Chinese zodiac · all 12 animals
1940 Chinese Zodiac: Year of the Dragon
庚辰年 Metal Dragon, yang (阳)
Exact dates, who counts as a Dragon, the element and matches.
The answer
1940 is the Year of the Dragon in the Chinese zodiac: a Metal Dragon year, 庚辰 (gēng chén) in the 60-year cycle. It runs from 8 February 1940 to 26 January 1941, so people born from 1 January to 7 February 1940 belong to the previous animal, the Rabbit.
1940 at a glance
- Animal
- Dragon 龙 (lóng), fifth of the 12
- Element
- Metal 金, yang (阳), from the stem 庚 (gēng)
- 60-year cycle
- 庚辰 gēng chén · the same Metal Dragon year was 2000 and comes again in after 2100
- Starts
- Thursday, 8 February 1940 (Chinese New Year)
- Ends
- Sunday, 26 January 1941 · the Year of the Snake begins the next day
- Lichun
- 5 February 1940 · the solar-term start of spring, used as the year boundary by some almanacs
- Age in 2026
- Turns 86 · next 本命年 (own zodiac year): 2036
- Best matches
- Monkey and Rat (三合 trine), Rooster (六合 pair) · clashes with the Dog
Born in 1940? Check the date first
The zodiac follows the lunar year, not the Western calendar year. In 1940 the cut-off was 8 February 1940.
| Born | Zodiac animal | Element | Cycle year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Jan – 7 Feb 1940 1940 | Rabbit 兔 | Earth | 己卯 |
| 8 Feb 1940 – 31 Dec 1940 | Dragon 龙 | Metal | 庚辰 |
| 1 Jan 1941 – 26 Jan 1941 | Dragon 龙 (still) | Metal | 庚辰 |
Some almanacs and Chinese astrologers use Lichun (5 February 1940 in 1940) as the boundary instead, which can move a few days of January or February births to the other animal. The Lunar New Year rule is the everyday one. Not sure? Use the Chinese zodiac calculator.
What the Dragon means
Tradition calls Dragon people confident, ambitious and energetic, and pairs them best with the Monkey and Rat. The element adds a layer: a Metal Dragon is read differently from a Water Dragon. In daily life in China the sign matters most for 本命年 and for New Year decorations, stamps and gifts in Dragon years. Read the full Year of the Dragon guide for the traits, matches and the stories behind the animal.
Other Years of the Dragon
The Dragon returns every 12 years; the element changes each time, so the Metal Dragon itself comes round only every 60.
| Year | Element and animal | Starts | Ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1904 | Wood Dragon 木龙 · 甲辰 | 16 Feb 1904 | 3 Feb 1905 |
| 1916 | Fire Dragon 火龙 · 丙辰 | 3 Feb 1916 | 22 Jan 1917 |
| 1928 | Earth Dragon 土龙 · 戊辰 | 23 Jan 1928 | 9 Feb 1929 |
| 1940 | Metal Dragon 金龙 · 庚辰 | 8 Feb 1940 | 26 Jan 1941 |
| 1952 | Water Dragon 水龙 · 壬辰 | 27 Jan 1952 | 13 Feb 1953 |
| 1964 | Wood Dragon 木龙 · 甲辰 | 13 Feb 1964 | 1 Feb 1965 |
| 1976 | Fire Dragon 火龙 · 丙辰 | 31 Jan 1976 | 17 Feb 1977 |
| 1988 | Earth Dragon 土龙 · 戊辰 | 17 Feb 1988 | 5 Feb 1989 |
| 2000 | Metal Dragon 金龙 · 庚辰 | 5 Feb 2000 | 23 Jan 2001 |
Matches for people born in 1940
Traditional compatibility pairs the 12 animals on a wheel: the three animals four places apart form a 三合 (sānhé) trine, each animal has one 六合 (liùhé) partner, and the animal opposite is its 六冲 (liùchōng) clash. These are folk rules used in match-making and in choosing wedding dates, not predictions.
Festival dates in 1940
Western dates for the main Chinese festivals in 1940. The full year, with lunar months and solar terms, is on the Chinese calendar 1940 page.
- Chinese New Year
- 8 February 1940 春节
- Lantern Festival
- 22 February 1940 元宵节
- Qingming Festival
- 5 April 1940 清明节
- Dragon Boat Festival
- 10 June 1940 端午节
- Mid-Autumn Festival
- 16 September 1940 中秋节
- Chinese New Year’s Eve
- 7 February 1940 除夕
Questions readers ask
What Chinese zodiac animal is 1940?
1940 is the Year of the Dragon (龙, lóng). In the full 60-year cycle it is 庚辰, a Metal Dragon year, yang (阳). It began on 8 February 1940 and ended on 26 January 1941; 1941 is the Year of the Snake.
I was born in January or February 1940. What is my Chinese zodiac sign?
It depends on the exact date. The Year of the Dragon started on 8 February 1940. Born on or after that date, you are a Dragon; born between 1 January and 7 February 1940, you are a Rabbit. Some Chinese almanacs and astrologers start the year at Lichun (立春, start of spring) instead, which fell on 5 February 1940 in 1940; the Lunar New Year rule is the one most people in China use.
What element is 1940 in the Chinese zodiac?
Metal (金, jīn). The element comes from the heavenly stem 庚 (gēng), which also makes 1940 a yang (阳) year. The same animal returns every 12 years, but the same element and animal together, the Metal Dragon, return only every 60 years: the previous one was 2000 and the next is after 2100.
How old is someone born in 1940 in 2026?
Someone born in 1940 turns 86 in 2026 (85 until their birthday). In traditional Chinese reckoning (虚岁, xūsuì) a person is one at birth and gains a year at Lunar New Year, so the same person counts as 87 for most of 2026.
When is the next Year of the Dragon?
The Year of the Dragon returns every 12 years.
Tools
Sources
- Hong Kong Observatory, Gregorian-Lunar calendar conversion tables, 1901–2100 (Lunar New Year dates) · accessed 31 Oct 2026
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, Chinese zodiac (animals, stems and the 60-year cycle) · accessed 31 Oct 2026
- China Daily, What is benmingnian? (2 January 2024, in Chinese) · accessed 31 Oct 2026
Update log. 31 October 2026 — published. Lunar New Year and Lichun dates computed in Beijing time and checked against the Hong Kong Observatory tables; births from the National Bureau of Statistics annual series. Suggest a correction
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