David Victor Vector: Year of the Green Wooden Dragon

Zhang Hongfu (2004)
Dragon Zodiac Figure
Toledo Museum of Art

The Year of the Green Wooden Dragon begins on Saturday, February 10, 2024. The corresponds to It is the beginning of the year 4722 (in some traditions, 4721) in the Asian lunar system, In an earlier posting, I discussed some of the economic impact of the coming Lunar New Year. You can read about this in a earlier blogpost here.. In today’s posting, I would like to share some of the background to the event and to the Asian Zodiac system as a whole.

Dragon, Parking Lot, Philadelphia Chinatown

In today’s posting, I would like to share with you some specifics about the Year of the Dragon as well as some background to the Asian Zodiac system as a whole.

Please note that the East Asian Lunar New Year is more than the Chinese New Year (CNY). It is appropriate to refer Chinese New Year (or Spring Festival) only when referring to the Lunar New Year as celebrated in China. Using CNY to refer to the whole range of cultures observing the Lunar New Year, though, discounts the millions of non-Chinese celebrations of the occasion. These include the Mongolian Tsagaan Sar, Korean Seollal, Japanese Oshogatsu, and Bhutanese and Tibetan Losar and so on. For more on the general holiday of the East Asian Lunar New Year, please see my post

One New Year: Many Traditional New Year Customs Around the World

Influences of the Year of Dragon

Many people, as explained below, attribute a great deal of significance to the personality traits attributed to the animal associated with the year in which they are born. Each animal has its own traits, and then each animal and element combination has their own sub-traits. These are explained later in the blog.

The Year of the Dragon is associated with the greatest leadership abilities and charisma in general. For those who believe in the tradition, as with all Asian Horoscope years, those born in a previous Year of the Dragon (e.g., 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000 or 2012) will find this year an especially auspicious year but also challenging year.

It is important to note that the animal of one’s birth year is not seen as fully able to stand on its own in understanding an individual’s personality traits and tendencies. These at a minimum must, as we have discussed, take into account the associated five elements. Additionally, East Asian geomancers account for the inner or secret animal assigned by the day of the month and hour of the day on which one is born. In all, there are 8640 combinations (e.g., 12 months, 5 elements, 12 months, 12 times of day).

This is particularly the case when the element of wood pairs with the dragon. Wood feeds the fire of the dragon and may lead to strong leadership overreaching to the harm of others, The wood feeds the dragon's natural charisma leading to the masses following the dragon, with the blind adoration acting as wood to feed the dragon's fire. On the other hand, dragons are also paired with earth and wood restricts earth.

Personality Traits and Asian Astrological Year

"Chinese Astrology" Is Not An Accurate Term

"Chinese astrology" is not an accurate term for three reasons. The Lunar New Year is

Not exclusively Chinese
Not based on constellations
Taken much more seriously, more as a religious or cultural belief system

Lunar New Year is not exclusively Chinese.

As discussed in my other blogpost One New Year, Many Traditions: Lunar New Year Customs Around The World, The Asian Lunar New Year is observed in its own unique -- non-Chinese -- form in Vietnam (Tet), Mongolia (Tsagaan Sar and Bituun), Korea (Seollal), Bhutan and Tibet (Losar) and Japan (Oshogatsu), among others. It is also observed by those from these backgrounds living in other countries.

That said, the Chinese New Year as a Chinese tradition is indeed observed in China, Taiwan and Singapore, as well as wherever Chinese communities exist abroad. First, the holiday is far more widely observed than in just China, especially in Korea, Singapore, Bhutan, Japan, Tibet, Mongolia and Vietnam

The Yellow Emperor Huang Di

That said, for all the culturally diverse places in which the Asian New Year is celebrated, the calendar on which it is based does have its origins in China. The first written records of the calendar and the celebration of the New Year date to China’s Shang Dynasty (1766-1050 BC), although traditionally it is believed to date back to the rule of the semi-mythical Yellow Emperor Huang Di around 2600 BC.

Lunar New Year Is Not Based on Star Constellations

A second reason the phrase "Chinese astrology" is a misnomer is that the system really has almost nothing to do with constellations as astrology does in the West. It is less a reading of the stars than an interpretation of the importance of the time, date and year in which one is born. To the extent that when one is born matters to Western-style astrology, there is a correspondence. Moreover, there is another similarity as the five elements in the system, in fact, do correspond with the five planets known in ancient China.

