Birth year lookup
2012: what element and Vietnamese zodiac sign?
People born in 2012 have the element Water (nạp âm Trường Lưu Thủy (Water of the Long Stream)) and are Nhâm Thìn, Year of the Dragon. The Nhâm Thìn year runs from Tết on 23 January 2012 to 9 February 2013. Born from 1 January 2012 to 22 January 2012? That is Tân Mão, not Nhâm Thìn.
| Stem-branch | Nhâm Thìn |
|---|---|
| Animal sign | Dragon (Thìn) |
| Nạp âm element | Trường Lưu Thủy (Water of the Long Stream), element Water |
| Colours (Five Elements belief) | blue, black; white, silver grey, metallic (Metal colours) |
| Lunar year in solar dates | 23 January 2012 to 9 February 2013 |
| Kua, male | Càn (Qian), West group |
| Kua, female | Ly (Li), East group |
| Age in 2026 | 14, East Asian age 15 |
What if you were born in January or February 2012?
The sign follows the lunar year, which turns at Tết, not on 1 January. Anyone born from 1 January 2012 to 22 January 2012 still belongs to the Tân Mão year (2011); anyone born from 1 January 2013 to 9 February 2013 still belongs to Nhâm Thìn. Convert a birth date to the lunar calendar.
How old is someone born in 2012 in 2026?
Someone born in the solar year 2012 turns 14 on their birthday in 2026. The East Asian (tuổi mụ) age of Nhâm Thìn in 2026 is 15: it counts one year at birth and adds one at every Tết.
What is the Kua of someone born in 2012?
Under the Eight Mansions (Bát Trạch) school, a man born in Nhâm Thìn 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 2012 in folk belief?
In the Five Elements convention common in Vietnam, Trường Lưu Thủy (Water of the Long Stream) belongs to Water, so it is said to suit blue, black, and the colours of Metal, the element that generates Water: white, silver grey, metallic. The directions of Water are North; trades usually assigned to it are transport and logistics, fisheries, tourism, beverages. 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 Nhâm Thìn 2012, and which to avoid?
In the Vietnamese folk table, Thìn is in Three Harmony with Thân, Tý and Six Harmony with Dậu; it clashes with Tuất and is harmed by Mão.
| Relation | Match or avoid | Sign | Birth years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Three Harmony | Match | Thân (Monkey) | 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016 |
| Three Harmony | Match | Tý (Rat) | 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020 |
| Six Harmony | Match | Dậu (Rooster) | 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017 |
| Four Clash (direct clash) | Avoid | Tuất (Dog) | 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018 |
| Four Clash | Avoid | Sửu (Ox) | 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021 |
| Four Clash | Avoid | Mùi (Goat) | 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015 |
| Six Harms | Avoid | Mão (Cat) | 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2023 |
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.