Born in 2012: the Dragon

Anyone born in 2012 is a Water Dragon. The year's traditional two-part name is 壬辰 (rénchén), number 29 in the 60-year cycle, and it is a yang year, the active, outgoing half of the cycle. The base Dragon traits (ambitious, energetic, charismatic) come filtered through an adaptable, perceptive and persuasive Water tone.

The 2012 lunar year ran from January 23, 2012 up to the day before Chinese New Year 2013 (February 10, 2013). If you were born on or after January 23, 2012 you are a Dragon; if you were born earlier in 2012, you belong to the previous year's sign, the Rabbit. Someone born in 2012 turns 14 in 2026 (or 13 until their birthday for the year).

Calendar note: 2012's Chinese New Year fell on a Monday, and that lunar year ran 384 days — a long, 13-month year with an inserted leap month.

What the Water element adds

Water is the element of winter, depth and adaptability. A Water year makes an animal more intuitive and persuasive, better at reading people and bending around obstacles rather than confronting them head-on.

The full 60-year cycle pairs each of the 12 animals with each of the 5 elements, so a Water Dragon year comes around only once every 60 years — the last one before 2012 was 1952, and the next is 2072. People born in it are said to combine ambitious and energetic with the element's adaptable nature. Every Dragon year is yang (the active, outgoing type). See the Water element and the full Water Dragon profile.

2012 at a glance

Animal	🐉 Dragon (龙)
Element	Water
Yin or yang	yang
Traditional year name	壬辰 (rénchén)
Place in the 60-year cycle	29 of 60
Zodiac year runs	January 23, 2012 to February 9, 2013
Age in 2026	13–14
Traditional best match	Rooster
Traditional hardest match	Dog
Lucky numbers	1, 6, 7
Lucky colors	gold, silver, gray

Dragon compatibility

In the traditional chart, a 2012 Dragon gets on best with the Rooster (the "secret friend" pairing), and also with Rat and Monkey. The hardest pairing is the Dog, six years apart in the cycle. See the full Dragon compatibility table.

Where a birthday around 2012 lands

The zodiac year does not follow the calendar year, so 2012 is spread across two calendar years. This table shows exactly which animal a birthday gets.

Birthday	Zodiac animal
January 1 to January 22, 2012	Rabbit (the 2011 year)
January 23, 2012 to December 31, 2012	Dragon
January 1, 2013 to February 9, 2013	Dragon (still the 2012 year)
February 10, 2013 onward	Snake (the 2013 year)

Zodiac years ahead for a 2012 Dragon

The next own-sign year for someone born in 2012 is 2036, around age 24, then 2048, around age 36. 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: 2012 and 2013

Water years come in pairs. 2012 is the yang year and 2013 is the yin year, the Snake. So a 2012 Dragon and a 2013 Snake share an element and sit one year apart in the cycle. The traditional chart rates the Dragon and Snake 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 Dragon and Snake pairing.

Other Dragon years

1940 1952 1964 1976 1988 2000 2024 2036

Full Dragon personality profile →   Dragon compatibility with every sign →

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

What a Water year changes for the Dragon

Talking. The Water element shows up in how a 2012 Dragon speaks: it gets more strategic about it, choosing words to manage how the other person reacts. Another element on the same animal would sound different.

Work. In 2012 the Water element deepens and adds subtlety to the Dragon's habits at work, so this version runs things with more patience for reading the room than most. It changes the style, not the choice of career.

Love. A 2012 Dragon shows affection in quieter, more perceptive ways. That follows from the element: water is the element of winter, depth and adaptability.

For the sign as a whole (how the Dragon communicates, works and loves in every element) see the Dragon profile. This page covers what is different about 2012.

Known Dragons

Bruce Lee, John Lennon, Sandra Bullock, Rihanna are among the names most often cited as Dragons, though none of them was born in the 2012 lunar year. They're referenced here as examples of the animal's ambitious streak generally, not proof of what a Water Dragon specifically looks like.