Lunar Zodiac System Corresponds with Religious or Deeply-Held Belief System

The East Asian Lunar Zodiac is best approached as a religious belief. For several religions, this is true. Yet even for those who follow little or no formal religion in East Asian cultures recognize the Zodiac System as deeply-held beliefs.

The term "Chinese Horoscope" can easily diminish the East Asian Lunar Zodiac system's importance. Because of these corresponding commonalities with Western astrology, people call the Asian system’s combinations of animals and elements the lunar or Chinese “horoscope”. In short, "Horoscope" in this context is misleading not only for the reasons just described but because the way in which people view the two “horoscopes” is very different.

The difference is that many people in Europe, Australia and the Americas consider the Western zodiac horoscope of star signs (Scorpio, Sagittarius, etc.) to be a form of superstition, a game or something believed only partially.

This is NOT the case with the Asian lunar horoscope cycle, where people follow their sign very seriously. As a result, the system, though it transcends that of any specific religion, should be treated with the respect accorded religious beliefs. In any case, the point here is that in a cross-cultural and inter-religious sense, the issue of lunar horoscope animal element signs should be treated with respect.

The Asian Lunar New Year should be approached as more than a superstition than as a belief (although each individual may hold differing views).

One sign of the seriousness with which people take The Asian Lunar New Year can be seen with the seriousness with which the PRC government has responded to the belief among many that this particular Chinese New Year will be the "Year of the Widow." As Matthew Loh reported in Business Insider (Jan., 25, 2024),

China is debating whether the government should warn against superstitions that say 2024 is a bad year to marry as the country frets over its declining and aging population. "There are folk rumors that this year is the 'Year of the Widow' and is not suitable for marriage," said a letter to China's Ministry of Civil Affairs.

As China faces a rapid decline in birth rate, this represents a clear threat.The decline is of concern for the future of working age adults, consumer size and real estate demand. In 2023, the PRC's National Bureau of Statistics announced that for the first time in 60 years, its population has declined. The number 60 is significant here as this was the last full cycle of the Zodiac from the last Year of the Wooden Dragon.

The logic of why it is unlucky to marry this year makes sense in terms of the reasoning of the zodiac. As Loh (cited above) explains:

The belief involves the lack of a "beginning of spring" day, also known as lichun, at the start of a lunar year.
This year's lichun falls on February 4, before the Chinese Lunar New Year begins on February 10, meaning the coming year won't include a beginning of spring day.
Such a lunar year is sometimes dubbed the "Year of the Widow" because ancient superstition associates spring with masculine energy, and getting married at such a time is thought to bring bad luck and divorce.

A non-believer may disregard this, but the "Year of the Widow" is believed by hundreds of millions. One video posted on January 11, 2024 posted on the Chinese social media site Weibo already had 300 million views in its first two weeks.

The point of view of this article is significant, not because it tells us something about Chinese views of the marriage decline as much as that those who take the Asian calendar seriously would consider this a newsworthy factor. Here the contrast to Western astrology is notable. Very few would cite the Western horoscope in such a fashion, let alone in an article widely distributed by the Business Insider or openly addressed by the Chinese government.

Year of the Dragon

People born in the Year of the Dragon have specific characteristics associated with them, a great many of which are considered auspicious.

Asian positive views of dragons
are nothing like Rubens' painting
of St. George slaying an evil dragon

In the East Asian tradition, the dragon is the symbol of good luck, charisma, enormous wealth and great power. In East Asia, nothing even remotely corresponds to the story of St. George slaying the dragon. Instead, the dragon is to be honored and revered.

Unlike the European tradition of evil dragons terrorizing villagers and slain by brave knights, East Asians view dragons as beneficent. As the Taiwanese information site Crystal Dragon of Taiwan (a site of which I am quite fond and which itself takes its own name from the dragon):

Dragon at Hall of Benevolence
Forbidden city, Beijing

Unlike the negative energies associated with Western Dragons, most Eastern Dragons are beautiful, friendly, and wise. They are the angels of the Orient. Instead of being hated, they are loved and worshipped. Temples and shrines have been built to honor them, for they control the rain, rivers, lakes, and seas.

