Chinese zodiac by birth year · 1964 · Updated 3 Nov 2026 · Hong Life
The Chinese zodiac sign for 1964 is the Wood Dragon (甲辰). The Dragon year ran from Feb 13, 1964 to Feb 1, 1965, so a January or early-February 1964 birthday before Feb 13, 1964 counts as the Yin Water Rabbit (1963) instead.
Personality, compatibility and luck readings below are cultural tradition, shared for entertainment.
The Chinese zodiac does not change on January 1. It follows the lunisolar calendar, so each animal year starts at Lunar New Year, the second new moon after the winter solstice, which always lands between January 21 and February 20. For 1964 that date was February 13, 1964.
| Chinese Lunar New Year (start of the Dragon year) | Feb 13, 1964 |
|---|---|
| Last day of the Dragon year | Feb 1, 1965 |
| Korean Seollal (설날) | Feb 13, 1964 (same day) |
| Vietnamese Tết | Feb 13, 1964 (same day) |
| Ipchun / Lichun 立春 (Saju & Bazi year change) | Feb 5, 1964, 04:04 Korea time (Feb 5 3:04 Beijing) |
| Japan (eto 干支 by calendar year) | Jan 1 – Dec 31, 1964 |
In 1964 Ipchun (Feb 5) came before Lunar New Year (Feb 13), so babies born from Feb 5 to Feb 12 have a 甲辰 (Wood Dragon) year pillar in Saju but are still Rabbits in the popular zodiac.
Every year in the 60-year cycle pairs one of ten heavenly stems with one of twelve earthly branches. 1964 is stem 甲 (Gap / Jiǎ, Yang Wood) on branch 辰 (Jin, the Dragon), number 41 of 60 in the cycle. The stem gives the year its element, which is why people say “Wood Dragon” rather than just “Dragon”.
| Heavenly stem | 甲 Gap · Wood 木 |
|---|---|
| Earthly branch | 辰 Jin · Dragon |
| Yin or yang | Yang (Yang years end in an even digit) |
| Fixed element of the Dragon | Earth (土) |
| Nayin (納音) sound element | Lamp Fire 覆燈火 (Korean 복등화) |
| Same pair repeats | 1904, 1964, 2024 |
Reading the element. Wood is the element of spring and growth. Wood years are traditionally linked with generosity, cooperation, a strong sense of fairness and a drive to improve things step by step. The flip side is that Wood people can spread themselves thin, start more projects than they finish, or become stubborn when their ideals are questioned. For a Wood year the keywords are growth, kindness and idealism. The Dragon itself carries Earth as its fixed element, so this year blends wood energy with earth qualities.
The nayin image. The 60 pairs also have 30 poetic “nayin” names, shared by two neighbouring years. 1964 and 1965 are Lamp Fire (覆燈火), pictured as a covered lamp burning at night: insight, guidance for others and a light that is best protected from the wind.
The same 甲辰 pair is also a Saju day pillar; see the Gap-Jin day-pillar article for how the combination is read when it appears on the day of birth.
| Tradition | Name of 1964 | Year starts |
|---|---|---|
| Chinese | 甲辰 Jiǎ Chén · Wood Dragon year | Feb 13, 1964 |
| Korean 띠 (ddi) | 갑진년 (Gap-Jin) · 푸른 용띠 | Seollal Feb 13; Saju: Ipchun Feb 5 |
| Japanese 干支 (eto) | kinoe-tatsu · 甲辰 | Jan 1, 1964 |
| Vietnamese con giáp | Giáp Thìn · Thìn (Rồng, dragon) | Tết Feb 13 |
Koreans often name the year with a colour taken from the stem element: Wood years are blue-green (청), Fire red (적), Earth yellow or golden (황), Metal white (백) and Water black (흑). That is why 1964 is called the year of the 푸른 용띠 (blue/green dragon). Japan has counted eto by the Gregorian year since 1873, so in Japan everyone born in 1964 counts as tatsu (辰, Dragon) regardless of the lunar date. Vietnam uses the same animal for this year.
