View source for Unsolved:Cat (zodiac)

{{short description|Sign of the Vietnamese zodiac}}
[[File:12 con giáp - Mèo.png|thumb|Vietnamese Cat zodiac]]
[[File:Suối tiên năm 2012, tượng 12 con giáp-Mèo-Mão (3).jpg|thumb|Cat zodiac statue in Suối Tiên park]]
The '''[[Biology:Cat|Cat]]''' is the 4th animal symbol in the 12-year cycle of the Vietnamese zodiac, and Gurung zodiac, taking place of the [[Unsolved:Rabbit (zodiac)|Rabbit]] in the [[Unsolved:Chinese zodiac|Chinese zodiac]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://ecs.com.np/culture/tamu-gurung-losar-festival# |title=Tamu (Gurung) Losar Festival |access-date=2017-01-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170729174053/http://ecs.com.np/culture/tamu-gurung-losar-festival# |archive-date=2017-07-29 |url-status=dead }}</ref> As such, the traits associated with the [[Unsolved:Rabbit (zodiac)|Rabbit]] are attributed to the Cat. Cats are in conflict with the [[Unsolved:Rat (zodiac)|Rat]].

Legends relating to the order of the [[Unsolved:Chinese zodiac|Chinese zodiac]] often include stories as to why the cat was not included among the twelve. Because the [[Unsolved:Rat (zodiac)|Rat]] tricked the cat into missing the banquet with the [[Religion:Jade Emperor|Jade Emperor]], the cat was not included and was not aware that the banquet was going on and was not given a year, thus began the antipathy between cats and [[Unsolved:Rat (zodiac)|rats]]. It is possible domesticated cats had not proliferated through China at the zodiac's induction.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://chinablog.cc/2009/01/why-no-year-of-the-cat/|title=Why no year of the Cat?|date=17 January 2009 }}</ref>

Another legend known as "The Great Race" tells that all the animals in the zodiac were headed to the Jade Emperor. The Cat and Rat were the most intelligent of the animals, however they were both also poor swimmers and came across a river. They both tricked the kind, naïve Ox to assist them by letting them ride on its back over the river. As the Ox was approaching the other side of the river, the Rat pushed the Cat into the river, then jumped off the Ox and rushed to the Jade Emperor, becoming the first in the zodiac. All the other animals made it to the Jade Emperor, while the Cat was left to drown in the river after being sabotaged by the Rat. It is said that this is also the reason cats always hunt rats.

There have been various explanations of why the Vietnamese, unlike all other countries who follow the Chinese calendar, have the cat instead of the [[Unsolved:Rabbit (zodiac)|Rabbit]] as a zodiac animal. The most common explanation is that in the [[Unsolved:Earthly Branches|ordering system]] (Earthly Branches) that is used for lunar year, the word for used for the [[Unsolved:Rabbit (zodiac)|"rabbit zodiac"]] 卯 (Mão ~ Mẹo) sounds like the Vietnamese word for "cat" (con mèo).<ref>{{Cite web|title = Year of the Cat OR Year of the Rabbit?|url = http://www.nwasianweekly.com/2011/02/year-of-the-cat-or-year-of-the-rabbit/|website = www.nwasianweekly.com| date=3 February 2011 |access-date = 2016-02-23|language = en-US}}</ref>

==Other explanations==

Other explanations for the use of the cat zodiac in Vietnam come from oral histories that can be difficult to trace to an original source. Vietnam hasn’t always celebrated the Year of the Cat, however it is unclear when the switch from rabbit to cat took place. Mentions of the Year of the Rabbit can be found in many older Vietnamese texts. Different families and cultural groups in Vietnam have unique explanations for the shift, both historical and in folklore.<ref>{{cite web |title=While many ring in the Year of the Rabbit, Vietnam celebrates the cat |website=NPR |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230721032627/https://www.npr.org/2023/01/21/1150216367/lunar-new-year-vietnam-year-of-cat |archive-date=2023-07-21 |url-status=live |url=https://www.npr.org/2023/01/21/1150216367/lunar-new-year-vietnam-year-of-cat/}}</ref> 

One geographical explanation suggests that Chinese nomads living in the savanna had frequent encounters with rabbits in the wild fields. In contrast, the lowland people of Vietnam had less interaction with rabbits and instead chose the domestic cat. Rabbits were viewed as animals used for food, while cats were considered a ‘friendly’ animal. Rabbits are also not commonly raised in Vietnam.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/year-rabbit-not-so-fast-vietnams-lunar-new-year-celebrate-cat-2023-01-20/ | title=Year of the Rabbit? Not so fast! Vietnam's Lunar New Year to celebrate the cat | newspaper=Reuters | date=20 January 2023 | last1=Nguyen | first1=Minh | last2=Nguyen | first2=Thinh }}</ref> 

Another explanation states that in Vietnamese folklore, the cat (which was tricked out of the race by the rat in Chinese legend) actually finishes the race. The Vietnamese legend lacks a rabbit and the cat is able to swim, allowing it to take fourth place.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://mothership.sg/2023/01/year-of-the-cat/ | title=Vietnam is celebrating the Year of the Cat instead of the Rabbit, here's why }}</ref> 