The Black Dragon Pool Chapel

Many Chinese cities have pagodas where people used to burn incense and pray to dragons. The Black Dragon Pool Chapel, near Peking, was reserved for the Empress and her court.

Indeed, the dragon was for centuries associated with the Emperors of China, so its association with good fortune is especially strong in China, Taiwan and Singapore, as well as in overseas Chinese communities in many other nations.

The association of the dragon as the symbol of China itself may possibly influence China's assertion of itself as a Great Power. If any Zodiac year would encourage Chinese self-confidence, the Year of the Dragon would be it.

Likewise, King Munmu of Silla (the first ruler to unite Korea) when he died in 681 – at least in legend -- was supposed to have become a dragon in the East Sea to protect the peninsula.

Munmu of Silla

Hirohito was the last Japanese Emperor
to claim lineage from a dragon

In the Japanese Tale of Hōri, the Dragon King's daughter Toyotama-hime married the human hunter Hōri no Mikoto (or Yamasachibiko). Toyotama and Hōri had four children, one of whom was their son Kamuyamato Iwarebiko. This son became the first human emperor of Japan, known to the Japanese people as Emperor Jinmu Tennō. This tale was held to be true until Emperor Shōwa (Hirohito) signed the Humanity Declaration in 1946 at the end of World War II, proclaiming his ancestry as human.

Personality Traits Associated with Year of the Dragon

One of the Nine Dragons
by Chen Rong 1244 CE

It is important, again, to emphasize that for many people, the traits described here are taken very seriously and, by many others, at least somewhat seriously. The descriptions that follow are general traits. Professional astrologers in East Asia bore down through the specific year in the 60-year cycle (the element), the specific day and the specific hour of birth. As mentioned above, this produces 8640 possible permutations. The characteristics of any given year's zodiac animal, therefore, is considered by believers to be a very general influence.

Positive Dragon Traits

Those born in the Year of the Dragon are – on the positive side -- associated with luck and good fortune, almost regardless of what they do. Wealth, power and leadership positions are believed to gravitate to them naturally. They are self-assured and entertaining, usually dominating any gathering in which they show up in a delightful and very exciting way. From an East Asian perspective, people born in the Year of the Dragon are also seen as intriguing and even exotic, especially for women. As Master Pun-Yin puts it:

The Dragon is the only mythical creature in the Zodiac and has the quality of leadership. Powerful, brilliant, and full of vitality and blessings, the Dragon is propitious and confident. Dragons are honest, loyal, and ethical. They are larger than life in their actions, ambitious, and willing to take risks. The Dragon is a good friend to have.

Negative Traits

On the negative side, people born in the Year of the Dragon are believed to be somewhat self-centered. They tend to overlook the ideas of others and have a tendency not to value input from others. While they are believed to make natural leaders, this tendency to discount the ideas of others often breeds resentment even if, grudgingly, those who resent them admit that the ideas the Dragon people put forth are worthwhile. As Moon-ho Kwok explains, because of their own vitality, luck and strength of personality, Dragon people

can be quick-tempered and obstinate, and sometimes too outspoken, (1997, p. 20)

Netsuke dragon by
Natsusaka Shinichiro

People born in the Year of the Dragon, in the view of believers, often have difficulties with relationships. While they are thought to naturally attract people to them, they are often hard to live with. As one Chinese Astrology site puts it:

The women of this sign are surrounded by admirers and often demanded in marriage…. There is a decidedly exotic air about Dragon people, especially among the women, who fairly exude sexuality. Indeed, whether male or female, Dragons are libidinous and score quite a hit with the opposite sex. http://www.chinesezodiac.org/dragon/

The site Chinesehoroscope.com adds to this:

As a Dragon people, they are a perfectionist, proud, egotistical and born thinking that they are perfect, and this makes them quite inflexible. Dragons usually set up extremely high rules and standards to live by. http://chinesehoroscop-e.com/Dragon%20Zodiac.html

Green Wood Dragon

This year, 2024, as noted before, is the Year of the Green Wood Dragon.

