Born in 1989: the Snake

Earth Snake is the full name of the 1989 sign. Its traditional two-part year name is 己巳 (jǐsì), which puts it at number 6 of 60, and 1989 is a yin year, the cycle's quieter, more reflective half. Expect the Snake's usual traits (wise, private, elegant) with a grounded, practical and patient edge from the Earth element.

The 1989 lunar year ran from February 6, 1989 up to the day before Chinese New Year 1990 (January 27, 1990). If you were born on or after February 6, 1989 you are a Snake; if you were born earlier in 1989, you belong to the previous year's sign, the Dragon. Someone born in 1989 turns 37 in 2026 (or 36 until their birthday for the year).

Calendar note: 1989's Chinese New Year fell on a Monday, and that lunar year ran 355 days — an ordinary 12-month lunar year.

What the Earth element adds

Earth is the element of the harvest, stability and realism. An Earth year makes an animal steadier and more dependable, focused on security and the long game, though it can also make it slower to change course.

The full 60-year cycle pairs each of the 12 animals with each of the 5 elements, so an Earth Snake year comes around only once every 60 years — the last one before 1989 was 1929, and the next is 2049. People born in it are said to combine wise and private with the element's grounded nature. Every Snake year is yin (the quieter, inward type). See the Earth element and the full Earth Snake profile.

1989 at a glance

Animal	🐍 Snake (蛇)
Element	Earth
Yin or yang	yin
Traditional year name	己巳 (jǐsì)
Place in the 60-year cycle	6 of 60
Zodiac year runs	February 6, 1989 to January 26, 1990
Age in 2026	36–37
Traditional best match	Monkey
Traditional hardest match	Pig
Lucky numbers	2, 8, 9
Lucky colors	red, light yellow, black

Snake compatibility

In the traditional chart, a 1989 Snake gets on best with the Monkey (the "secret friend" pairing), and also with Ox and Rooster. The hardest pairing is the Pig, six years apart in the cycle. See the full Snake compatibility table.

Where a birthday around 1989 lands

The zodiac year does not follow the calendar year, so 1989 is spread across two calendar years. This table shows exactly which animal a birthday gets.

Birthday	Zodiac animal
January 1 to February 5, 1989	Dragon (the 1988 year)
February 6, 1989 to December 31, 1989	Snake
January 1, 1990 to January 26, 1990	Snake (still the 1989 year)
January 27, 1990 onward	Horse (the 1990 year)

Zodiac years ahead for a 1989 Snake

The next own-sign year for someone born in 1989 is 2037, around age 48, then 2049, around age 60. 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: 1989 and 1988

Earth years come in pairs. 1989 is the yin year and 1988 is the yang year, the Dragon. So a 1989 Snake and a 1988 Dragon share an element and sit one year apart in the cycle. The traditional chart rates the Snake and Dragon 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 Snake and Dragon pairing.

Other Snake years

1941 1953 1965 1977 2001 2013 2025 2037

Full Snake personality profile →   Snake compatibility with every sign →

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

What an Earth year changes for the Snake

Talking. What marks a 1989 Snake in conversation is the Earth element: it gets steadier and more patient about it, in no hurry to make the point.

Work. Expect a 1989 Snake to work slower but with more staying power than most, because Earth steadies and grounds the sign's usual approach. The element affects execution more than the field.

Love. In 1989's Earth version, the Snake shows affection through consistency and follow-through, since earth is the element of the harvest, stability and realism.

For the sign as a whole (how the Snake communicates, works and loves in every element) see the Snake profile. This page covers what is different about 1989.

Known Snakes

Taylor Swift was born in the 1989 lunar year, an exact Earth Snake match for this page. Other well-known Snakes, from other years, include Oprah Winfrey, Muhammad Ali and Sarah Jessica Parker. A shared sign says nothing about how anyone's life goes; these are simply familiar names to put to the sign.