2020-02-05T13:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/?p=14985"},"modified":"2020-02-04T18:19:12","modified_gmt":"2020-02-04T22:19:12","slug":"the-year-of-the-rat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/chinese\/the-year-of-the-rat\/","title":{"rendered":"The Year of the Rat"},"content":{"rendered":"

Another Spring Festival has come and gone, and we are now in the Year of the Rat<\/strong> (\u9f20\u5e74 – sh\u01d4 ni\u00e1n). While it’s not exactly off to a great start thanks to the coronavirus, hopefully the year will take a more positive turn sooner than later. In this post, I’d like to focus on the Chinese zodiac<\/strong> (\u4e2d\u56fd\u5341\u4e8c\u751f\u8096 – zh\u014dng gu\u00f3 sh\u00ed’\u00e8r sh\u0113ng xi\u00e0o), as it’s a very interesting element of the local culture.<\/p>\n

The Order of the Zodiac<\/h2>\n

You probably know that there are 12 different animals that make up the Chinese zodiac. What you may not know is the reason behind the order of the animals. For example, do you know why the rat marks the start of the zodiac? The answer may surprise you…<\/p>\n

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Image by George Tan from flickr.com.
Public Domain Mark 1.0<\/p><\/div>\n

According to legend, the Jade Emperor decided to have the animals take part in a little race. As the smallest of the bunch, the rat was definitely an underdog in the race. The little rat was very clever<\/strong> (\u806a\u660e – c\u014dng m\u00edng), however, as it decided to jump on the back of the ox<\/strong> (\u725b \u2013 ni\u00fa) at the start of the race.<\/p>\n

The big stubborn ox didn’t even realize the rat was on its back! Just before the ox was about to cross the finish line<\/strong> (\u7ec8\u70b9\u7ebf – zh\u014dng di\u01cen xi\u00e0n), the rat leapt off its back and won the race in a giant upset. And that’s the reason why the rat marks the beginning of the Chinese zodiac cycle.<\/p>\n

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Characteristics of the Year of the Rat<\/h2>\n

If you were born on or after the Spring Festival in any of these years, you were born in the Year of the Rat – 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, and 2008.<\/p>\n

In addition to being clever, those born in the Year of the Rat are known to be industrious<\/strong> (\u52e4\u52b3 – q\u00edn l\u00e1o) and curious<\/strong> (\u597d\u5947 – h\u00e0o q\u00ed). Rats are also good with money as they are thrifty<\/strong> (\u8282 – ji\u00e9 ji\u01cen) and can manage their finances.<\/p>\n

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Image by a.canvas.of.light from flickr.com.
Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)<\/p><\/div>\n

In addition, it’s said that rats are good at taking advantage of opportunities. On the other hand, rats may lack the courage<\/strong> (\u52c7\u6c14 – y\u01d2ng q\u00ec) to actually act on these opportunities. While rats have a kind personality, sometimes they can come off as being rude<\/strong> (\u65e0\u793c – w\u00fa l\u01d0).<\/p>\n

Those are just some general characteristics of people born in the Year of the Rat. It’s actually a lot more complicated than that, though. You see, each zodiac sign is associated with one of the five elements<\/strong> (\u4e94\u884c – w\u01d4 x\u00edng) – wood, fire, earth, metal, and water. That means that someone born after Chinese New Year in 2020 is a Metal Rat, which only happens once every 60 years. I told you it’s complicated!<\/p>\n

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Relationships and Career<\/h2>\n

In general, rats are known to be sociable<\/strong> (\u793e\u4f1a\u7684 – sh\u00e8 hu\u00ec de) and they find it easy to make friends. While they are good at meeting people and starting relationships, they’re not so good at maintaining them.<\/p>\n

Despite the fact that the rat basically cheated to beat the ox in the race, these two signs are actually thought to be very compatible. The rat also pairs well with the monkey<\/strong>\u00a0(\u7334 \u2013 h\u00f3u)\u00a0and dragon<\/strong> (\u9f99 \u2013 l\u00f3ng). On the other hand, rats are not compatible with the horse<\/strong> (\u9a6c \u2013 m\u01ce) or rooster<\/strong> (\u9e21 \u2013 j\u012b).<\/p>\n

Because of their imagination, rats are well-suited for creative jobs. They make a good writer<\/strong> (\u4f5c\u5bb6 –\u00a0 zu\u00f2 ji\u0101) or musician<\/strong> (\u97f3\u4e50\u5bb6 – y\u012bn yu\u00e8 ji\u0101), for example. They are also good at technical work, so a rat might work as an engineer<\/strong> (\u5de5\u7a0b\u5e08 – g\u014dng ch\u00e9ng sh\u012b) or architect<\/strong> (\u5efa\u7b51\u5e08 – ji\u00e0n zh\u00fa sh\u012b).<\/p>\n