2005 Chinese Zodiac: Year of the Wood Rooster

2005 is the year of the Wood Rooster (乙酉 Yǐyǒu), from 9 February 2005 to 28 January 2006. Anyone born in 2005 before 9 February 2005 belongs to the Wood Monkey year.

• Animal: Rooster
• Element: Wood (Yin)
• Cycle name: 乙酉 Yǐyǒu, year 22 of the 60-year cycle
• Starts: 9 February 2005
• Ends: 28 January 2006

The Wood Rooster

Wood years are traditionally linked with growth, generosity and cooperation: the element of things that grow towards the light and make room for others. The Rooster is the zodiac's organiser. Tradition describes Rooster people as observant, hardworking and honest, confident in their standards and precise in their work. They say what they see, which is a gift and occasionally a problem.

Born in January or February 2005?

Anyone born from 1 January to 8 February 2005 belongs to the Wood Monkey year of 2004. From 9 February 2005 the Wood Rooster year begins.

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.

2004: Wood Monkey · 2006: Fire Dog · All Rooster years · All 12 animals