Cathay Ink › Chinese New Year › 2044
Chinese New Year 2044
Saturday, 30 January 2044. It opens the Year of the Wood Rat, 甲子, which runs until 16 February 2045.
- New Year's Eve29 January 2044
- New Year's Day30 January 2044
- Lantern Festival13 February 2044
- Animal and elementWood Rat 木鼠, Yang
- Year ends16 February 2045; the next new year is 17 February 2045
What the Rat year carries
The Rat
Quick, resourceful and sociable. The Rat opens the cycle: it is the sign of beginnings, of noticing the opening before anyone else and slipping through it.
In the race that fixed the order of the zodiac, the Rat rode across the river on the Ox's back and leapt ahead at the bank to finish first.
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, 甲子, returns once every sixty years; the last Wood Rat year was 1984, the next is 2104.
The 2044 festival calendar
Fifteen days from the eve to the first full moon; the dates below are for 2044 only.
| Day | Date in 2044 | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Little New Year 小年 | 22 January 2044 | The Kitchen God is sent off with sweets; the house cleaning begins. |
| New Year's Eve 除夕 | 29 January 2044, Friday | Reunion dinner, red couplets on the door, staying up to see the year in. |
| New Year's Day 初一 | 30 January 2044, Saturday | The Year of the Rat begins; red envelopes, visits in order of seniority, no sweeping. |
| Day 2 初二 | 31 January 2044 | Married daughters visit their parents. |
| Day 5 初五 | 3 February 2044 | Shops reopen and the God of Wealth is welcomed with firecrackers. |
| Lantern Festival 元宵 | 13 February 2044, 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 2044
2044 is a Wood Rat year, 甲子, the 1th of the sixty stem-and-branch pairs. The same pairing last fell in 1984 and comes again in 2104; the previous Rat year was 2032, the next is 2056. Its 纳音 "sound" in the old almanacs is 海中金.
New Year's Day falls on a Saturday, so the reunion dinner on 29 January 2044 lands on a Friday evening. The festival lands on 30 January in the Western calendar, near the middle of its range.
A child born between 30 January 2044 and 16 February 2045 is a Wood Rat: Quick, resourceful and sociable. The Rat opens the cycle: it is the sign of beginnings, of noticing the opening before anyone else and slipping through it. A baby born in January 2044 before the new year is still a Pig.
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.
- 20384 February 2038, Earth Horse
- 203924 January 2039, Earth Goat
- 204012 February 2040, Metal Monkey
- 20411 February 2041, Metal Rooster
- 204222 January 2042, Water Dog
- 204310 February 2043, Water Pig
- 204517 February 2045, Wood Ox
- 20466 February 2046, Fire Tiger
- 204726 January 2047, Fire Rabbit
- 204814 February 2048, Earth Dragon
- 20492 February 2049, Earth Snake
- 205023 January 2050, Metal Horse
Questions
When is Chinese New Year 2044?
Saturday, 30 January 2044. New Year's Eve is 29 January 2044, and the Lantern Festival that closes the celebrations is 13 February 2044.
What animal is 2044 in the Chinese zodiac?
The Rat. From 30 January 2044 to 16 February 2045 it is the year of the Wood Rat (甲子). Before 30 January 2044, the year still belongs to the previous animal, the Pig.
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 Rat 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 Rat 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.