---
title: "1985 Chinese Zodiac: Year of the Wood Ox (乙丑), 20 Feb 1985 to 8 Feb 1986 | Mandarin The Wild"
description: "1985 is the Year of the Wood Ox, 牛 niú: from Chinese New Year on 20 February 1985 to 8 February 1986, so a birthday before 20 February 1985 is a Rat. What Wood means, and how to say it in Chinese: 我属牛."
canonical: "https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac/1985"
published: "2026-10-15"
updated: "2026-10-26"
author: "Mandarin The Wild"
---

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

# 1985: Year of the Wood Ox

1985 is the Year of the Ox, 牛 niú, a Wood year. It starts at Chinese New Year on 20 February 1985 and runs to 8 February 1986. Born from 1 January to 19 February 1985? You are a [Rat, 1984](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac/1984).

牛

niú

Wood Ox

**Animal**
[牛 niú Ox](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac/ox)

**Element**
木 mù Wood, yin

**Cycle name**
乙丑年 yǐ chǒu nián

**Starts**
20 February 1985

**Ends**
8 February 1986

**Matches**
Snake, Rooster and Rat; clashes with Goat

**Age**
Born in 1985? You turn 41 in 2026.

[Save or share this card](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac?d=1985-06-15) from the zodiac finder.

## Say 1985 in Chinese

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

- 一九八五年 yī jiǔ bā wǔ nián 1985
- 乙丑年 yǐ chǒu nián the 乙丑 year, its name in the sixty-year cycle
- 我是一九八五年出生的 wǒ shì yī jiǔ bā wǔ nián chū shēng de I was born in 1985.
- 我属牛 wǒ shǔ niú I'm a Ox.
- 木牛 mù niú Wood Ox

## What Wood means

木Wood is growth: a tree reaching up and out. People born in a Wood year are said to be generous and kind, slow to anger and quick to help.

**Season**
春 chūn spring

**Direction**
东 dōng east

**Colour**
青 qīng green

### Words for a Wood Ox

- 勤劳 qínláo hard-working
- 大方 dàfang generous
- 仁慈 réncí kind

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 Ox, 牛

The Ox carried the Rat across the river and came in second. People born in an Ox year are said to be patient, honest and hard-working: slow to start, and then impossible to stop.

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

## Questions

### What Chinese zodiac animal is 1985?

1985 is the Year of the Ox, 牛 (niú), from Chinese New Year on 20 February 1985 to 8 February 1986. Its element is Wood, so people born in it are Wood Oxs.

### What if I was born in January or early February 1985?

The zodiac year starts at Chinese New Year, not on 1 January. Born from 1 January to 19 February 1985? You belong to 1984, the Year of the Wood Rat.

### What element is 1985 in the Chinese zodiac?

Wood, 木 (mù). 1985 is 乙丑 (yǐ chǒu) in the sixty-year cycle, a yin Wood year; the Wood Ox comes round once every sixty years.

### How do you say 1985 in Chinese?

Read the digits one by one and add 年 (nián, year): 一九八五年 (yī jiǔ bā wǔ nián). “I was born in 1985” is 我是一九八五年出生的 (wǒ shì yī jiǔ bā wǔ nián chū shēng de), and “I'm a Ox” is 我属牛 (wǒ shǔ niú).