Born in 2014: the Horse

2014 is a yang year, a Wood Horse. In the traditional calendar it carries the two-part name 甲午 (jiǎwǔ), year 31 of the 60-year cycle. The Wood element adds a cooperative, growth-minded and quietly generous streak to the Horse's base character (free-spirited, energetic, sociable), and this is the active, outgoing half of the cycle.

The 2014 lunar year ran from January 31, 2014 up to the day before Chinese New Year 2015 (February 19, 2015). If you were born on or after January 31, 2014 you are a Horse; if you were born earlier in 2014, you belong to the previous year's sign, the Snake. Someone born in 2014 turns 12 in 2026 (or 11 until their birthday for the year).

Calendar note: 2014's Chinese New Year fell on a Friday, and that lunar year ran 384 days — a long, 13-month year with an inserted leap month.

What the Wood element adds

Wood is the element of spring, growth and cooperation. A Wood year tends to soften an animal's sharper edges and push it toward teamwork, patience and building things that last rather than chasing quick wins.

The full 60-year cycle pairs each of the 12 animals with each of the 5 elements, so a Wood Horse year comes around only once every 60 years — the last one before 2014 was 1954, and the next is 2074. People born in it are said to combine free-spirited and energetic with the element's cooperative nature. Every Horse year is yang (the active, outgoing type). See the Wood element and the full Wood Horse profile.

2014 at a glance

Animal	🐎 Horse (马)
Element	Wood
Yin or yang	yang
Traditional year name	甲午 (jiǎwǔ)
Place in the 60-year cycle	31 of 60
Zodiac year runs	January 31, 2014 to February 18, 2015
Age in 2026	11–12
Traditional best match	Goat
Traditional hardest match	Rat
Lucky numbers	2, 3, 7
Lucky colors	yellow, green

Horse compatibility

In the traditional chart, a 2014 Horse gets on best with the Goat (the "secret friend" pairing), and also with Tiger and Dog. The hardest pairing is the Rat, six years apart in the cycle. See the full Horse compatibility table.

Where a birthday around 2014 lands

The zodiac year does not follow the calendar year, so 2014 is spread across two calendar years. This table shows exactly which animal a birthday gets.

Birthday	Zodiac animal
January 1 to January 30, 2014	Snake (the 2013 year)
January 31, 2014 to December 31, 2014	Horse
January 1, 2015 to February 18, 2015	Horse (still the 2014 year)
February 19, 2015 onward	Goat (the 2015 year)

Zodiac years ahead for a 2014 Horse

The next own-sign year for someone born in 2014 is 2026 (this year), around age 12, then 2038, around age 24. 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: 2014 and 2015

Wood years come in pairs. 2014 is the yang year and 2015 is the yin year, the Goat. So a 2014 Horse and a 2015 Goat share an element and sit one year apart in the cycle. The traditional chart rates the Horse and Goat pairing as excellent: one of the six classic 'secret friend' pairings — a naturally supportive, stabilizing match. See the Horse and Goat pairing.

Other Horse years

1930 1942 1954 1966 1978 1990 2002 2026 2038

Full Horse personality profile →   Horse compatibility with every sign →

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

What a Wood year changes for the Horse

Talking. In conversation, a Wood Horse leans further into action, saying yes before thinking it all the way through, which is the main way 2014's version differs from the same animal born under another element.

Work. Wood softens and adds patience to the Horse's usual working style, so a 2014 Horse tends to run things with more willingness to cooperate than most. The kind of work the sign suits stays the same; the element changes how the job gets done.

Love. Wood is the element of spring, growth and cooperation, so in a relationship a Wood Horse shows affection through steady cooperation over time.

For the sign as a whole (how the Horse communicates, works and loves in every element) see the Horse profile. This page covers what is different about 2014.

Known Horses

Well-known Horses — sharing the animal though not this exact 2014 birth year or Wood element — include Emma Watson, Barbra Streisand, Clint Eastwood, Harrison Ford. None of the people listed here were born in the 2014 lunar year, but they're commonly cited as examples of the Horse's free-spirited streak.