Birth year lookup
1949: what element and Vietnamese zodiac sign?
People born in 1949 have the element Fire (nạp âm Tích Lịch Hỏa (Fire of the Thunderbolt)) and are Kỷ Sửu, Year of the Ox. The Kỷ Sửu year runs from Tết on 29 January 1949 to 16 February 1950. Born from 1 January 1949 to 28 January 1949? That is Mậu Tý, not Kỷ Sửu.
| Stem-branch | Kỷ Sửu |
|---|---|
| Animal sign | Ox (Sửu) |
| Nạp âm element | Tích Lịch Hỏa (Fire of the Thunderbolt), element Fire |
| Colours (Five Elements belief) | red, orange, purple; green, verdant green (Wood colours) |
| Lunar year in solar dates | 29 January 1949 to 16 February 1950 |
| Kua, male | Càn (Qian), West group |
| Kua, female | Ly (Li), East group |
| Age in 2026 | 77, East Asian age 78 |
What if you were born in January or February 1949?
The sign follows the lunar year, which turns at Tết, not on 1 January. Anyone born from 1 January 1949 to 28 January 1949 still belongs to the Mậu Tý year (1948); anyone born from 1 January 1950 to 16 February 1950 still belongs to Kỷ Sửu. Convert a birth date to the lunar calendar.
How old is someone born in 1949 in 2026?
Someone born in the solar year 1949 turns 77 on their birthday in 2026. The East Asian (tuổi mụ) age of Kỷ Sửu in 2026 is 78: it counts one year at birth and adds one at every Tết.
What is the Kua of someone born in 1949?
Under the Eight Mansions (Bát Trạch) school, a man born in Kỷ Sửu has the Kua Càn (Qian), West group; a woman Ly (Li), East group. The Kua is worked out from the lunar year and sex, and is used to choose a house facing. See the eight directions for a Kua.
Which colours, directions and trades go with 1949 in folk belief?
In the Five Elements convention common in Vietnam, Tích Lịch Hỏa (Fire of the Thunderbolt) belongs to Fire, so it is said to suit red, orange, purple, and the colours of Wood, the element that generates Fire: green, verdant green. The directions of Fire are South; trades usually assigned to it are electricity and energy, restaurants and food service, cosmetics and beauty, advertising and lighting. This is convention, not calculation: the books differ on colours and trades, and no study has shown that choosing by element changes outcomes. A house facing under Bát Trạch is worked out from the Kua above, not from the element. Kua and directions by birth year.
Which signs match Kỷ Sửu 1949, and which to avoid?
In the Vietnamese folk table, Sửu is in Three Harmony with Tỵ, Dậu and Six Harmony with Tý; it clashes with Mùi and is harmed by Ngọ.
| Relation | Match or avoid | Sign | Birth years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Three Harmony | Match | Tỵ (Snake) | 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013, 2025 |
| Three Harmony | Match | Dậu (Rooster) | 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017 |
| Six Harmony | Match | Tý (Rat) | 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020 |
| Four Clash | Avoid | Thìn (Dragon) | 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012, 2024 |
| Four Clash | Avoid | Tuất (Dog) | 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018 |
| Four Clash (direct clash) | Avoid | Mùi (Goat) | 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015 |
| Six Harms | Avoid | Ngọ (Horse) | 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014, 2026 |
The Three Harmonies, Six Combinations, Four Clashes and Six Harms table is a common folk convention, not the only reckoning. The Four Clashes in groups of four is a Vietnamese folk way of matching ages; the old texts call only the six opposite pairs a clash. Some schools also weigh the Heavenly Stems and the Na Yin element before calling a pair harmonious or clashing.