Keywords: ambitious, charismatic, energetic, proud + growth, kindness and idealism
Tradition sees the Dragon as larger than life: idealistic, energetic and lucky, with a pride that pushes it to great things and occasionally into great arguments.
The only mythical creature in the cycle, the dragon was the symbol of emperors, rain and good fortune. Dragon years are still popular for births in Chinese communities, a well-documented "dragon baby" effect in places such as Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore.
Where the Wood element shows. Tradition says the stem colours the animal: a Wood Dragon is cooperative, principled, keeps growing. Compared with the Water Dragon of 1952 and the Fire Dragon of 1976, the 1964 version is read as the most growth-minded and cooperative Dragon.
In love: Passionate and loyal, sometimes demanding; Dragons want an admiring partner who also has a life and goals of their own. At work: Drawn to leadership, entrepreneurship, politics, the arts, media, law and large-scale projects.
Zodiac personality descriptions are folklore. Real personality is shaped by upbringing, culture and choices, and people born in the same year differ enormously.
Classical compatibility looks at how the two birth-year branches relate on the zodiac wheel. Signs four places apart form a Three Harmony trine, specific pairs form a Six Harmony, and signs directly opposite each other clash. For a Dragon born in 1964, the nearest-age examples are:
| Sign | Rating | Nearby birth years | Why (tradition) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rooster | Best match | 1957, 1969 | A Six Harmony pair: tradition calls these "secret friends" who quietly complete each other. |
| Monkey | Great match | 1956, 1968 | Both belong to the Water trine (Monkey, Rat, Dragon), sharing goals and a similar pace. |
| Rat | Great match | 1960, 1972 | Both belong to the Water trine (Monkey, Rat, Dragon), sharing goals and a similar pace. |
| Dragon | Same sign | 1952, 1976 | Same sign with a self-punishment flag: you understand each other but may amplify the same weaknesses. |
| Rabbit | Challenging | 1963, 1975 | A Harm pair: small misunderstandings can pile up; regular honest talk helps. |
| Dog | Most challenging | 1958, 1970 | Directly opposite on the zodiac wheel: different rhythms and priorities, so compromise is essential. |
Korean folk matchmaking (gunghap, 궁합) also watches for wonjin (원진) pairs, said to breed resentment; for the Dragon that partner is the Pig. See the full 12×12 compatibility chart or the Year of the Dragon guide. A real compatibility reading in Saju compares all eight characters of both charts, not just the year animal.
| Lucky numbers (popular list) | 1, 6, 7 |
|---|---|
| Lucky colours (popular list) | gold, silver |
| Five-element colour of 1964 | green — from the Wood stem 甲 |
| Element that supports Wood | Water (generates Wood) → colour black (dark blue) |
| Direction of the Dragon | East-southeast |
| Dragon hour | 07:00–09:00 |
Two different ideas get mixed together online. The “lucky numbers and colours” lists are a modern popular folklore that varies from one website to another. The five-element colours are older: they come from the correspondence of Wood–green, Fire–red, Earth–yellow, Metal–white and Water–black, which is also behind Korean names such as 푸른 용띠. Treat both as fun cultural trivia.
2027 is Jeongmi (丁未), the Yin Fire Goat — called the “red sheep” year (붉은 양띠) in Korea. In the Chinese calendar it begins on Feb 6, 2027 and ends on Jan 25, 2028; Korea celebrates Seollal on Feb 7, 2027 because the new moon falls just after midnight Korea time. For Saju, the year pillar changes at Ipchun on Feb 4, 2027 at about 10:46 KST. Tradition reads 2027 as a neutral year for the Wood Dragon:
| Animal vs. Goat | No special relationship with the Goat · Neutral |
|---|---|
| Element vs. Fire stem | Wood feeds Fire |
| Age during 2027 | 63 |
| Next Dragon year | 2036 |
Your sign has no classical harmony or clash with the Goat, so 2027 is read as a "neutral" year in which results depend on your own effort and on the rest of your chart rather than on the year sign.