Cats hold unique spiritual and practical meaning in Vietnam. They are considered lucky, and help to ward off bad spirits. In the 2011 Year of the Cat, there was a baby boom recorded due to the association of luck with those born under this zodiac. Cats are frequently featured in Vietnamese folklore and rhymes, and are often depicted assisting farmers in chasing away rats.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-01-21 |title=Lunar New Year: What to expect as we hop into the Year of the Rabbit |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2023/01/21/chinese-new-year-lunar-rabbit-cat/ |access-date=2023-04-27 |website=Washington Post |language=en}}</ref> Rice farming is very important to Vietnamese agriculture, and the threat of field rats means cats are a popular animal for farmers.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2023/01/20/lunar-new-year-chinese-rabbit-vietnamese-cat/11081882002/ | title=Why we Vietnamese don't celebrate the Lunar Year of the Rabbit: Cat got our tongue | website=[[Software:USA Today|USA Today]] }}</ref>

The shift to the cat also reflects a difference in cultural values. While the Year of the Rabbit is considered to be mild and peaceful, the cat symbolizes strength, power, and aggression. Another cultural explanation suggests the Vietnamese closely linked the mouse (rat) and rabbit, and didn’t want to observe two similar years.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3207357/why-vietnam-celebrating-year-cat-not-rabbit?module=perpetual_scroll_0&pgtype=article&campaign=3207357 | title=Why Vietnam is celebrating the Year of the Cat, not the Rabbit | date=19 January 2023 }}</ref>

In addition to the cat, the Vietnamese also celebrate the Year of the Buffalo as opposed to the Year of the Ox in the Chinese zodiac.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://mothership.sg/2023/01/year-of-the-cat/ | title=Vietnam is celebrating the Year of the Cat instead of the Rabbit, here's why }}</ref>

==Years and the Five Elements==
{{Main|Unsolved:Rabbit (zodiac)}}
People born within the date ranges below can be said to have been born under the "Year of the Cat", instead of "Year of the Rabbit".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pinyin.info/chinese_new_year/|title=When is Chinese New Year?|publisher=pinyin.info|accessdate=13 March 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.yourchineseastrology.com/zodiac/rabbit.htm|title=Chinese Zodiac - Rabbit (Hare)|publisher=Your Chinese Astrology|accessdate=13 March 2018}}</ref>
[[File:Louvre egyptologie 21.jpg|thumb|A mummified cat]]
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Start date !! End date !! Heavenly branch
|-
| 29 January 1903 || 15 February 1904 || Water Cat
|- 
| 14 February 1915 || 3 February 1916 || Wood Cat
|-
| 2 February 1927 || 22 January 1928 || Fire Cat
|-
| 19 February 1939 || 7 February 1940 || Earth Cat
|-
| 6 February 1951 || 26 January 1952 || Metal Cat
|-
| 25 January 1963 || 12 February 1964 || Water Cat
|-
| 11 February 1975 || 30 January 1976 || Wood Cat
|-
| 29 January 1987 || 16 February 1988 || Fire Cat
|-
| 16 February 1999 || 4 February 2000 || Earth Cat
|-
| 11 February 2011 || 22 January 2012 || Metal Cat
|-
| 22 January 2023 || 9 February 2024 || Water Cat
|-
| 8 February 2035 || 27 January 2036 || Wood Cat
|-
| 26 January 2047 || 13 February 2048 || Fire Cat
|-
| 11 February 2059 || 1 February 2060 || Earth Cat
|-
| 31 January 2071 || 18 February 2072 || Metal Cat
|-
| 17 February 2083 || 5 February 2084 || Water Cat
|-
| 5 February 2095 || 24 January 2096 || Wood Cat
|}[[File:Felis silvestris catus lying on rice straw.jpg|thumb|right|248px|A cat lying on rice straw]]

==Vietnamese zodiac Cat==
{|class="wikitable" style="font-size:100%"
|'''Sign'''
|'''Best Match'''
|'''Average'''
|'''No Match'''
|-
| Cat || [[Unsolved:Pig (zodiac)|Pig]], [[Unsolved:Goat (zodiac)|Goat]], Cat, [[Unsolved:Dog (zodiac)|Dog]], || [[Unsolved:Tiger (zodiac)|Tiger]], [[Unsolved:Horse (zodiac)|Horse]], [[Unsolved:Dragon (zodiac)|Dragon]], [[Unsolved:Monkey (zodiac)|Monkey]], [[Unsolved:Snake (zodiac)|Snake]], [[Biology:Ox (zodiac)|Ox]] || [[Unsolved:Rooster (zodiac)|Rooster]] & [[Unsolved:Rat (zodiac)|Rat]]
|}

==Basic astrology elements==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|Earthly Branches of Birth Year:|| Tree
|-
|The Five Elements:|| Wood
|-
|Yin Yang:|| Yin
|-
|Lunar Month:|| Second
|-
|Lucky Numbers:|| 3, 6, 9; Avoid: 1, 7, 8
|-
|Lucky Flowers:|| [[Biology:Flower|flower]] of [[Biology:Hosta|fragrant plantain lily]], [[Biology:Fittonia|nerve plant]], [[Biology:Antirrhinum|snapdragon]]
|-
|Lucky Colors:|| black, pink, purple, blue, red; Avoid: brown, yellow, white
|-
|Season:|| Spring
|}

==See also==
*[[Biology:Cat|Cat]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}{{Notelist}}{{Chinese Zodiac}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cat}}
[[Category:Mythological felines]]

{{Sourceattribution|Cat (zodiac)}}