Chinese New Year ... the complete guide to the Chinese New Year. Fortune cookies. ????
Chinese Calendar and more for 2009 - the Year of the Ox

The Chinese Lunar New Year is the longest chronological record in history, dating from 2600BC, when the Emperor Huang Ti introduced the first cycle of the zodiac. Like the Western calendar, The Chinese Lunar Calendar is a yearly one, with the start of the lunar year being based on the cycles of the moon. Therefore, because of this cyclical dating, the beginning of the year can fall anywhere between late January and the middle of February. This year it falls on February 12th. A complete cycle takes 60 years and is made up of five cycles of 12 years each.

The Chinese Lunar Calendar names each of the twelve years after an animal. Legend has it that the Lord Buddha summoned all the animals to come to him before he departed from earth. Only twelve came to bid him farewell and as a reward he named a year after each one in the order they arrived. The Chinese believe the animal ruling the year in which a person is born has a profound influence on personality, saying: "This is the animal that hides in your heart."

Rat		1924	1936	1948	1960	1972	1984	1996	2008	2020
Ox		1925	1937	1949	1961	1973	1985	1997	2009	2121
Tiger		1926	1938	1950	1962	1974	1986	1998	2010	2022
Rabbit		1927	1939	1951	1963	1975	1987	1999	2011	2023
Dragon		1928	1940	1952	1964	1976	1988	2000	2012	2024
Snake		1929	1941	1953	1965	1977	1989	2001	2013	2025
Horse		1930	1942	1954	1966	1978	1990	2002	2014	2026
Sheep		1931	1943	1955	1967	1979	1991	2003	2015	2027
Monkey		1932	1944	1956	1968	1980	1992	2004	2016	2028
Rooster		1933	1945	1957	1969	1981	1993	2005	2017	2029
Dog		1934	1946	1958	1970	1982	1994	2006	2018	2030
Boar		1935	1947	1959	1971	1983	1995	2007	2019	2031