Your birth-year element, Wood, generates Fire. Tradition reads this as an output year: ideas, creativity and giving to others flow easily, but energy can drain, so rest and boundaries matter.
For a personalised version that uses your birth month, day and hour, see the 2027 Korean horoscope and the 2027 Year of the Goat guide.
| Age | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| International age after birthday | 62 | 63 |
| Before birthday | 61 | 62 |
| Traditional Korean count age (unofficial) | 63 | 64 |
The 60-year cycle gives East Asian birthdays their biggest milestone: when the same stem-and-branch pair (甲辰) returns, a person has completed one full cycle. In Korea this is hwangap (환갑) and in Japan kanreki; for people born in 1964 it falls in 2024 — already celebrated. Chilsun (70th) follows in 2034 and palsun (80th) in 2044.
The Dragon returns every 12 years, but the element changes each time, so the same Wood Dragon element comes back only every 60 years.
| Year | Sign | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| 1916 | Fire Dragon 丙辰 | Feb 3, 1916 – Jan 22, 1917 |
| 1928 | Earth Dragon 戊辰 | Jan 23, 1928 – Feb 9, 1929 |
| 1940 | Metal Dragon 庚辰 | Feb 8, 1940 – Jan 26, 1941 |
| 1952 | Water Dragon 壬辰 | Jan 27, 1952 – Feb 13, 1953 |
| 1964 | Wood Dragon 甲辰 | Feb 13, 1964 – Feb 1, 1965 |
| 1976 | Fire Dragon 丙辰 | Jan 31, 1976 – Feb 17, 1977 |
| 1988 | Earth Dragon 戊辰 | Feb 17, 1988 – Feb 5, 1989 |
| 2000 | Metal Dragon 庚辰 | Feb 5, 2000 – Jan 23, 2001 |
| 2012 | Water Dragon 壬辰 | Jan 23, 2012 – Feb 9, 2013 |
| 2024 | Wood Dragon 甲辰 | Feb 10, 2024 – Jan 28, 2025 |
1964 is the Year of the Yang Wood Dragon (甲辰, Jiǎ Chén). The year began at Lunar New Year on Feb 13, 1964 and ended on Feb 1, 1965, so people born in that window are Dragons. This is cultural tradition, shared for entertainment.
Only if you were born on or after Feb 13, 1964. Births from January 1 to Feb 12, 1964 belong to the Yin Water Rabbit of 1963. Korean Saju uses a different boundary, Ipchun on Feb 5, 1964 (Korea time), for the year pillar.
Traditionally the Rooster is the best match (Six Harmony), followed by the Monkey and Rat (Three Harmony). The Dog is the opposite, clashing sign, and the Rabbit forms a Harm pair.
Someone born in 1964 turns 62 during 2026 and 63 during 2027 (international age; before the birthday they are a year younger). Korea’s traditional count age would add one year, but it has not been used officially since June 2023.
No special relationship with the Goat. Your birth-year element, Wood, generates Fire. Tradition reads this as an output year: ideas, creativity and giving to others flow easily, but energy can drain, so rest and boundaries matter. Read it as cultural tradition for fun, not as a prediction.
In Korean, 1964 is 갑진-nyeon (갑진년, Gap-Jin), the year of the 용, so people born then are 푸른 용띠 — literally a blue/green dragon, from the Wood colour of the Wood stem.
The year animal is only one of the eight characters in a Korean Saju (Four Pillars) chart. Enter your birth date and time to see your month, day and hour pillars, five-element balance and 2027 forecast.
Open the free Korean Saju calculator →Everything on this page about personality, compatibility and luck is cultural tradition for entertainment.