Animal, element and the sixty year cycle
The twelve animals repeat every twelve years and the five elements every ten, which produces the sixty year cycle at the heart of Chinese astrology. Your animal alone is the headline; the animal and element together are the actual sign.
Because the Chinese new year falls between late January and late February, anyone born in that window needs the exact date rather than the calendar year, and these tools handle that boundary for you.
Inner, secret and hour animals
Beyond the year animal, the tradition assigns a month animal, a day animal and an hour animal, often called the inner and secret animals. Together they make up the four pillars, which is the closest Chinese equivalent to a birth chart.
Compatibility in this system runs on the animal triangles and the six clashes, which is why a match reading here can differ sharply from a numerology one.