earthly branches; the 12 cyclical signs
Tone colorsmāmámǎmàma
Meanings
1 sense · 3 examplesnoun
earthly branches; the twelve cyclic signs
formalUsed cyclically with the Ten Heavenly Stems (天干) to form the 60-year (干支) cycle for recording years, months, days, and two-hour periods. Essential in traditional Chinese calendrics, astrology, and fortune-telling.
Èr2
líng0
èr2
sān3
nián年
shì是
nóng农
lì历
guǐ癸
mǎo卯
nián年
，
“
mǎo卯
”
jiù就
shì是
dì地
zhī支
zhī之
yī一
。
2023 is the year of Gui-Mao in the lunar calendar, where 'Mao' is one of the Earthly Branches.
Yòng用
tiān天
gān干
dì地
zhī支
jì纪
nián年
shì是
Zhōng中
guó国
gǔ古
dài代
de的
zhòng重
yào要
fā发
míng明
。
Using the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches to record years was an important invention in ancient China.
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Shēng生
xiào肖
yǔ与
dì地
zhī支
yǒu有
gù固
dìng定
de的
duì对
yìng应
guān关
xì系
，
bǐ比
rú如
“
zǐ子
”
duì对
yìng应
shǔ鼠
。
The Chinese zodiac animals have fixed correspondences with the Earthly Branches; for example, 'Zi' corresponds to the Rat.