Download on the App StoreGet it on Google Play

Updated 2026-11-01

MouseOxTigerRabbitDragonSnakeHorseSheepMonkeyRoosterDogPig

Gold lines join the sign with its allies, the dashed line with its best match; red marks the opposite sign. Tap a sign to open it.

The Metal Rat Year

What it means to be born in a Metal Rat year in the Tibetan-Mongolian (zurkhai) tradition — the Rat's nature shaped by the element of Metal. tradition

Metal Rat years: 1900, 1960, 2020. The next Metal Rat year is 2080.
Brown rat — the Mouse (Rat) opens the 12-year animal cycle
Brown rat — the Mouse (Rat) opens the 12-year animal cycleImage: Zeynel Cebeci · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

The Rat

Clever, resourceful, charming and thrifty. The Rat is one of the twelve animal signs (jil) that, paired with the five elements, make up the 60-year cycle.

The element of Metal

Metal governs discipline, precision, strength, clarity and resolve; its season is autumn and its direction is the west. Metal (also called Iron) is the contracting, refining energy — it gives a sign focus, integrity and willpower, though it can harden into rigidity.

Mongolian gerbil in the wild — a small rodent of the Mongolian steppe
Mongolian gerbil in the wild — a small rodent of the Mongolian steppeImage: Alastair Rae · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Metal Rat: the blend

A Rat born in a Metal Rat year carries the Rat's nature — clever, resourceful, charming and thrifty — under the influence of Metal, the element of discipline, precision, strength, clarity and resolve. Metal (also called Iron) is the contracting, refining energy — it gives a sign focus, integrity and willpower, though it can harden into rigidity.

Years of the Metal Rat

1900turns 126 in 2026
1960turns 66 in 2026
2020turns 6 in 2026

Frequently asked

What years are Metal Rat years?
The Metal Rat pairing falls on 1900, 1960, 2020 and recurs every 60 years.
What is a person born in a Metal Rat year like?
A Rat born in a Metal Rat year carries the Rat's nature — clever, resourceful, charming and thrifty — under the influence of Metal, the element of discipline, precision, strength, clarity and resolve. Metal (also called Iron) is the contracting, refining energy — it gives a sign focus, integrity and willpower, though it can harden into rigidity.
How does the Tibetan element–animal cycle work?
Tibetan astrology overlays a 12-year cycle of animals with a 5-element cycle (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water). Each element governs two consecutive years, so 12 animals × 5 elements form a 60-year cycle before the same animal+element pairing repeats. Every year therefore carries both an animal and an element — 2026 is the Fire Horse. The system blends indigenous Bon astrology, Chinese-derived element/animal astrology, and Indian Kalachakra star astrology.

The Rat in the other elements

Wood Rat Fire Rat Earth Rat Water Rat

More on the Rat sign → · What is zurkhai? →

Animal/element traits and yearly outlooks are presented as traditional belief, not fact, and vary between astrologers and lineages.