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Chinese New Year 1963
Friday, 25 January 1963. It opened the Year of the Water Rabbit, 癸卯, which ran until 12 February 1964.
- New Year's Eve24 January 1963
- New Year's Day25 January 1963
- Lantern Festival8 February 1963
- Animal and elementWater Rabbit 水兔, Yin
- Year ends12 February 1964; the next new year is 13 February 1964
What the Rabbit year carries
The Rabbit
Gentle, tactful and perceptive. The Rabbit prefers harmony to confrontation and tends to be the one everyone confides in.
The Jade Rabbit lives on the moon, pounding the elixir of life under the osmanthus tree; look for it at Mid-Autumn.
Water 水
Water years are associated with adaptability and depth: rivers finding their way. Water years favour adaptability: plans that bend, conversations that flow, patience with the long way round.
The pairing of stem and branch, 癸卯, returns once every sixty years; the last Water Rabbit year was 1903, the next is 2023.
The 1963 festival calendar
Fifteen days from the eve to the first full moon; the dates below are for 1963 only.
| Day | Date in 1963 | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Little New Year 小年 | 18 January 1963 | The Kitchen God is sent off with sweets; the house cleaning begins. |
| New Year's Eve 除夕 | 24 January 1963, Thursday | Reunion dinner, red couplets on the door, staying up to see the year in. |
| New Year's Day 初一 | 25 January 1963, Friday | The Year of the Rabbit begins; red envelopes, visits in order of seniority, no sweeping. |
| Day 2 初二 | 26 January 1963 | Married daughters visit their parents. |
| Day 5 初五 | 29 January 1963 | Shops reopen and the God of Wealth is welcomed with firecrackers. |
| Lantern Festival 元宵 | 8 February 1963, Friday | 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 1963
1963 is a Water Rabbit year, 癸卯, the 40th of the sixty stem-and-branch pairs. The same pairing last fell in 1903 and comes again in 2023; the previous Rabbit year was 1951, the next is 1975. Its 纳音 "sound" in the old almanacs is 金箔金.
New Year's Day fell on a Friday; the reunion dinner was the Thursday evening before. The festival landed on 25 January in the Western calendar, one of the earlier dates it can take.
Born in 1963?
Between 25 January 1963 and 12 February 1964 you are a Water Rabbit.
Anyone born from 25 January 1963 to 12 February 1964 is a Water Rabbit (癸卯) and turns 63 in 2026. Gentle, tactful and perceptive. The Rabbit prefers harmony to confrontation and tends to be the one everyone confides in. Water years favour adaptability: plans that bend, conversations that flow, patience with the long way round.
Born in January or early February 1963, before the 25 January 1963 new year? Then the previous animal, the Tiger, 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 Rabbit comes round again) are 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2023, 2035, 2047, 2059; the next one is 2035. Tradition has you wear something red through a 本命年 for protection. The signs said to suit a Rabbit best are the Goat, the Pig and the Dog: 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.
- 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
- 19625 February 1962, Water Tiger
- 196413 February 1964, Wood Dragon
- 19652 February 1965, Wood Snake
- 196621 January 1966, Fire Horse
- 19679 February 1967, Fire Goat
- 196830 January 1968, Earth Monkey
- 196917 February 1969, Earth Rooster
Questions
When was Chinese New Year 1963?
Friday, 25 January 1963. New Year's Eve was 24 January 1963, and the Lantern Festival that closed the celebrations was 8 February 1963.
What animal is 1963 in the Chinese zodiac?
The Rabbit. From 25 January 1963 to 12 February 1964 it was the year of the Water Rabbit (癸卯). Before 25 January 1963, the year still belongs to the previous animal, the Tiger.
How old is someone born in 1963?
Someone born in the Year of the Rabbit 1963 turns 63 in 2026. Their zodiac years (本命年) are 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2023, 2035, 2047.
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 Rabbit 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 Rabbit 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.