---
title: "2003 Chinese Zodiac: Year of the Water Goat (癸未), 1 Feb 2003 to 21 Jan 2004 | Mandarin The Wild"
description: "2003 is the Year of the Water Goat, 羊 yáng: from Chinese New Year on 1 February 2003 to 21 January 2004, so a birthday before 1 February 2003 is a Horse. What Water means, and how to say it in Chinese: 我属羊."
canonical: "https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac/2003"
published: "2026-10-15"
updated: "2026-10-26"
author: "Mandarin The Wild"
---

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

# 2003: Year of the Water Goat

2003 is the Year of the Goat, 羊 yáng, a Water year. It starts at Chinese New Year on 1 February 2003 and runs to 21 January 2004. Born from 1 January to 31 January 2003? You are a [Horse, 2002](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac/2002).

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**
1 February 2003

**Ends**
21 January 2004

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

**Age**
Born in 2003? You turn 23 in 2026.

[Save or share this card](https://mandarinthewild.com/chinese-zodiac?d=2003-06-15) from the zodiac finder.

## Say 2003 in Chinese

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

- 二〇〇三年 èr líng líng sān nián 2003
- 癸未年 guǐ wèi nián the 癸未 year, its name in the sixty-year cycle
- 我是二〇〇三年出生的 wǒ shì èr líng líng sān nián chū shēng de I was born in 2003.
- 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 2003?

2003 is the Year of the Goat, 羊 (yáng), from Chinese New Year on 1 February 2003 to 21 January 2004. Its element is Water, so people born in it are Water Goats.

### What if I was born in January or early February 2003?

The zodiac year starts at Chinese New Year, not on 1 January. Born from 1 January to 31 January 2003? You belong to 2002, the Year of the Water Horse.

### What element is 2003 in the Chinese zodiac?

Water, 水 (shuǐ). 2003 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 2003 in Chinese?

Read the digits one by one and add 年 (nián, year): 二〇〇三年 (èr líng líng sān nián). “I was born in 2003” is 我是二〇〇三年出生的 (wǒ shì èr líng líng sān nián chū shēng de), and “I'm a Goat” is 我属羊 (wǒ shǔ yáng).