Cathay Ink › Chinese zodiac › Year of the Dragon › 1976
Year of the Dragon 1976
The Fire Dragon, 丙辰: from Chinese New Year on 31 January 1976 to 17 February 1977.
Confident, ambitious and generous. The only mythical animal in the cycle, the Dragon brings rain and good harvests; emperors took it as their emblem. Fire years favour energy and visibility: bold moves, warm company, the spotlight.
The Fire Dragon
Element
Fire years are associated with warmth and drive: summer, lanterns, the hearth. In the sixty-year cycle each animal meets each element once, so the Fire Dragon came last in 1916 and returns in 2036. The year's 纳音 (the "sound" of its stem and branch in the old almanacs) is 沙中土.
Company
The Dragon shares a trine with the Rat and the Monkey; its secret friend is the Rooster. Those signs are said to find a Dragon year easiest. Dragon years see a rise in births across the Chinese-speaking world: parents plan for them.
Years of the Dragon
Each starts at Chinese New Year.
- 1928Earth Dragon, from 23 January 1928
- 1940Metal Dragon, from 8 February 1940
- 1952Water Dragon, from 27 January 1952
- 1964Wood Dragon, from 13 February 1964
- 1976Fire Dragon, from 31 January 1976
- 1988Earth Dragon, from 17 February 1988
- 2000Metal Dragon, from 5 February 2000
- 2012Water Dragon, from 23 January 2012
- 2024Wood Dragon, from 10 February 2024
- 2036Fire Dragon, from 28 January 2036
Questions
When does the Year of the Dragon 1976 start and end?
It starts at Chinese New Year, 31 January 1976, and ends on 17 February 1977, the day before the next new year.
What element is the Dragon in 1976?
Fire (火), from the heavenly stem 丙. Fire years are associated with warmth and drive: summer, lanterns, the hearth.
Is a baby born in January 1976 a Dragon?
No. A baby born before 31 January 1976 belongs to the previous animal, the Rabbit. The zodiac year follows the lunar calendar, not 1 January.
Which other years were Fire Dragon years?
2036. The same stem and branch return every sixty years.
Your Dragon in ink
The Dragon painted in ink wash above your name and lunar birthday.
Make the poster
Enter your birthday; we set the animal, the element, the lunar date and your name, and add a Chinese name as a seal if you have one.
Start with my birthdayMore about the animal: Year of the Dragon. All twelve: the zodiac.