Pig Chinese Zodiac Sign
The Pig is the twelfth and final sign of the Chinese zodiac, fixed to the Water element and classed as Yin. It corresponds to the double-hour of 9 pm to 11 pm, and recent Pig years include 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019 and 2031.
| Earthly Branch | Hai (亥) |
|---|---|
| Recent and upcoming years | 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019, 2031 |
Old folk sayings treat the pig as a symbol of abundance and easy contentment — the reason ceramic piggy banks became a household staple — and being last in the twelve-year order is read in tradition as closing the cycle rather than finishing behind everyone else. Oral storytelling and almanac writing draw on that generous image when describing people born in Pig years: warm, good-natured, and comfortable sharing what they have.
Water and Yin: The Pig's Fixed Element
Separate from the abundance symbolism is a fixed cosmological reading with no folklore attached: Water for element, Yin for polarity, permanently tied to the Pig. Unlike that constant, the Four Pillars system assigns each year its own stem-based element depending on the heavenly stem, so two Pig years — 1995 and 2007 — need not match on stem element even though the sign's own element stays fixed.
The Pig's Spot on the Wheel
Together with the Rabbit and the Goat, the Pig fills out the Wood frame, one of four three-sign harmony sets almanacs have tracked for generations. Its Six Harmonies (liu he) partner is the Tiger, and its clash sign directly opposite on the wheel is the Snake, an old rivalry the race legend's tellers sometimes use to bookend the story. These ties are traditionally treated as cultural shorthand, not as guidance for real relationships.
The Pig Sign Today
Closing out the twelve-year cycle gives the Pig a certain narrative neatness, but that neatness belongs to the story of the cycle, not to any verdict about a specific person born in a Pig year.
What years are Pig years?
Recent Pig years are 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019 and 2031. A zodiac year starts on Chinese New Year, not 1 January, so people born in January or early February may belong to the previous sign, the Dog.
What element is the Pig in the Chinese zodiac?
In the traditional five-elements framework, the Pig is fixed to the Water element and classed as Yin; the sign is ranked number 12, the last in the traditional zodiac order, and covers the hours of roughly 9–11 pm in the old double-hour system.
Which signs traditionally get along well with the Pig?
Folk tradition groups the Pig with the Rabbit and Goat into what almanacs call the 'Wood frame,' a Three Harmonies (san he) triad, and pairs it specifically with the Tiger in a Six Harmonies (liu he) match; these are traditional groupings, not guarantees.
Which sign does the Pig traditionally clash with?
The Pig is traditionally said to clash with the Snake, its opposite on the zodiac wheel; folklore treats this as a point worth being mindful of rather than a fixed outcome.
Zodiac, year pillar (Gānzhī) and na yin element are computed from the lunar calendar with lunar-typescript · Last updated 2026-09-11