The Sheng xiao (生肖) better known in English as the Chinese Zodiac is a scheme that relates each year to an animal and its reputed attributes, according to a cycle of 12 years. It has wide currency in various East Asian countries besides mainland China and Taiwan.

Each sign is linked to a month of the solar year, it is thereby also linked to a season. Each of the elements is also linked to a season and the element that shares a season with a sign is known as that sign’s Fixed Element. In other words, that element is believed to impart some of its characteristics to the sign concerned. The fixed element of each sign applies also to the year and hour signs, and not just the monthly sign. It is important to note that the fixed element is separate from the cycle of elements which interact with the signs in the 60 year cycle.