---
title: "1943 Chinese Zodiac: Year of the Water Goat (癸未), 5 Feb 1943 to 24 Jan 1944 | Mandarin The Wild"
description: "1943 is the Year of the Water Goat, 羊 yáng: from Chinese New Year on 5 February 1943 to 24 January 1944, so a birthday before 5 February 1943 is a Horse. What Water means, and how to say it in Chinese: 我属羊."
canonical: "https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac/1943"
published: "2026-10-15"
updated: "2026-10-26"
author: "Mandarin The Wild"
---

[Chinese zodiac](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac)

# 1943: Year of the Water Goat

1943 is the Year of the Goat, 羊 yáng, a Water year. It starts at Chinese New Year on 5 February 1943 and runs to 24 January 1944. Born from 1 January to 4 February 1943? You are a [Horse, 1942](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac/1942).

羊

yáng

Water Goat

**Animal**
[羊 yáng Goat](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac/goat)

**Element**
水 shuǐ Water, yin

**Cycle name**
癸未年 guǐ wèi nián

**Starts**
5 February 1943

**Ends**
24 January 1944

**Matches**
Pig, Rabbit and Horse; clashes with Ox

**Age**
Born in 1943? You turn 83 in 2026.

[Save or share this card](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac?d=1943-06-15) from the zodiac finder.

## Say 1943 in Chinese

A year is read digit by digit, then 年 nián: no “nineteen eighty-three”.

- 一九四三年 yī jiǔ sì sān nián 1943
- 癸未年 guǐ wèi nián the 癸未 year, its name in the sixty-year cycle
- 我是一九四三年出生的 wǒ shì yī jiǔ sì sān nián chū shēng de I was born in 1943.
- 我属羊 wǒ shǔ yáng I'm a Goat.
- 水羊 shuǐ yáng Water Goat

## What Water means

水Water is calm and finds a way around anything. People born in a Water year are said to be wise and adaptable, good listeners who read a room.

**Season**
冬 dōng winter

**Direction**
北 běi north

**Colour**
黑 hēi black

### Words for a Water Goat

- 温和 wēnhé easy-going
- 聪明 cōngming clever
- 灵活 línghuó adaptable

Each year has one of five elements, 五行 wǔ xíng, two years each, so the same animal and element meet once every sixty years. The traits are what tradition says, for fun.

## The Goat, 羊

The Goat is also the Sheep: 羊 means both. People born in a Goat year are said to be easy-going, creative and caring, the kind of person who makes any place feel like home.

[Goat personality, matches and sayings](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac/goat)

## Questions

### What Chinese zodiac animal is 1943?

1943 is the Year of the Goat, 羊 (yáng), from Chinese New Year on 5 February 1943 to 24 January 1944. Its element is Water, so people born in it are Water Goats.

### What if I was born in January or early February 1943?

The zodiac year starts at Chinese New Year, not on 1 January. Born from 1 January to 4 February 1943? You belong to 1942, the Year of the Water Horse.

### What element is 1943 in the Chinese zodiac?

Water, 水 (shuǐ). 1943 is 癸未 (guǐ wèi) in the sixty-year cycle, a yin Water year; the Water Goat comes round once every sixty years.

### How do you say 1943 in Chinese?

Read the digits one by one and add 年 (nián, year): 一九四三年 (yī jiǔ sì sān nián). “I was born in 1943” is 我是一九四三年出生的 (wǒ shì yī jiǔ sì sān nián chū shēng de), and “I'm a Goat” is 我属羊 (wǒ shǔ yáng).