Because dragons are a strongly associated with fire, and wood feeds fire, being born as a Wood Dragon sign is of particular upheaval and unmitigated self-assertion since the fire element is seen as exaggerating -- quite literally inflaming -- some of the more extreme tendencies for those born under the sign of the Dragon.

For example, one less appreciated characteristic of Dragon sign people is the belief that they are quick-tempered and unable to see things easily from others’ perspectives. Wood magnifies this tendency. As journalist Lily Zi explains in the South China Morning Post:

Wood represents vitality and creativity, while the dragon is related to success, intelligence and honour in Chinese culture.

This combination makes people born in the Year of the Wood Dragon full of energy and drive. They dream of changing the world and are good at coming up with innovative ideas and implementing them. They are perfectionists and will not give up on their goals easily.

Let's point out here that the South China Morning Post is a reliable and serious newspaper. This should be taken seriously by any reader as this is not the reporting of a professional fortune master. Still, keep in mind that it is primarily Western others outside of Asia who fail to take the professional fortune tellers and horoscope masters seriously. Hundreds of millions in East Asia honor these forecaster.

As noted earlier, each animal in the Asian zodiac also has an association with one or more of the Wu Xing cycle of the five traditional Chinese elements of metal, wood, fire, water and earth. While the dragon has elements of fire, it is actually governed by the element of wood (which gives life to fire). Since in the Wu Xing cycle fire increases the dragon's traits, Master Steven Chen explains in Medium Magazine, on the positive side:

The combination of Wood and Dragon creates a dynamic and energetic personality that is always ready for action and adventure. Wood Dragons are optimistic, enthusiastic, and adaptable. They are not afraid of change or challenge.

On the negative side, though, Master Steven Chen warns:

Wood Dragons can be impulsive, restless, and impatient. They can act without thinking or planning ahead. They can also be overconfident, arrogant, and stubborn. They can have a hard time admitting their mistakes or accepting criticism

Dragon Compatibility With Other Signs

Dragont people are liked -- even adored -- by most. Dragons, though, favor those who follow them. As Brenda Lian notes:

People of the Dragon Chinese zodiac sign are usually in a passive situation, for they will not pursue others actively.

While Dragon people get along well with anyone -- regardless of sign -- who follows him with their expected adoration, they dislike those who stand up to them or refuse to follow them. This means that the stubborn Ox people are often in opposition to Dragon people. Also possibly problematic are Dog people. As Dog people are by nature cautious, they often feel uncomfortable with the Dragon's impulsivity.

Famous Dragon People

Rabbit People's natural leadership and charisma results in a high number of Dragon people who are leaders. The Dragon's self-confidence -- the strongest of all Zodiac signs -- results in Dragon people who are groundbreakers in the arts, music and entertainment. That same self-confidence leads dragon people to be well-represented in the martial arts and battle.

Famous Dragon People: Leaders

Abiy Ahmed, Ethiopian Prime Minister, 2019 Nobel Prize winner later turned authoritarian civil rights abuser

Idris Déby, Chadian revolutionary and dictator of Chad from 1990 until his death in 2021

Deng Xiaoping, Chinese ruler known as the "Architect of Modern China," who opened PRC to world trade

Che Guevera, Argentine Marxist revolutionary

Kamala Harris, first Asian and first African American US Vice President

Boris Johnson, UK Prime Minister and overseer of the Brexit

Martin Luther King, Jr. greatest of all US Civil Rights leaders

John Lewis, US Civil Rights leader and politician

Vladimir Putin, Russian President

Ariel Sharon, Israeli Prime Minister

Sirimavo Bandaranaike, Sri Lankan President and world's first elected (1960) female head of state

Famous Dragon People: Arts, Music and Entertainment

Adele, English singer-songwriter

Maya Angelou, US author, poet and civil rights activist

Count Basie, US jazz pioneer, pianist and bandleader

Stephen Colbert, US satirical social commentator and TV show host

Benedict Cumberbatch, English Academy Award-winning actor

Salvador Dali, Spanish surrealist artist

Herbie Hancock, US jazz composer and keyboardist, founder of post-bop and main contributor to jazz fusion

John Lennon, English singer, songwriter, Beatles co-founder and social activist

Richard Pryor, US actor and comedian, listed #1 on Comedy Central's list of all-time stand-up comedians

