1970 Chinese Zodiac: Year of the Metal Dog

1970 is the year of the Metal Dog (庚戌 Gēngxū), from 6 February 1970 to 26 January 1971. Anyone born in 1970 before 6 February 1970 belongs to the Earth Rooster year.

• Animal: Dog
• Element: Metal (Yang)
• Cycle name: 庚戌 Gēngxū, year 47 of the 60-year cycle
• Starts: 6 February 1970
• Ends: 26 January 1971

The Metal Dog

Metal years are traditionally linked with determination, precision and principle: the element of clear edges, strong will and high standards. The Dog is the zodiac's loyal guardian. Tradition describes Dog people as honest, fair and protective, with a strong sense of right and wrong and a small, trusted circle they will defend without hesitation.

Born in January or February 1970?

Anyone born from 1 January to 5 February 1970 belongs to the Earth Rooster year of 1969. From 6 February 1970 the Metal Dog year begins.

Famous people born in the Metal Dog year

• Matt Damon, born 8 October 1970
• Mary J. Blige, born 11 January 1971

How the dates are worked out

Each Chinese New Year here is worked out from the sky, not copied from a list. A lunar month starts on the day of a New Moon in China Standard Time (UTC+8, or Beijing local time before 1929). The month holding the December solstice is the 11th month. When 13 New Moons fall between two of those months, the first month with no principal solar term (the Sun reaching a multiple of 30 degrees) is a leap month. New Year is the first day of the 1st month, which is why it moves between 21 January and 20 February. New Moons and solar terms follow Jean Meeus's Astronomical Algorithms. The rules follow the Chinese calendar.

1969: Earth Rooster · 1971: Metal Pig · All Dog years · All 12 animals