What Chinese Zodiac Is 1960? Year of the Metal Rat

When the 1960 Metal Rat year starts and ends

The 1960 Metal Rat year began at Lunar New Year on January 28, 1960 and lasted until February 14, 1961, the day before the next new year. Anyone born between January 1 and Jan 28 1960 therefore belongs to the Earth Pig year that started in 1959, while someone born in early 1961, up to Feb 14, is still a Metal Rat. The Chinese calendar is lunisolar, which is why the start date moves between January 21 and February 20 instead of staying on January 1. The same Metal Rat combination also falls in 2020, sixty years apart, because five elements and twelve animals realign only once in each sixty-year cycle. Lunar New Year 1960 fell on a Thursday, while the Western Sun was in Aquarius.

Metal Rat personality

Ambitious, disciplined and persuasive, the Metal Rat pursues goals with uncommon tenacity. Metal generates the Rat's Water, so tradition describes a sign strengthened and supplied by its year. People born now often have refined tastes and a talent for planning and money. A guarded heart and stubbornness are the usual cautions, eased by unstructured time with loved ones. Their plans are usually thought through several steps ahead.

Metal is the element of autumn and harvest, and a Metal year is traditionally said to sharpen whatever animal it meets. Descriptions associate it with determination, discipline, clear judgement and a strong code of principle. Metal-year people are often portrayed as decisive, self-reliant and willing to do difficult things because they are right. The element is linked with refinement and with cutting away what is unnecessary, so it tends to bring focus and high standards. Its traditional shadow is rigidity: Metal can become inflexible, proud or emotionally guarded, preferring to be correct over being close, and finding it hard to bend once a position is taken.

1960 in numerology and the twelve-year cycle

In numerology the year reduces to 7, the number of reflection, analysis and inner work, giving a 7 year a quieter, more searching character. The digits of 1960 add up to 16, which reduces to 7. In the twelve-year cycle the Rat is the first animal, earthly branch Zi, with Water as its fixed element and Yang polarity. The year element is Metal, and in the five-element cycles metal generates Water. The year before was the Earth Pig and the year after is the Metal Ox.

In the traditional sexagenary count the year is called Geng-Zi: Geng is the Metal heavenly stem and Zi is the Rat's earthly branch. Stems and branches alternate between yang and yin together, which is why yang stems only ever meet yang animals.