2019 Chinese Zodiac: Year of the Earth Pig

When did the 2019 Year of the Pig start and end?

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 2019 that date was February 5, 2019.

In 2019 Ipchun (Feb 4) came before Lunar New Year (Feb 5), so babies born from Feb 4 to Feb 4 have a 己亥 (Earth Pig) year pillar in Saju but are still Dogs in the popular zodiac.

Earth Pig meaning: element, yin-yang and nayin

Every year in the 60-year cycle pairs one of ten heavenly stems with one of twelve earthly branches. 2019 is stem 己 (Gi / Jǐ, Yin Earth) on branch 亥 (Hae, the Pig), number 36 of 60 in the cycle. The stem gives the year its element, which is why people say “Earth Pig” rather than just “Pig”.

Reading the element. Earth is the element of the centre and of harvest. Earth years are read as patient, realistic and dependable, with a talent for mediating and keeping a group together. Tradition notes a tendency to worry, to resist change and to keep feelings to oneself for too long. For a Earth year the keywords are stability, practicality and trust. The Pig itself carries Water as its fixed element, so this year blends earth energy with water qualities.

The nayin image. The 60 pairs also have 30 poetic “nayin” names, shared by two neighbouring years. 2018 and 2019 are Flatland Wood (平地木), pictured as trees growing on open flatland: approachability, practical growth and a dislike of pretence.

The same 己亥 pair is also a Saju day pillar; see the Gi-Hae day-pillar article for how the combination is read when it appears on the day of birth.

2019 in Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese zodiac

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 2019 is called the year of the 황금 돼지띠 (yellow (gold) pig). Japan has counted eto by the Gregorian year since 1873, so in Japan everyone born in 2019 counts as i (亥, Pig) regardless of the lunar date. In Japan the twelfth animal is the wild boar (inoshishi), not the domestic pig.

2019 Earth Pig personality traits (traditional)

Keywords: generous, warm-hearted, sincere, easygoing + stability, practicality and trust

Pig years are traditionally read as kind, honest and generous. Pigs are said to enjoy life’s pleasures, work hard for the people they love and forgive easily.

The Pig closes the cycle and symbolises wealth and abundance; in Korea dreaming of a pig is a classic sign of luck. In Japan the twelfth sign is the wild boar (inoshishi) rather than the domestic pig.

Where the Earth element shows. Tradition says the stem colours the animal: a Earth Pig is reliable, patient, grounded. Compared with the Fire Pig of 2007 and the Metal Pig of 2031, the 2019 version is read as the steadiest and most practical Pig.

In love: Affectionate and devoted, putting effort into a comfortable home; Pigs want a sincere partner and dislike game-playing. At work: Suited to hospitality, food, healthcare, charity, education, the arts and roles built on trust.

Zodiac personality descriptions are folklore. Real personality is shaped by upbringing, culture and choices, and people born in the same year differ enormously.

2019 Pig compatibility: best and worst matches

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 Pig born in 2019, the nearest-age examples are:

Korean folk matchmaking (gunghap, 궁합) also watches for wonjin (원진) pairs, said to breed resentment; for the Pig that partner is the Dragon. See the full 12×12 compatibility chart or the Year of the Pig guide. A real compatibility reading in Saju compares all eight characters of both charts, not just the year animal.

Lucky numbers and colours for the 2019 Pig

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 황금 돼지띠. Treat both as fun cultural trivia.

2027 Year of the Fire Goat: outlook for people born in 2019

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 supportive year for the Earth Pig:

Your sign shares the Wood trine (Pig–Rabbit–Goat) with 2027, a traditionally co-operative pairing that favours growth, learning and new networks. In Korean folk practice, though, Pig, Rabbit and Goat are in their final samjae (삼재) year, nal-samjae, so the advice is to finish things cleanly rather than overreach.

Fire generates Earth, so for an Earth-year sign the Fire Goat year is traditionally supportive: help from mentors, study, documents and recognition. The Goat itself is also an Earth branch, a double dose of the familiar.

Practical, non-mystical ways to use the 2027 reading

• Use the supportive mood to start the collaboration or course you have been postponing.
• At 8, focus on study, friendships and healthy routines.
• Use the Saju calculator to see whether 2027 strengthens or drains your day master rather than relying on the year animal alone.

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.

How old is someone born in 2019? (2026 and 2027)

The 60-year cycle gives East Asian birthdays their biggest milestone: when the same stem-and-branch pair (己亥) returns, a person has completed one full cycle. In Korea this is hwangap (환갑) and in Japan kanreki; for people born in 2019 it falls in 2079. Chilsun (70th) follows in 2089 and palsun (80th) in 2099.

All Pig years and the years around 2019

The Pig returns every 12 years, but the element changes each time, so the same Earth Pig element comes back only every 60 years.

Neighbouring birth years

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