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Chinese New Year 1955
Monday, 24 January 1955. It opened the Year of the Wood Goat, 乙未, which ran until 11 February 1956.
- New Year's Eve23 January 1955
- New Year's Day24 January 1955
- Lantern Festival7 February 1955
- Animal and elementWood Goat 木羊, Yin
- Year ends11 February 1956; the next new year is 12 February 1956
What the Goat year carries
The Goat
Kind, creative and calm. The Goat is the artist of the cycle, drawn to beauty and to taking care of people.
The character 羊 sits inside 美, the character for beauty, and 善, the character for kindness.
Wood 木
Wood years are associated with growth and flexibility: spring, bamboo, new shoots. Wood years favour growth and beginnings: planting, building, the first steps of long projects.
The pairing of stem and branch, 乙未, returns once every sixty years; the last Wood Goat year was 1895, the next is 2015.
The 1955 festival calendar
Fifteen days from the eve to the first full moon; the dates below are for 1955 only.
| Day | Date in 1955 | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Little New Year 小年 | 16 January 1955 | The Kitchen God is sent off with sweets; the house cleaning begins. |
| New Year's Eve 除夕 | 23 January 1955, Sunday | Reunion dinner, red couplets on the door, staying up to see the year in. |
| New Year's Day 初一 | 24 January 1955, Monday | The Year of the Goat begins; red envelopes, visits in order of seniority, no sweeping. |
| Day 2 初二 | 25 January 1955 | Married daughters visit their parents. |
| Day 5 初五 | 28 January 1955 | Shops reopen and the God of Wealth is welcomed with firecrackers. |
| Lantern Festival 元宵 | 7 February 1955, Monday | First full moon: lanterns, riddles, sweet rice balls. The season closes. |
In mainland China the public holiday usually runs from the eve for seven or eight days; Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia each keep their own, shorter, holiday. How the days are kept, in more detail: the traditions.
What is particular to 1955
1955 is a Wood Goat year, 乙未, the 32th of the sixty stem-and-branch pairs. The same pairing last fell in 1895 and comes again in 2015; the previous Goat year was 1943, the next is 1967. Its 纳音 "sound" in the old almanacs is 沙中金.
New Year's Day fell on a Monday; the reunion dinner was the Sunday evening before. The festival landed on 24 January in the Western calendar, one of the earlier dates it can take.
Born in 1955?
Between 24 January 1955 and 11 February 1956 you are a Wood Goat.
Anyone born from 24 January 1955 to 11 February 1956 is a Wood Goat (乙未) and turns 71 in 2026. Kind, creative and calm. The Goat is the artist of the cycle, drawn to beauty and to taking care of people. Wood years favour growth and beginnings: planting, building, the first steps of long projects.
Born in January or early February 1955, before the 24 January 1955 new year? Then the previous animal, the Horse, is yours: the zodiac follows the lunar calendar, not 1 January. The zodiac calculator settles it from the exact date.
Your zodiac years (本命年, when the Goat comes round again) are 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015, 2027, 2039, 2051; the next one is 2027. Tradition has you wear something red through a 本命年 for protection. The signs said to suit a Goat best are the Rabbit, the Pig and the Horse: the compatibility table has every pair.
Chinese New Year in other years
The second new moon after the winter solstice, so it moves between 21 January and 20 February. Every year from 1924 to 2050.
- 194929 January 1949, Earth Ox
- 195017 February 1950, Metal Tiger
- 19516 February 1951, Metal Rabbit
- 195227 January 1952, Water Dragon
- 195314 February 1953, Water Snake
- 19543 February 1954, Wood Horse
- 195612 February 1956, Fire Monkey
- 195731 January 1957, Fire Rooster
- 195818 February 1958, Earth Dog
- 19598 February 1959, Earth Pig
- 196028 January 1960, Metal Rat
- 196115 February 1961, Metal Ox
Questions
When was Chinese New Year 1955?
Monday, 24 January 1955. New Year's Eve was 23 January 1955, and the Lantern Festival that closed the celebrations was 7 February 1955.
What animal is 1955 in the Chinese zodiac?
The Goat. From 24 January 1955 to 11 February 1956 it was the year of the Wood Goat (乙未). Before 24 January 1955, the year still belongs to the previous animal, the Horse.
How old is someone born in 1955?
Someone born in the Year of the Goat 1955 turns 71 in 2026. Their zodiac years (本命年) are 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015, 2027, 2039.
Why does the date change every year?
The festival falls on the second new moon after the winter solstice, so it moves between 21 January and 20 February on the Western calendar.
How long does Chinese New Year last?
Fifteen days, from New Year's Day to the Lantern Festival on the fifteenth of the first lunar month. Most people have a week of public holiday in mainland China.
Born in a Goat year?
Your animal depends on the exact date, not the calendar year.
Find your animal
Enter your birthday and we count it by the lunar calendar: the animal, its element, your lunar birth date and your next zodiac year.
Chinese zodiac calculatorWant the Goat in ink on your wall? The zodiac poster sets the animal above your name and lunar birthday. Giving a Chinese name this new year? Three real names, free.