Born in 1971: the Pig

Metal Pig is the full name of the 1971 sign. Its traditional two-part year name is 辛亥 (xīnhài), which puts it at number 48 of 60, and 1971 is a yin year, the cycle's quieter, more reflective half. Expect the Pig's usual traits (generous, easy-going, diligent) with a determined, disciplined and self-reliant edge from the Metal element.

The 1971 lunar year ran from January 27, 1971 up to the day before Chinese New Year 1972 (February 15, 1972). If you were born on or after January 27, 1971 you are a Pig; if you were born earlier in 1971, you belong to the previous year's sign, the Dog. Someone born in 1971 turns 55 in 2026 (or 54 until their birthday for the year).

Calendar note: 1971's Chinese New Year fell on a Wednesday, and that lunar year ran 384 days — a long, 13-month year with an inserted leap month.

What the Metal element adds

Metal is the element of autumn, structure and resolve. A Metal year sharpens focus and independence: a Metal animal knows what it wants and pursues it directly, sometimes at the cost of flexibility.

The full 60-year cycle pairs each of the 12 animals with each of the 5 elements, so a Metal Pig year comes around only once every 60 years — the last one before 1971 was 1911, and the next is 2031. People born in it are said to combine generous and easy-going with the element's determined nature. Every Pig year is yin (the quieter, inward type). See the Metal element and the full Metal Pig profile.

1971 at a glance

Animal	🐖 Pig (猪)
Element	Metal
Yin or yang	yin
Traditional year name	辛亥 (xīnhài)
Place in the 60-year cycle	48 of 60
Zodiac year runs	January 27, 1971 to February 14, 1972
Age in 2026	54–55
Traditional best match	Tiger
Traditional hardest match	Snake
Lucky numbers	2, 5, 8
Lucky colors	yellow, gray, brown, gold

Pig compatibility

In the traditional chart, a 1971 Pig gets on best with the Tiger (the "secret friend" pairing), and also with Rabbit and Goat. The hardest pairing is the Snake, six years apart in the cycle. See the full Pig compatibility table.

Where a birthday around 1971 lands

The zodiac year does not follow the calendar year, so 1971 is spread across two calendar years. This table shows exactly which animal a birthday gets.

Birthday	Zodiac animal
January 1 to January 26, 1971	Dog (the 1970 year)
January 27, 1971 to December 31, 1971	Pig
January 1, 1972 to February 14, 1972	Pig (still the 1971 year)
February 15, 1972 onward	Rat (the 1972 year)

Zodiac years ahead for a 1971 Pig

The next own-sign year for someone born in 1971 is 2031, around age 60, then 2043, around age 72. Tradition calls this your běnmìngnián. Despite being "your" year, it is thought to clash with Tài Suì (the God of Age) and to carry a higher chance of setbacks, so many people wear red through it for protection.

The element pair: 1971 and 1970

Metal years come in pairs. 1971 is the yin year and 1970 is the yang year, the Dog. So a 1971 Pig and a 1970 Dog share an element and sit one year apart in the cycle. The traditional chart rates the Pig and Dog pairing as moderate: it has no special bond or conflict, so how well it goes depends on the two people more than on the calendar. See the Pig and Dog pairing.

Other Pig years

1935 1947 1959 1983 1995 2007 2019 2031 2043

Full Pig personality profile →   Pig compatibility with every sign →

Know your exact birth date? Use the calculator for your full combination →

What a Metal year changes for the Pig

Talking. What marks a 1971 Pig in conversation is the Metal element: it gets more guarded about it, saying less than it's actually thinking.

Work. Expect a 1971 Pig to work with a sharper, less negotiable edge than most, because Metal sharpens and hardens the sign's usual approach. The element affects execution more than the field.

Love. In 1971's Metal version, the Pig shows affection through direct, no-nonsense gestures, since metal is the element of autumn, structure and resolve.

For the sign as a whole (how the Pig communicates, works and loves in every element) see the Pig profile. This page covers what is different about 1971.

Known Pigs

Ricky Martin was born in the 1971 lunar year, an exact Metal Pig match for this page. Other well-known Pigs, from other years, include Arnold Schwarzenegger, Hillary Clinton and Elton John. A shared sign says nothing about how anyone's life goes; these are simply familiar names to put to the sign.