Horse strengths in tradition
- Energetic and enthusiastic
- Independent and free-spirited
- Warm and sociable
- Honest and direct
2002 Chinese zodiac: Year of the Water Horse
The 2002 Chinese year ran from Tuesday 12 February 2002 to Friday 31 January 2003.
Its sign is the Yang Water Horse: 壬午 (Rén-wǔ) in the 60-year cycle.
Born 1 January – 11 February 2002? Then you belong to the previous Chinese year: the Metal Snake of 2001.
Chinese New Year or Lichun?
Most calendars change the animal at Chinese New Year. Four Pillars (BaZi) astrology starts the year at Lichun, the Start of Spring, instead. For births around the turn of the year the two counts differ:
- 4 February 2002 (Lichun day): by Lichun, Metal Snake before 08:24 China time and Water Horse from then on; by Chinese New Year, Metal Snake.
- 5–11 February 2002: Metal Snake by Chinese New Year, Water Horse by Lichun.
Dates and times in China time. The Chinese zodiac calculator converts them for your birthplace and shows both counts.
The Water Horse in Chinese astrology
A Water Horse is associated with adaptability and charm, quick to adjust to new people and places.
The Horse is the seventh Chinese zodiac animal, associated in tradition with energy, independence and a love of freedom and movement. Water is the element of depth and adaptability, linked in Chinese tradition with winter, intuition and quiet wisdom.
Horse challenges in tradition
- Impatient with delays
- Restless under routine
- Starts more than it finishes
- Resists being restricted
Traditions, not predictions. The Horse in love and at work · The five elements
Other Horse years
The Water Horse every 60 years
← 2001 Metal Snake · 2003 Water Goat → · All years 1900–2100
Questions and answers
What Chinese zodiac is 2002?
2002 is the Year of the Water Horse (yang Water, 壬午 Rén-wǔ), from 12 February 2002 to 31 January 2003. Anyone born 1 January – 11 February 2002 belongs to the previous Chinese year, the Metal Snake.
What element is 2002 in the Chinese zodiac?
Water, in its yang form: the year’s Heavenly Stem is 壬 (Rén). Water years are years ending in 2 or 3 – counted by the Chinese year, which begins in late January or February.
I was born in January or early February 2002 — which animal am I?
If you were born before 12 February 2002, the date of Chinese New Year, your sign is the Metal Snake of the 2001 Chinese year; from 12 February 2002 on, it is the Water Horse. Four Pillars (BaZi) astrology counts from Lichun instead (4 February 2002, 08:24 China time).
When was Chinese New Year 2002?
It was on Tuesday 12 February 2002 (China time). The next one, on Saturday 1 February 2003, began the Year of the Water Goat.