2022 Chinese Zodiac: Year of the Water Tiger

2022 is the year of the Water Tiger (壬寅 Rényín), from 1 February 2022 to 21 January 2023. Anyone born in 2022 before 1 February 2022 belongs to the Metal Ox year.

• Animal: Tiger
• Element: Water (Yang)
• Cycle name: 壬寅 Rényín, year 39 of the 60-year cycle
• Starts: 1 February 2022
• Ends: 21 January 2023

The Water Tiger

Water years are traditionally linked with adaptability, perception and communication: the element that finds a way around any obstacle. The Tiger is the zodiac's bold one. Tradition describes Tiger people as brave, confident and competitive, with a strong sense of fairness and a generous streak. They would rather act and apologise later than wait for permission.

Born in January or February 2022?

Anyone born from 1 January to 31 January 2022 belongs to the Metal Ox year of 2021. From 1 February 2022 the Water Tiger 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.

2021: Metal Ox · 2023: Water Rabbit · All Tiger years · All 12 animals