Is the Year of the Niu the Same as the Year of the Ox?
Jing Han
A friend of mine has a young daughter who was born in Australia and was learning to speak Mandarin through English. One day she asked her mum which animal year she was born in. Mum replied in Mandarin that she was born in the year of Niu 牛年. Sometime later, in front of a group of guests at a house party, the little girl announced in English, “My mum is a cow!” My friend realised that her daughter had simply translated “niu” into “cow”. She tried to explain that the Chinese “niu” is not the same as the English “cow”. It was too confusing for the little girl.
The Chinese “niu” is a collective noun for all species of bovine including bulls, cows, cattle, buffalo and oxen. In Chinese, we simply add a descriptive noun to “niu” to indicate the type. For example, 水牛 “water niu”, referring to buffalo, 奶牛 “milk niu”, referring to dairy cows, 公牛 “male niu”, referring to bulls, and 肉牛 “meat niu”, referring to cattle. But there is no such versatile and collective noun in English except for the word “bovine” which is hardly used in daily speech. So most English translations have adopted the word “ox” for the Year of the Niu, but “ox” typically refers to a castrated bull used as a draught animal, so it isn’t exactly the equivalent of the Chinese word “niu”.
The Chinese zodiac is a classification scheme based on the lunar calendar that assigns an animal and its reputed attributes to each year in a repeating 12-year cycle. The cycle starts with the Rat, followed by the Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig.
Legend has it that the Jade Emperor decreed that the years of the calendar would be named after each animal in the order they reached him. To get there, the animals would have to cross a river. The Rat and Cat, both unable to swim, decided to hitch a free ride on the back of the Ox who was kind and trusting. When they were about to reach the other side of the river, the cunning Rat pushed the Cat into the water, jumped off the Ox and rushed to the Emperor. So the Rat was named the first animal, the Ox the second. The Cat didn’t make to the zodiac. That is why cats always hunt rats and are afraid of water. The Pig, being gluttonous and lazy, stopped in the middle of the path for food and then fell asleep, so it arrived last.
2021 is the Year of the Ox. If you were born in 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009 or will be born on or after 12 February 2021, you’re an Ox. As an Ox, you’re known for being diligent, logical, loyal, patient, reliable, obliging, determined but may also be reserved, conservative, overcautious and can be stubborn to a fault. Because you’re always willing to help, you maintain very good interpersonal relationships.
In terms of compatibility, you’re best matched with Rat, Snake and Rooster. It is claimed that those born in the Year of the Ox will make good lawyers, doctors, teachers, politicians and technicians. There are many famous Oxen, including Walt Disney, Vincent Van Gogh, Margaret Thatcher, Princess Diana, Barack Obama, Jane Fonda, Meryl Streep etc.
As the Ox is known for its stableness, it is believed that 2021 will be a favourable year for economic and health recovery, and a great year for resolving problems.