Rihanna, Barbadian singer, songwriter and founder of Fenty Beauty company

Fred Rogers, US creator and host of "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood"

Osamu Tezuka, Japanese animator called "the Father of Manga"

Andy Warhol, US artist and leading figure of the pop art movement

Famous Dragon People: Sports and Martial Arts

"Stone Cold" Steve Austin, WWF wrestling great

Bill Belichick, NFL coach with most Superbowl wins (six) of all time

Bruce Lee, Hong Kong martial arts great, founder of Jeet Kune Do

Earl Lloyd, First black NBA player

Chuck Norris, US martial artist and actor

Ronaldo, Brazilian soccer player, generally considered second only to fellow countryman Pele

Pele, Brazilian soccer player, generally considered the greatest soccer player of all time

Famous Dragon People: Business

Li Ka-shing, Hong Kong billionaire, co-chair of CK Hutchinson Holdings

David Koch, multibillionaire president of Koch Industries, and libertarian activist

T. Boone Pickens, multibillionaire financier known for his corporate raider actions

Famous Dragon People: Thinkers and Innovators

George Akerlof, US behavioral economics researcher, winner of the 2002 Nobel Prize in Economics, known for his "Market for Lemons" concept of information asymmetry

J. Robert Oppenheimer, US physicist, director of the Manhattan Project and "father of the atomic bomb"

Muhammad Yunus, Bangladeshi founder of Grameen Bank, pioneer of microfinance, conceiver of the "social business" and winner of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize

The Asian Zodiac Briefly Explained

The Asian Zodiac (or horoscope) associated with the Asian or Chinese New Year is taken very seriously by those who follow it in their tradition. The significance attributed to the combinations associated with the Asian horoscope affect business decisions, dates selected for important events such as weddings, and many other aspects of daily life. These views are widely shared, with a larger following than any single religion -- Western or Eastern. As a result, these beliefs should be treated with the respect accorded a religious belief (rather than with that of superstition as Western astrology is sometimes treated).

The Lunar Calendar

Because the Asian lunar calendar follows the moon, it seems to move within our solar-based Gregorian calendar. Moreover, the Gregorian calendar does not correspond fully with the Asian lunar calendar. Thus, February 10 marks the beginning of the Asian lunar calendar only this year (it will, for instance, begin on January 29, 2025 with the last day of the Year of the Dragon falling on January 28, 2025).

The Twelve Animals of the Zodiac

The lunar calendar runs on a cycle of 12 years each represented by an animal. The animals all have a balance of compatibility or incompatibility as represented in their place in the circle of the 12-year cycle. This year is the Year of the Dragon.

The 12 Animals of the Zodiac

The 12 animals in their order are

Rat
Ox
Tiger
Rabbit
Dragon
Snake
Horse
Sheep
Monkey
Rooster
Dog
Pig

Each animal corresponds to a month of the lunar year. The dragon corresponds to the fifth animal in the cycle.

The Five Elements of the Wu Xing Cycle

Additionally, each 12-year cycle of animals runs on an additional cycle corresponding to the Wu Xing cycle of the five traditional Chinese elements. These are

metal
fire
wood
water
earth

The Five Elements

The elements are in balance with each other, the basis of much of feng shui.

Each element is also associated with a color. In the case of water, that color is black (or blue).

Combined, each element combines with each animal over a period of 60 years. The current 12-year cycle combines with the element of Wood. Thus, this year is the Year of the Green Wooden Dragon.

Spiritual Importance of the Asian Horoscope

Many followers of the Asian zodiac have a formal religious belief in the importance of the animal element combinations associated with each year in the 60-year cycle. This is clearly the case for those practicing Taoism. One should approach the Lunar zodiac as one would approach a spiritual practice.

The Taoist Tradition

For Taoists, the New Year is always of religious significance. This because in Taoism, the Lunar New Year's first day is a time when lesser deities or spirits are believed to ascend to the throne of the Jade Emperor (King of Heaven). In Taoist tradition, the 12 animals were in a contest to greet the Jade Emperor; a 13th animal – the cat – was tricked by the rat (about five variations of how exist), which explains why cats have hated rats ever since. A children's version of this story is told in a very pleasant rendition at the Topmarks education site. I encourage you to take a look at this version at http://www.topmarks.co.uk/ChineseNewYear/ZodiacStory.aspx

The 12 Zodiac animals
in their race

The Buddhist Tradition

The New Year is a religious event as well for a great number of the sects of Buddhism, and most famously for Tibetan Buddhists. In Buddhist tradition, the 12 animals were in a race to do honor to Lord Buddha on the eve of his death.

