Year of the Tiger (寅): Personality, Compatibility & Years
Born in the Year of the Tiger? Personality, love, career, compatibility, lucky tips and a full list of years, from the Japanese and Chinese zodiac.
At a glance
- Order
- 3 / 12 · Tora (寅)
- Branch element
- Wood
- Yin / Yang
- Yang
- Direction
- East-northeast
- Hours
- 03:00–05:00
Personality
The Tiger is courage itself. The character 寅 describes the moment when spring energy pushes up from the ground.
Strengths
Brave, decisive and full of energy. People naturally follow your lead.
Watch out for
You can rush ahead and clash with others when you feel your pride is at stake.
Love
Passionate and protective. You show love through action rather than words.
Work
Leadership roles, new ventures, sport and anywhere a bold first move matters.
Compatibility
Based on the classical relationships between the twelve branches: the trine (three harmonies), the six harmonies and the six clashes.
Years of the Tiger
| 1926 | Yang Fire Tiger (丙寅) |
| 1938 | Yang Earth Tiger (戊寅) |
| 1950 | Yang Metal Tiger (庚寅) |
| 1962 | Yang Water Tiger (壬寅) |
| 1974 | Yang Wood Tiger (甲寅) |
| 1986 | Yang Fire Tiger (丙寅) |
| 1998 | Yang Earth Tiger (戊寅) |
| 2010 | Yang Metal Tiger (庚寅) |
| 2022 | Yang Water Tiger (壬寅) |
Each year begins at Risshun (around 4 February), the start of spring in the solar calendar. In China and Korea the animal is popularly counted from Lunar New Year instead, so people born between January and mid-February may see a different animal elsewhere.
Lucky tips
In Japan, Tiger days are lucky for anything you want to come back to you, such as setting off on a trip or buying a wallet, because the tiger is said to travel a thousand ri (a proverbial great distance) and always come home.