Okay, so yesterday, I got this idea to look into zodiac signs in Japan. You know, I always find it interesting how different cultures have their own take on astrology. So I started digging around to find out more about it.
First, I did some basic searches online. I typed in “Japanese zodiac” and similar phrases into my search engine. That’s how I came across the term “Juunishi,” which is what they call it in Japan. I noticed that it’s quite similar to the Chinese zodiac, with 12 animals representing different years.
Getting into the details
I dove deeper into each animal sign. For instance, I found out that people born in the year of the Rat are supposedly intelligent and persuasive. In Japanese, the Rat is called “nezumi,” and the zodiac kanji is “ne.” Also, it appears that the Rat’s personality is outgoing and energetic. I also discovered that each animal has a corresponding element—like Metal, Water, Wood, and Fire—that rotates every few years. Like in 1900 and 1960, it was the year of the Metal Rat, while in 1912 and 1972, it was the year of the Water Rat. And in 1984, it was the year of the Wood Rat.
Sorting it all out
To keep track of all this information, I decided to organize it in a simple way. Here’s what I put together:
- Rat: 鼠 (nezumi) – Zodiac kanji: 子 (ne) – Positive attributes: outgoing, energetic.
I realized this was just the tip of the iceberg, and there’s a lot more to explore for each animal. But this was a good start to understanding the basics of the Japanese zodiac. I plan to look into the other animal signs when I have more time. It’s pretty cool to see how astrology ties into different cultures, right?
I had much fun doing these. I will learn other animal signs next time. See you!
