Birth year lookup
2008: what element and Vietnamese zodiac sign?
People born in 2008 have the element Fire (nạp âm Tích Lịch Hỏa (Fire of the Thunderbolt)) and are Mậu Tý, Year of the Rat. The Mậu Tý year runs from Tết on 7 February 2008 to 25 January 2009. Born from 1 January 2008 to 6 February 2008? That is Đinh Hợi, not Mậu Tý.
| Stem-branch | Mậu Tý |
|---|---|
| Animal sign | Rat (Tý) |
| 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 | 7 February 2008 to 25 January 2009 |
| Kua, male | Khảm (Kan), East group |
| Kua, female | Cấn (Gen), West group |
| Age in 2026 | 18, East Asian age 19 |
What if you were born in January or February 2008?
The sign follows the lunar year, which turns at Tết, not on 1 January. Anyone born from 1 January 2008 to 6 February 2008 still belongs to the Đinh Hợi year (2007); anyone born from 1 January 2009 to 25 January 2009 still belongs to Mậu Tý. Convert a birth date to the lunar calendar.
How old is someone born in 2008 in 2026?
Someone born in the solar year 2008 turns 18 on their birthday in 2026. The East Asian (tuổi mụ) age of Mậu Tý in 2026 is 19: it counts one year at birth and adds one at every Tết.
What is the Kua of someone born in 2008?
Under the Eight Mansions (Bát Trạch) school, a man born in Mậu Tý has the Kua Khảm (Kan), East group; a woman Cấn (Gen), West 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 2008 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 Mậu Tý 2008, and which to avoid?
In the Vietnamese folk table, Tý is in Three Harmony with Thân, Thìn and Six Harmony with Sửu; it clashes with Ngọ and is harmed by Mùi.
| Relation | Match or avoid | Sign | Birth years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Three Harmony | Match | Thân (Monkey) | 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016 |
| Three Harmony | Match | Thìn (Dragon) | 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012, 2024 |
| Six Harmony | Match | Sửu (Ox) | 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021 |
| Four Clash (direct clash) | Avoid | Ngọ (Horse) | 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014, 2026 |
| Four Clash | Avoid | Mão (Cat) | 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2023 |
| Four Clash | Avoid | Dậu (Rooster) | 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017 |
| Six Harms | Avoid | Mùi (Goat) | 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015 |
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.