Chinese zodiac · all 12 animals
2023 Chinese Zodiac: Year of the Rabbit
癸卯年 Water Rabbit, yin (阴)
Exact dates, who counts as a Rabbit, the element and matches, and how many babies China had in 2023.
The answer
2023 is the Year of the Rabbit in the Chinese zodiac: a Water Rabbit year, 癸卯 (guǐ mǎo) in the 60-year cycle. It runs from 22 January 2023 to 9 February 2024, so people born from 1 January to 21 January 2023 belong to the previous animal, the Tiger. China recorded 9.02 million births in 2023.
2023 at a glance
- Animal
- Rabbit 兔 (tù), fourth of the 12
- Element
- Water 水, yin (阴), from the stem 癸 (guǐ)
- 60-year cycle
- 癸卯 guǐ mǎo · the same Water Rabbit year was 1963 and comes again in 2083
- Starts
- Sunday, 22 January 2023 (Chinese New Year)
- Ends
- Friday, 9 February 2024 · the Year of the Dragon begins the next day
- Lichun
- 4 February 2023 · the solar-term start of spring, used as the year boundary by some almanacs
- Births in 2023
- 9.02 million in mainland China (NBS), −5.6% on 2022
- Age in 2026
- Turns 3 · next 本命年 (own zodiac year): 2035
- Best matches
- Goat and Pig (三合 trine), Dog (六合 pair) · clashes with the Rooster
Born in 2023? Check the date first
The zodiac follows the lunar year, not the Western calendar year. In 2023 the cut-off was 22 January 2023.
| Born | Zodiac animal | Element | Cycle year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Jan – 21 Jan 2023 2023 | Tiger 虎 | Water | 壬寅 |
| 22 Jan 2023 – 31 Dec 2023 | Rabbit 兔 | Water | 癸卯 |
| 1 Jan 2024 – 9 Feb 2024 | Rabbit 兔 (still) | Water | 癸卯 |
Some almanacs and Chinese astrologers use Lichun (4 February 2023 in 2023) 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.
How many Rabbits: China’s births in 2023
The National Bureau of Statistics counted 9.02 million births in mainland China in 2023, −5.6% compared with 2022 (9.56 million); 2024 had 9.54 million. Among the 77 years from 1949 to 2025, 2023 ranks 76th for births.
These are calendar-year counts, so a few weeks of 2023’s babies belong to the Tiger and the first weeks of 2024 to the Rabbit. Figures before the 1982 census come mainly from household registration, as the NBS notes.
What the Rabbit means
Tradition calls Rabbit people gentle, considerate and diplomatic, and pairs them best with the Goat and Pig. The element adds a layer: a Water Rabbit is read differently from a Wood Rabbit. In daily life in China the sign matters most for 本命年 and for New Year decorations, stamps and gifts in Rabbit years. Read the full Year of the Rabbit guide for the traits, matches and the stories behind the animal.
Other Years of the Rabbit
The Rabbit returns every 12 years; the element changes each time, so the Water Rabbit itself comes round only every 60.
| Year | Element and animal | Starts | Ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | Water Rabbit 水兔 · 癸卯 | 25 Jan 1963 | 12 Feb 1964 |
| 1975 | Wood Rabbit 木兔 · 乙卯 | 11 Feb 1975 | 30 Jan 1976 |
| 1987 | Fire Rabbit 火兔 · 丁卯 | 29 Jan 1987 | 16 Feb 1988 |
| 1999 | Earth Rabbit 土兔 · 己卯 | 16 Feb 1999 | 4 Feb 2000 |
| 2011 | Metal Rabbit 金兔 · 辛卯 | 3 Feb 2011 | 22 Jan 2012 |
| 2023 | Water Rabbit 水兔 · 癸卯 | 22 Jan 2023 | 9 Feb 2024 |
| 2035 | Wood Rabbit 木兔 · 乙卯 | 8 Feb 2035 | 27 Jan 2036 |
| 2047 | Fire Rabbit 火兔 · 丁卯 | 26 Jan 2047 | 13 Feb 2048 |
| 2059 | Earth Rabbit 土兔 · 己卯 | 12 Feb 2059 | 1 Feb 2060 |
| 2071 | Metal Rabbit 金兔 · 辛卯 | 31 Jan 2071 | 18 Feb 2072 |
| 2083 | Water Rabbit 水兔 · 癸卯 | 17 Feb 2083 | 5 Feb 2084 |
Matches for people born in 2023
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 2023
Western dates for the main Chinese festivals in 2023. The full year, with lunar months and solar terms, is on the Chinese calendar 2023 page.
- Chinese New Year
- 22 January 2023 春节
- Lantern Festival
- 5 February 2023 元宵节
- Qingming Festival
- 5 April 2023 清明节
- Dragon Boat Festival
- 22 June 2023 端午节
- Mid-Autumn Festival
- 29 September 2023 中秋节
- Chinese New Year’s Eve
- 21 January 2023 除夕
Questions readers ask
What Chinese zodiac animal is 2023?
2023 is the Year of the Rabbit (兔, tù). In the full 60-year cycle it is 癸卯, a Water Rabbit year, yin (阴). It began on 22 January 2023 and ended on 9 February 2024; 2024 is the Year of the Dragon.
I was born in January or February 2023. What is my Chinese zodiac sign?
It depends on the exact date. The Year of the Rabbit started on 22 January 2023. Born on or after that date, you are a Rabbit; born between 1 January and 21 January 2023, you are a Tiger. Some Chinese almanacs and astrologers start the year at Lichun (立春, start of spring) instead, which fell on 4 February 2023 in 2023; the Lunar New Year rule is the one most people in China use.
What element is 2023 in the Chinese zodiac?
Water (水, shuǐ). The element comes from the heavenly stem 癸 (guǐ), which also makes 2023 a yin (阴) year. The same animal returns every 12 years, but the same element and animal together, the Water Rabbit, return only every 60 years: the previous one was 1963 and the next is 2083.
How old is someone born in 2023 in 2026?
Someone born in 2023 turns 3 in 2026 (2 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 4 for most of 2026.
When is the next Year of the Rabbit?
2035, starting on 8 February 2035. For someone born in 2023 that is a 本命年 (běnmìngnián), their own zodiac year, which tradition treats as a year to be careful in; many people wear something red for it.
How many babies were born in China in 2023?
About 9.02 million, according to the National Bureau of Statistics series, −5.6% compared with 2022. That ranks 2023 76th of the 77 years from 1949 to 2025.
Tools
Sources
- Hong Kong Observatory, Gregorian-Lunar calendar conversion tables, 1901–2100 (Lunar New Year dates) · accessed 31 Oct 2026
- National Bureau of Statistics of China, National Data (年度数据 → 人口 → 出生人口) · accessed 31 Oct 2026
- NBS, statistical communiqué on 2024 national economic and social development (births 9.54 million) · accessed 31 Oct 2026
- NBS, statistical communiqué on 2025 national economic and social development (births 7.92 million) · accessed 31 Oct 2026
- NBS public Q&A: where to find births for years before 1982 (data.stats.gov.cn; pre-1982 data from household registration) · 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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