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Chinese New Year 2004
Thursday, 22 January 2004. It opened the Year of the Wood Monkey, 甲申, which ran until 8 February 2005.
- New Year's Eve21 January 2004
- New Year's Day22 January 2004
- Lantern Festival5 February 2004
- Animal and elementWood Monkey 木猴, Yang
- Year ends8 February 2005; the next new year is 9 February 2005
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.
Wood 木
Wood years are associated with growth and flexibility: spring, bamboo, new shoots. Wood years favour growth and beginnings: planting, building, the first steps of long projects.
The pairing of stem and branch, 甲申, returns once every sixty years; the last Wood Monkey year was 1944, the next is 2064.
The 2004 festival calendar
Fifteen days from the eve to the first full moon; the dates below are for 2004 only.
| Day | Date in 2004 | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Little New Year 小年 | 14 January 2004 | The Kitchen God is sent off with sweets; the house cleaning begins. |
| New Year's Eve 除夕 | 21 January 2004, Wednesday | Reunion dinner, red couplets on the door, staying up to see the year in. |
| New Year's Day 初一 | 22 January 2004, Thursday | The Year of the Monkey begins; red envelopes, visits in order of seniority, no sweeping. |
| Day 2 初二 | 23 January 2004 | Married daughters visit their parents. |
| Day 5 初五 | 26 January 2004 | Shops reopen and the God of Wealth is welcomed with firecrackers. |
| Lantern Festival 元宵 | 5 February 2004, Thursday | 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 2004
2004 is a Wood Monkey year, 甲申, the 21th of the sixty stem-and-branch pairs. The same pairing last fell in 1944 and comes again in 2064; the previous Monkey year was 1992, the next is 2016. Its 纳音 "sound" in the old almanacs is 泉中水.
New Year's Day fell on a Thursday; the reunion dinner was the Wednesday evening before. The festival landed on 22 January in the Western calendar, one of the earlier dates it can take.
Born in 2004?
Between 22 January 2004 and 8 February 2005 you are a Wood Monkey.
Anyone born from 22 January 2004 to 8 February 2005 is a Wood Monkey (甲申) and turns 22 in 2026. Clever, playful and inventive. The Monkey solves problems sideways and keeps everyone laughing while it does. Wood years favour growth and beginnings: planting, building, the first steps of long projects.
Born in January or early February 2004, before the 22 January 2004 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 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.
- 199828 January 1998, Earth Tiger
- 199916 February 1999, Earth Rabbit
- 20005 February 2000, Metal Dragon
- 200124 January 2001, Metal Snake
- 200212 February 2002, Water Horse
- 20031 February 2003, Water Goat
- 20059 February 2005, Wood Rooster
- 200629 January 2006, Fire Dog
- 200718 February 2007, Fire Pig
- 20087 February 2008, Earth Rat
- 200926 January 2009, Earth Ox
- 201014 February 2010, Metal Tiger
Questions
When was Chinese New Year 2004?
Thursday, 22 January 2004. New Year's Eve was 21 January 2004, and the Lantern Festival that closed the celebrations was 5 February 2004.
What animal is 2004 in the Chinese zodiac?
The Monkey. From 22 January 2004 to 8 February 2005 it was the year of the Wood Monkey (甲申). Before 22 January 2004, the year still belongs to the previous animal, the Goat.
How old is someone born in 2004?
Someone born in the Year of the Monkey 2004 turns 22 in 2026. Their zodiac years (本命年) are 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.