Cathay Ink › Chinese New Year › 2000
Chinese New Year 2000
Saturday, 5 February 2000. It opened the Year of the Metal Dragon, 庚辰, which ran until 23 January 2001.
- New Year's Eve4 February 2000
- New Year's Day5 February 2000
- Lantern Festival19 February 2000
- Animal and elementMetal Dragon 金龙, Yang
- Year ends23 January 2001; the next new year is 24 January 2001
What the Dragon year carries
The Dragon
Confident, ambitious and generous. The only mythical animal in the cycle, the Dragon brings rain and good harvests; emperors took it as their emblem.
Dragon years see a rise in births across the Chinese-speaking world: parents plan for them.
Metal 金
Metal years are associated with resolve and clarity: the edge of a blade, the ring of a bell. Metal years favour decisiveness and finishing: clean cuts, clear words, things brought to a conclusion.
The pairing of stem and branch, 庚辰, returns once every sixty years; the last Metal Dragon year was 1940, the next is 2060.
The 2000 festival calendar
Fifteen days from the eve to the first full moon; the dates below are for 2000 only.
| Day | Date in 2000 | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Little New Year 小年 | 29 January 2000 | The Kitchen God is sent off with sweets; the house cleaning begins. |
| New Year's Eve 除夕 | 4 February 2000, Friday | Reunion dinner, red couplets on the door, staying up to see the year in. |
| New Year's Day 初一 | 5 February 2000, Saturday | The Year of the Dragon begins; red envelopes, visits in order of seniority, no sweeping. |
| Day 2 初二 | 6 February 2000 | Married daughters visit their parents. |
| Day 5 初五 | 9 February 2000 | Shops reopen and the God of Wealth is welcomed with firecrackers. |
| Lantern Festival 元宵 | 19 February 2000, Saturday | 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 2000
2000 is a Metal Dragon year, 庚辰, the 17th of the sixty stem-and-branch pairs. The same pairing last fell in 1940 and comes again in 2060; the previous Dragon year was 1988, the next is 2012. Its 纳音 "sound" in the old almanacs is 白蜡金.
New Year's Day fell on a Saturday, so the reunion dinner on 4 February 2000 landed on a Friday evening. The festival landed on 5 February in the Western calendar, near the middle of its range.
Born in 2000?
Between 5 February 2000 and 23 January 2001 you are a Metal Dragon.
Anyone born from 5 February 2000 to 23 January 2001 is a Metal Dragon (庚辰) and turns 26 in 2026. Confident, ambitious and generous. The only mythical animal in the cycle, the Dragon brings rain and good harvests; emperors took it as their emblem. Metal years favour decisiveness and finishing: clean cuts, clear words, things brought to a conclusion.
Born in January or early February 2000, before the 5 February 2000 new year? Then the previous animal, the Rabbit, 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 Dragon comes round again) are 2012, 2024, 2036, 2048, 2060; the next one is 2036. Tradition has you wear something red through a 本命年 for protection. The signs said to suit a Dragon best are the Rat, the Monkey and the Rooster: 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.
- 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
- 199916 February 1999, Earth Rabbit
- 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
- 200629 January 2006, Fire Dog
Questions
When was Chinese New Year 2000?
Saturday, 5 February 2000. New Year's Eve was 4 February 2000, and the Lantern Festival that closed the celebrations was 19 February 2000.
What animal is 2000 in the Chinese zodiac?
The Dragon. From 5 February 2000 to 23 January 2001 it was the year of the Metal Dragon (庚辰). Before 5 February 2000, the year still belongs to the previous animal, the Rabbit.
How old is someone born in 2000?
Someone born in the Year of the Dragon 2000 turns 26 in 2026. Their zodiac years (本命年) are 2012, 2024, 2036, 2048.
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 Dragon 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 Dragon 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.