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Chinese New Year 1979
Sunday, 28 January 1979. It opened the Year of the Earth Goat, 己未, which ran until 15 February 1980.
- New Year's Eve27 January 1979
- New Year's Day28 January 1979
- Lantern Festival11 February 1979
- Animal and elementEarth Goat 土羊, Yin
- Year ends15 February 1980; the next new year is 16 February 1980
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.
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, 己未, returns once every sixty years; the last Earth Goat year was 1919, the next is 2039.
The 1979 festival calendar
Fifteen days from the eve to the first full moon; the dates below are for 1979 only.
| Day | Date in 1979 | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Little New Year 小年 | 21 January 1979 | The Kitchen God is sent off with sweets; the house cleaning begins. |
| New Year's Eve 除夕 | 27 January 1979, Saturday | Reunion dinner, red couplets on the door, staying up to see the year in. |
| New Year's Day 初一 | 28 January 1979, Sunday | The Year of the Goat begins; red envelopes, visits in order of seniority, no sweeping. |
| Day 2 初二 | 29 January 1979 | Married daughters visit their parents. |
| Day 5 初五 | 1 February 1979 | Shops reopen and the God of Wealth is welcomed with firecrackers. |
| Lantern Festival 元宵 | 11 February 1979, Sunday | 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 1979
1979 is an Earth Goat year, 己未, the 56th of the sixty stem-and-branch pairs. The same pairing last fell in 1919 and comes again in 2039; the previous Goat year was 1967, the next is 1991. Its 纳音 "sound" in the old almanacs is 天上火.
New Year's Day fell on a Sunday, so the reunion dinner on 27 January 1979 landed on a Saturday evening. The festival landed on 28 January in the Western calendar, one of the earlier dates it can take.
Born in 1979?
Between 28 January 1979 and 15 February 1980 you are an Earth Goat.
Anyone born from 28 January 1979 to 15 February 1980 is an Earth Goat (己未) and turns 47 in 2026. Kind, creative and calm. The Goat is the artist of the cycle, drawn to beauty and to taking care of people. Earth years favour steadiness: consolidating, caring for what is already there, the harvest of earlier work.
Born in January or early February 1979, before the 28 January 1979 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 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.
- 19733 February 1973, Water Ox
- 197423 January 1974, Wood Tiger
- 197511 February 1975, Wood Rabbit
- 197631 January 1976, Fire Dragon
- 197718 February 1977, Fire Snake
- 19787 February 1978, Earth Horse
- 198016 February 1980, Metal Monkey
- 19815 February 1981, Metal Rooster
- 198225 January 1982, Water Dog
- 198313 February 1983, Water Pig
- 19842 February 1984, Wood Rat
- 198520 February 1985, Wood Ox
Questions
When was Chinese New Year 1979?
Sunday, 28 January 1979. New Year's Eve was 27 January 1979, and the Lantern Festival that closed the celebrations was 11 February 1979.
What animal is 1979 in the Chinese zodiac?
The Goat. From 28 January 1979 to 15 February 1980 it was the year of the Earth Goat (己未). Before 28 January 1979, the year still belongs to the previous animal, the Horse.
How old is someone born in 1979?
Someone born in the Year of the Goat 1979 turns 47 in 2026. Their zodiac years (本命年) are 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.