Which Years Are Goat Years?
People born in 1991, 2003, 2015 and 2027 are Goats. Earlier Goat years are 1943, 1955, 1967 and 1979. The Goat comes around every 12 years.
A Goat year begins at the Start of Spring (Lichun), around February 4. It is usually a different day from Chinese New Year.
BaZi writes your birth year, month, day and hour as two characters each. The two for the year are your year pillar.
Enter your birth date and hour in the free BaZi calculator. If the second character of your year pillar is 未 (Wei), you are a Goat. Born before that date, your pillar still ends in the previous year's Wu, so you are a Horse.
| Year | Stem-branch | Na Yin | Born between |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2027Next year | Ding Wei | Heavenly River Water | Feb 4 – Feb 3 next year |
| 2015 | Yi Wei | Gold in the Sand | Feb 4 – Feb 3 next year |
| 2003 | Gui Wei | Willow Wood | Feb 4 – Feb 3 next year |
| 1991 | Xin Wei | Earth by the Roadside | Feb 4 – Feb 3 next year |
| 1979 | Ji Wei | Heavenly Fire | Feb 4 – Feb 4 next year |
| 1967 | Ding Wei | Heavenly River Water | Feb 4 – Feb 4 next year |
| 1955 | Yi Wei | Gold in the Sand | Feb 4 – Feb 4 next year |
| 1943 | Gui Wei | Willow Wood | Feb 5 – Feb 4 next year |
Calculate your BaZi chart
Enter your birth details to discover your Day Master, elemental balance, and how these concepts apply to your Four Pillars.
Who Are the Goat's Allies? Rabbit, Pig and Horse
The Goat's allies are the Rabbit, Pig and Horse. The Rabbit and Horse are the closest. In folk tradition, your allies are the animals that form a trine or a six harmony with yours.
This is not the Heavenly Noble (Tian Yi Gui Ren), one of BaZi's Special Stars. That one is read from your whole chart.
- TrineThree earthly branches form a group. For the Goat, the other two are the Rabbit and the Pig.
- Six HarmonyTwo branches form a pair. The Goat pairs with the Horse.
The Rabbit sits in the middle of the group. Even when only two of the three meet, the Rabbit and the Goat still bond. That makes the Rabbit closer than the Pig. Without the Rabbit, a Pig and a Goat do not bond tightly.
Which Animals Clash with the Goat?
The Ox is the Goat's worst match. Friction with the Dog and Rat is lighter. Clash, punishment, harm and break all make a poor match, but some weigh more than others.
- ClashSet the twelve animals in a circle, and the two directly opposite collide. This is the heavier kind.
- PunishmentFriction, each holding the other back. The Ox, Dog and Goat punish one another, so the Ox and the Dog both punish the Goat.
- HarmThe Rat clashes with the Horse, the Goat's six harmony partner. So the Rat harms the Goat.
- BreakA minor loss.
| Animal | Branch | Relation | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ox | Chou | Clash and punishment | Heavier |
| Dog | Xu | Punishment and break | Lighter |
| Rat | Zi | Harm | Lighter |
Two Goats together are not a bad match.
What Does the Goat Face This Year? The Goat's Own Year
What you face this year depends on how the year's animal gets on with the Goat. Tai Sui is the animal of the current year. In a Goat year, for example, Tai Sui is the Goat.
The current year is called the annual fortune (Liu Nian). Folk custom compares its animal with yours to see whether you "offend" Tai Sui.
For a Goat, the twelve-year cycle runs like this:
- GoatYour own year
- OxClash and punishment
- DogPunishment and break
- RatHarm
- Rabbit, Horse and PigHarmony
A Goat year is your own year (Ben Ming Nian).
Tradition weighs your own year and a clash the most. Punishment, harm and break are lighter, and harmony is seen as a help.
Offending Tai Sui compares two animals only. It is not a full forecast for your year. For each animal's Tai Sui outlook and tips for the year, see the CNY BaZi Fortune Guide.
Five Goats: Metal, Wood, Water, Fire and Earth
The five kinds of Goat are sorted by the heavenly stem of the birth year. Every Goat year's pillar ends in Wei. What differs is the first character, the stem. Each stem belongs to one element.
For example, 1991 is Xin Wei. Xin is Metal, so 1991 is a Metal Goat.
| Type | Year pillar | Birth years |
|---|---|---|
| Metal Goat | Xin Wei | 1991 |
| Wood Goat | Yi Wei | 1955, 2015 |
| Water Goat | Gui Wei | 1943, 2003 |
| Fire Goat | Ding Wei | 1967, 2027 |
| Earth Goat | Ji Wei | 1979 |
Some sites sort Goats by Na Yin instead. Na Yin is a second set of element names, one for each stem and branch pair.
For 1979, the Na Yin is Heavenly Fire, so those sites call it a Fire Goat. By its stem, it is an Earth Goat.
Goat Personality: Gentle, Warm-hearted, Quietly Resilient
Goats tend to be gentle and warm-hearted, with a quiet resilience. These traits come from Wei's hidden stems. Each branch hides one to three stems, called hidden stems (Cang Gan). Wei hides three: one earth, one fire and one wood. The earth stem, Ji Earth, weighs the most.
This earth is mild and generous, so you tend to be gentle with people and avoid open conflict. The fire is a quiet warmth. It shows as deep feeling and care for others.
The wood bends without breaking. It brings an eye for beauty. Once you settle on something, you hold to it quietly.
The other side is overthinking. You may feel insecure more easily, and weigh a decision again and again.
In a stable place where you feel trusted, these traits tend to show as patience and attentiveness. Under heavy pressure, they can turn into indecision.
Beyond Your Animal: What Else BaZi Reads
Your animal is just one character in your BaZi, so it cannot show the whole picture. It is the branch of your year pillar. Everyone born that year shares it, but the month, day and hour pillars differ.
The character that stands for you is the Day Master, the stem of the day you were born. Your temperament and way of working are read from it, together with the strength of the Five Elements.
Whether a year helps or strains you depends on where its stem and branch land in your chart.
