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Chinese New Year 1968
Tuesday, 30 January 1968. It opened the Year of the Earth Monkey, 戊申, which ran until 16 February 1969.
- New Year's Eve29 January 1968
- New Year's Day30 January 1968
- Lantern Festival13 February 1968
- Animal and elementEarth Monkey 土猴, Yang
- Year ends16 February 1969; the next new year is 17 February 1969
What the Monkey year carries
The Monkey
Clever, playful and inventive. The Monkey solves problems sideways and keeps everyone laughing while it does.
Sun Wukong, the Monkey King of Journey to the West, is the most loved character in Chinese literature.
Earth 土
Earth years are associated with steadiness and care: harvest, soil, the centre. Earth years favour steadiness: consolidating, caring for what is already there, the harvest of earlier work.
The pairing of stem and branch, 戊申, returns once every sixty years; the last Earth Monkey year was 1908, the next is 2028.
The 1968 festival calendar
Fifteen days from the eve to the first full moon; the dates below are for 1968 only.
| Day | Date in 1968 | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Little New Year 小年 | 22 January 1968 | The Kitchen God is sent off with sweets; the house cleaning begins. |
| New Year's Eve 除夕 | 29 January 1968, Monday | Reunion dinner, red couplets on the door, staying up to see the year in. |
| New Year's Day 初一 | 30 January 1968, Tuesday | The Year of the Monkey begins; red envelopes, visits in order of seniority, no sweeping. |
| Day 2 初二 | 31 January 1968 | Married daughters visit their parents. |
| Day 5 初五 | 3 February 1968 | Shops reopen and the God of Wealth is welcomed with firecrackers. |
| Lantern Festival 元宵 | 13 February 1968, Tuesday | 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 1968
1968 is an Earth Monkey year, 戊申, the 45th of the sixty stem-and-branch pairs. The same pairing last fell in 1908 and comes again in 2028; the previous Monkey year was 1956, the next is 1980. Its 纳音 "sound" in the old almanacs is 大驿土.
New Year's Day fell on a Tuesday; the reunion dinner was the Monday evening before. The festival landed on 30 January in the Western calendar, near the middle of its range.
Born in 1968?
Between 30 January 1968 and 16 February 1969 you are an Earth Monkey.
Anyone born from 30 January 1968 to 16 February 1969 is an Earth Monkey (戊申) and turns 58 in 2026. Clever, playful and inventive. The Monkey solves problems sideways and keeps everyone laughing while it does. Earth years favour steadiness: consolidating, caring for what is already there, the harvest of earlier work.
Born in January or early February 1968, before the 30 January 1968 new year? Then the previous animal, the Goat, 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 Monkey comes round again) are 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016, 2028, 2040, 2052; the next one is 2028. Tradition has you wear something red through a 本命年 for protection. The signs said to suit a Monkey best are the Rat, the Dragon and the Snake: 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.
- 19625 February 1962, Water Tiger
- 196325 January 1963, Water Rabbit
- 196413 February 1964, Wood Dragon
- 19652 February 1965, Wood Snake
- 196621 January 1966, Fire Horse
- 19679 February 1967, Fire Goat
- 196917 February 1969, Earth Rooster
- 19706 February 1970, Metal Dog
- 197127 January 1971, Metal Pig
- 197215 February 1972, Water Rat
- 19733 February 1973, Water Ox
- 197423 January 1974, Wood Tiger
Questions
When was Chinese New Year 1968?
Tuesday, 30 January 1968. New Year's Eve was 29 January 1968, and the Lantern Festival that closed the celebrations was 13 February 1968.
What animal is 1968 in the Chinese zodiac?
The Monkey. From 30 January 1968 to 16 February 1969 it was the year of the Earth Monkey (戊申). Before 30 January 1968, the year still belongs to the previous animal, the Goat.
How old is someone born in 1968?
Someone born in the Year of the Monkey 1968 turns 58 in 2026. Their zodiac years (本命年) are 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016, 2028, 2040.
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 Monkey 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 Monkey 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.