The year of the Fire Rat starts at February 7, 2008: The "rat" is the first symbol in the 12 cycle Chinese zodiac. Being the first symbol, it is said that those who are born under the year of the rat are good leaders, intelligent, a problem solver, ambitious and hardworking to get what they want.

Year of the Rat Attributes


Positive Traits:
loyal, smart, clever, charming, hardworking, passionate, quick-witted, creative and easy to get along with

Negative Traits:
ambitious, possessive, jealous, defensive, bossy, quarrelsome, calculating and greedy


The Five Elements of the Rat

Metal Rat - the strongest and toughest
31 January 1900 to 18 February 1901
28 January 1960 to 14 February 1961
25 January 2020 to 11 February 2021

Water Rat - understanding and intelligent with great insight
18 February 1912 to 5 February 1913
15 February 1972 to 2 February 1973
11 February 2032 to 30 January 2033

Wood Rat - good leaders and family-centered
5 February 1924 to 24 January 1925
2 February 1984 to 19 February 1985
30 January 2044 to 16 February 2045

Fire Rat - energetic, competitive and anxious, eager to start a new project
24 January 1936 to 10 February 1937
19 February 1996 to 6 February 1997
15 February 2056 to 3 February 2057

Earth Rat - organized, like to keep things in order and a realistic
10 February 1948 to 28 January 1949
7 February 2008 to 25 January 2009
3 February 2068 to 22 January 2069


Famous Rat People
Al Gore, Alyssa Milano, Burt Reynolds, Cameron Diaz, Charlton Heston, George Bush, Gene Kelly, Gwyneth Paltrow, Hugh Grant, Jimmy Carter, Kris Kristofferson, Louis Armstrong, Marlon Brando, Olivia Newton-John, Prince Charles, Richard Nixon, Sean Penn, William Shakespeare