East Asian Folk Beliefs

East Asian folk beliefs are a broad grouping of folk practices that range from deeply-held religious traditions )to popular practices rooted in the local cultures. These practices are widespread, and have a far greater reach than those who claim a specific faith (Taoism or Buddhism) to those who claim a different belief or no belief at all. In Chinese, these have perhaps a dozen names such as "Chinese ethnic religion" or mínjiān zōngjiào (族宗教) or Shenxianism or shénxiān jiào (神仙教). In Mongolian, these practices are known as Tengrism or reverence of Tengri (the Mongolian name for the Jade Emperor). In Korean, the Great Race is included in the Han'guk sinwha or Korean mythological narratives associated with Shindo (신도) ith, followed as folk practices not only by Buddhists and those claiming no religion but even among some Christian groups as a local custom.

The strength of these folk beliefs is often difficult for those in Europe and the Americas to understand. A counterpart to the range of adherence to these folk religions put in the context of Europe and the Americas would be the broad grouping of deeply-held religious beliefs as "Protestant" despite being separate faiths (e.g., Baptist, Unitarian, Methodist) to popular non-Christian but deeply-held semi-religious traditions (e.g., folk religion) practices rooted in the local culture such as Santa Claus, the Christmas Tree, the Easter Bunny, etc.

Additionally, though Confucianism is not technically a religion (but rather a philosophical system), its followers also traditional observe the Lunar New Year to show reverence to their ancestors. Because of this, even Christians and practitioners of other faiths in such countries as Korea, Bhutan, Mongolia or Vietnam generally celebrate the holiday. The same holds true for those people in cultures with strong Confucian customs who have no religion at all or for those with mixed traditions.

The Role of the Dragon in the Great Race

In all of the traditions, the arrival of the animals was the same in order. In other words, in all traditions, the ox arrived second even though seeming at first to have won the race. Unable to swim across the great river at the end of the race, the rat had promised to guide the near-sighted ox in return for clinging to the ox's back across the torrent. Once safely across, though, the rat never dismounted and instead scampered onto the ox's nose to claim first place. The place order of each zodiac animal in the Great Race is significant. All 13 animals (including the cat who arrived after the race ended) had to pass over land and water to reach the Jade Emperor/Lord Buddha.

The dragon took fifth place in the Great Race. The dragon was the only one among the animals in the Great Race that could fly. Yet the dragon flew down only in fourth place, The Jade Emperor was surprised, saying that he expected the dragon to come in first. The Jade Emperor asked the dragon what had happened that a creature with the gift of flight would arrive in fourth. The dragon explained that he paused to make rain for people and animals he saw that were thirsty (in Asian tradition, dragons are water creatures). After this, the dragon explained, he saw a helpless, little rabbit sitting on a log stranded in the great barrier of the river (read about the rabbit's version of the story from last year in the post on the Year of Rabbit here). The breeze moved the log ashore that the rabbit had taken as good luck was, in fact, the puff of air from the dragon who had taken pity on one whom he had thought to be helpless. This puff of air was what enabled the rabbit to reach the Jade Emperor in fourth place.

The Jade Emperor praised the dragon, granting him not only fifth place but the most leadership qualities and charisma of all of the animals. Geomancer Thierry Chow (interviewed by CNN, Feb. 9, 2024), notes that “It’s believed that the Dragon represents strong and great leadership."

Past Years

For more on the special impact, beliefs and predictions for the Zodiac animals since 2012, please see my posts from each year at

For me, this year is particularly noteworthy as it represents the full 12-year cycle. In other words, the very first of these blog posts for me began with the Year of the Dragon (the Black Water Dragon in 2012).

2) Business Impact In years past, I have posted separately in the business effects from travel to special editions of coins, stamps and gifts for the Lunar New Year around the world. I have not had the chance to do so this year. You may find the posts from 2012-2019 of value in giving an idea of this. Here is the post from the