Chinese astrology also has a system of twelve signs sometimes also referred to as "zodiac". This does not necessarily imply a common origin, since the number of twelve naturally suggests itself from the number of synodic months in a year; in other words, the extent of a zodiacal sign corresponds to the path covered by the Sun between two new moons. Like its Western counterpart, the Chinese zodiac features animals. However, the Chinese zodiac associates each animal with both one month and one solar year. Thus the signs repeat themselves every twelve year cycle. The animals of the Chinese Zodiac are: rat, ox (or cow), tiger, rabbit (or hare), dragon, snake, horse, sheep (or goat), monkey, rooster, dog, and pig (or boar). For a list of how these animals map to the months and years see Chinese astrology. Formerly, these animals were also used in the naming of the Chinese hour, where the day is divided into 12 hours. There is also a Chinese lunar zodiac composed of twenty-eight lunar "mansions", each corresponding to a Chinese constellation.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zodiac#Chinese_zodiac
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