Your Day of Birth
Yang · 9 of 12

Year of the Monkey

The Monkey is clever, playful and endlessly curious. Monkeys solve problems fast, love to learn and are the life of the party.

Next Monkey year

The next Year of the Monkey is the Earth Monkey, starting January 26, 2028.

Monkey years

YearDatesType
1908Feb 2, 1908 to Jan 21, 1909Earth Monkey
1920Feb 20, 1920 to Feb 7, 1921Metal Monkey
1932Feb 6, 1932 to Jan 25, 1933Water Monkey
1944Jan 25, 1944 to Feb 12, 1945Wood Monkey
1956Feb 12, 1956 to Jan 30, 1957Fire Monkey
1968Jan 30, 1968 to Feb 16, 1969Earth Monkey
1980Feb 16, 1980 to Feb 4, 1981Metal Monkey
1992Feb 4, 1992 to Jan 22, 1993Water Monkey
2004Jan 22, 2004 to Feb 8, 2005Wood Monkey
2016Feb 8, 2016 to Jan 27, 2017Fire Monkey
2028Jan 26, 2028 to Feb 12, 2029Earth Monkey
2040Feb 12, 2040 to Jan 31, 2041Metal Monkey

Born in January or February? Check the dates: if your birthday is before that year’s start date, you belong to the animal before.

Strengths

  • Clever
  • Curious
  • Funny
  • Inventive

Watch out for

  • Can be mischievous
  • Gets bored easily
  • Sometimes too clever by half

The five kinds of Monkey

Metal Monkey
1920, 1980, 2040
Metal adds determination and backbone. Metal types set high standards, keep their word and don't give up easily.
Water Monkey
1932, 1992
Water adds intuition and flexibility. Water types read people well, adapt fast and are good at finding a way around problems.
Wood Monkey
1944, 2004
Wood adds warmth and generosity. Wood types are cooperative and fair, and they like to see things, and people, grow.
Fire Monkey
1956, 2016
Fire adds passion and drive. Fire types are bold, energetic and hard to ignore, sometimes a little too fast to act.
Earth Monkey
1908, 1968, 2028
Earth adds steadiness and common sense. Earth types are practical, patient and the person everyone relies on.
Lucky numbers
4, 9
Lucky colors
White, blue, gold
Lucky flowers
Chrysanthemum, crape myrtle
Yin or yang
Yang

Compatibility

Tradition groups the animals into teams of three that think alike, pairs of “secret friends”, and opposite signs that clash.

Best matchRatSee the Rat →Best matchDragonSee the Dragon →Secret friendSnakeSee the Snake →Opposite sign, can clashTigerSee the Tiger →

Famous people born in the Year of the Monkey

Elizabeth TaylorBritish-American actressFebruary 27, 1932 · Water MonkeyBob MarleyJamaican reggae musicianFebruary 6, 1945 · Wood Monkey (born before Lunar New Year)Tom HanksAmerican actor and film producerJuly 9, 1956 · Fire MonkeyCeline DionFrench Canadian singerMarch 30, 1968 · Earth MonkeyKylie MinogueAustralian singer and actressMay 28, 1968 · Earth MonkeyWill SmithAmerican actor, film producer and rapperSeptember 25, 1968 · Earth MonkeyHugh JackmanAustralian and English actor and singerOctober 12, 1968 · Earth MonkeyJennifer AnistonAmerican actressFebruary 11, 1969 · Earth Monkey (born before Lunar New Year)Kim KardashianAmerican media personality, businesswoman, model and actressOctober 21, 1980 · Metal MonkeyJustin TimberlakeAmerican singer and actorJanuary 31, 1981 · Metal Monkey (born before Lunar New Year)Selena GomezAmerican singer and actressJuly 22, 1992 · Water MonkeyMiley CyrusAmerican singer, actress, and television personalityNovember 23, 1992 · Water Monkey

Find your animal

The Chinese year starts at Lunar New Year, between January 21 and February 20, so a January or early February birthday often belongs to the year before. We use the exact date. We don’t save your birthdate or link it to you.

The other animals

Rat1984, 1996, 2008, 2020Ox1985, 1997, 2009, 2021Tiger1986, 1998, 2010, 2022Rabbit1987, 1999, 2011, 2023Dragon1988, 2000, 2012, 2024Snake1989, 2001, 2013, 2025Horse1990, 2002, 2014, 2026Goat1979, 1991, 2003, 2015Monkey1980, 1992, 2004, 2016Rooster1981, 1993, 2005, 2017Dog1982, 1994, 2006, 2018Pig1983, 1995, 2007, 2019

Personality traits, lucky items and compatibility come from Chinese tradition and are shared for fun, not as predictions. Lucky numbers, colors and flowers follow China Highlights' zodiac guide. Lunar New Year dates are calculated from the Chinese calendar and checked against a published table for 1924 to 2043. Famous birthdays come from Wikidata.