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Chinese New Year 1999
Tuesday, 16 February 1999. It opened the Year of the Earth Rabbit, 己卯, which ran until 4 February 2000.
- New Year's Eve15 February 1999
- New Year's Day16 February 1999
- Lantern Festival2 March 1999
- Animal and elementEarth Rabbit 土兔, Yin
- Year ends4 February 2000; the next new year is 5 February 2000
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.
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, 己卯, returns once every sixty years; the last Earth Rabbit year was 1939, the next is 2059.
The 1999 festival calendar
Fifteen days from the eve to the first full moon; the dates below are for 1999 only.
| Day | Date in 1999 | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Little New Year 小年 | 8 February 1999 | The Kitchen God is sent off with sweets; the house cleaning begins. |
| New Year's Eve 除夕 | 15 February 1999, Monday | Reunion dinner, red couplets on the door, staying up to see the year in. |
| New Year's Day 初一 | 16 February 1999, Tuesday | The Year of the Rabbit begins; red envelopes, visits in order of seniority, no sweeping. |
| Day 2 初二 | 17 February 1999 | Married daughters visit their parents. |
| Day 5 初五 | 20 February 1999 | Shops reopen and the God of Wealth is welcomed with firecrackers. |
| Lantern Festival 元宵 | 2 March 1999, 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 1999
1999 is an Earth Rabbit year, 己卯, the 16th of the sixty stem-and-branch pairs. The same pairing last fell in 1939 and comes again in 2059; the previous Rabbit year was 1987, the next is 2011. Its 纳音 "sound" in the old almanacs is 城头土.
New Year's Day fell on a Tuesday; the reunion dinner was the Monday evening before. The festival landed on 16 February in the Western calendar, close to the latest it can fall.
Born in 1999?
Between 16 February 1999 and 4 February 2000 you are an Earth Rabbit.
Anyone born from 16 February 1999 to 4 February 2000 is an Earth Rabbit (己卯) and turns 27 in 2026. Gentle, tactful and perceptive. The Rabbit prefers harmony to confrontation and tends to be the one everyone confides in. Earth years favour steadiness: consolidating, caring for what is already there, the harvest of earlier work.
Born in January or early February 1999, before the 16 February 1999 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 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.
- 199323 January 1993, Water Rooster
- 199410 February 1994, Wood Dog
- 199531 January 1995, Wood Pig
- 199619 February 1996, Fire Rat
- 19977 February 1997, Fire Ox
- 199828 January 1998, Earth Tiger
- 20005 February 2000, Metal Dragon
- 200124 January 2001, Metal Snake
- 200212 February 2002, Water Horse
- 20031 February 2003, Water Goat
- 200422 January 2004, Wood Monkey
- 20059 February 2005, Wood Rooster
Questions
When was Chinese New Year 1999?
Tuesday, 16 February 1999. New Year's Eve was 15 February 1999, and the Lantern Festival that closed the celebrations was 2 March 1999.
What animal is 1999 in the Chinese zodiac?
The Rabbit. From 16 February 1999 to 4 February 2000 it was the year of the Earth Rabbit (己卯). Before 16 February 1999, the year still belongs to the previous animal, the Tiger.
How old is someone born in 1999?
Someone born in the Year of the Rabbit 1999 turns 27 in 2026. Their zodiac years (本命年) are 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.