Chinese zodiac · all 12 animals
1946 Chinese Zodiac: Year of the Dog
丙戌年 Fire Dog, yang (阳)
Exact dates, who counts as a Dog, the element and matches.
The answer
1946 is the Year of the Dog in the Chinese zodiac: a Fire Dog year, 丙戌 (bǐng xū) in the 60-year cycle. It runs from 2 February 1946 to 21 January 1947, so people born from 1 January to 1 February 1946 belong to the previous animal, the Rooster.
1946 at a glance
- Animal
- Dog 狗 (gǒu), eleventh of the 12
- Element
- Fire 火, yang (阳), from the stem 丙 (bǐng)
- 60-year cycle
- 丙戌 bǐng xū · the same Fire Dog year was 2006 and comes again in after 2100
- Starts
- Saturday, 2 February 1946 (Chinese New Year)
- Ends
- Tuesday, 21 January 1947 · the Year of the Pig begins the next day
- Lichun
- 4 February 1946 · the solar-term start of spring, used as the year boundary by some almanacs
- Age in 2026
- Turns 80 · next 本命年 (own zodiac year): 2030
- Best matches
- Tiger and Horse (三合 trine), Rabbit (六合 pair) · clashes with the Dragon
Born in 1946? Check the date first
The zodiac follows the lunar year, not the Western calendar year. In 1946 the cut-off was 2 February 1946.
| Born | Zodiac animal | Element | Cycle year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Jan – 1 Feb 1946 1946 | Rooster 鸡 | Wood | 乙酉 |
| 2 Feb 1946 – 31 Dec 1946 | Dog 狗 | Fire | 丙戌 |
| 1 Jan 1947 – 21 Jan 1947 | Dog 狗 (still) | Fire | 丙戌 |
Some almanacs and Chinese astrologers use Lichun (4 February 1946 in 1946) 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 Dog means
Tradition calls Dog people loyal, honest and brave, and pairs them best with the Tiger and Horse. The element adds a layer: a Fire Dog is read differently from a Earth Dog. In daily life in China the sign matters most for 本命年 and for New Year decorations, stamps and gifts in Dog years. Read the full Year of the Dog guide for the traits, matches and the stories behind the animal.
Other Years of the Dog
The Dog returns every 12 years; the element changes each time, so the Fire Dog itself comes round only every 60.
| Year | Element and animal | Starts | Ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1910 | Metal Dog 金狗 · 庚戌 | 10 Feb 1910 | 29 Jan 1911 |
| 1922 | Water Dog 水狗 · 壬戌 | 28 Jan 1922 | 15 Feb 1923 |
| 1934 | Wood Dog 木狗 · 甲戌 | 14 Feb 1934 | 3 Feb 1935 |
| 1946 | Fire Dog 火狗 · 丙戌 | 2 Feb 1946 | 21 Jan 1947 |
| 1958 | Earth Dog 土狗 · 戊戌 | 18 Feb 1958 | 7 Feb 1959 |
| 1970 | Metal Dog 金狗 · 庚戌 | 6 Feb 1970 | 26 Jan 1971 |
| 1982 | Water Dog 水狗 · 壬戌 | 25 Jan 1982 | 12 Feb 1983 |
| 1994 | Wood Dog 木狗 · 甲戌 | 10 Feb 1994 | 30 Jan 1995 |
| 2006 | Fire Dog 火狗 · 丙戌 | 29 Jan 2006 | 17 Feb 2007 |
Matches for people born in 1946
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 1946
Western dates for the main Chinese festivals in 1946. The full year, with lunar months and solar terms, is on the Chinese calendar 1946 page.
- Chinese New Year
- 2 February 1946 春节
- Lantern Festival
- 16 February 1946 元宵节
- Qingming Festival
- 5 April 1946 清明节
- Dragon Boat Festival
- 4 June 1946 端午节
- Mid-Autumn Festival
- 10 September 1946 中秋节
- Chinese New Year’s Eve
- 1 February 1946 除夕
Questions readers ask
What Chinese zodiac animal is 1946?
1946 is the Year of the Dog (狗, gǒu). In the full 60-year cycle it is 丙戌, a Fire Dog year, yang (阳). It began on 2 February 1946 and ended on 21 January 1947; 1947 is the Year of the Pig.
I was born in January or February 1946. What is my Chinese zodiac sign?
It depends on the exact date. The Year of the Dog started on 2 February 1946. Born on or after that date, you are a Dog; born between 1 January and 1 February 1946, you are a Rooster. Some Chinese almanacs and astrologers start the year at Lichun (立春, start of spring) instead, which fell on 4 February 1946 in 1946; the Lunar New Year rule is the one most people in China use.
What element is 1946 in the Chinese zodiac?
Fire (火, huǒ). The element comes from the heavenly stem 丙 (bǐng), which also makes 1946 a yang (阳) year. The same animal returns every 12 years, but the same element and animal together, the Fire Dog, return only every 60 years: the previous one was 2006 and the next is after 2100.
How old is someone born in 1946 in 2026?
Someone born in 1946 turns 80 in 2026 (79 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 81 for most of 2026.
When is the next Year of the Dog?
The Year of the Dog 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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