People celebrate the New Year while watching drone performances at Ganjeolgot, a tourist spot in Ulsan, 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, Jan. 1. Yonhap
Happy 2024, they year of the Blue Dragon. Dragons are those born in the year 1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000 and 2012.
ITZY's Yeji and Stray Kids Hyunjin are two of many kpop idols born in the year of the dragon. The two both under the JYP label have been famously linked due to their striking resemblance to each other and their dragon eyes.
Those born this year will be Blue Dragons. So why is the Dragon Blue?
The sexagenary cycle, also known as the Stems-and-Branches or Gan-Zhi system, is a traditional Chinese calendrical system, adopted by Korea and many other Asian countries, that combines 10 celestial stems (Heavenly Stems) and 12 earthly branches (Earthly Branches) to create a cycle of 60 years.
The celestial stems are a set of 10 characters or symbols representing the five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water) paired with the yin and yang principles. The ten stems are: Jia (甲), Yi (乙), Bing (丙), Ding (丁), Wu (戊), Ji (己), Geng (庚), Xin (辛), Ren (壬), and Gui (癸). Each celestial stem is associated with a specific element and a yin or yang polarity, creating a cycle that repeats every 10 years.
The earthly branches are a set of 12 characters or symbols, each associated with an animal from the Chinese zodiac. The twelve branches are: Zi (子 - Rat), Chou (丑 - Ox), Yin (寅 - Tiger), Mao (卯 - Rabbit), Chen (辰 - Dragon), Si (巳 - Snake), Wu (午 - Horse), Wei (未 - Goat), Shen (申 - Monkey), You (酉 - Rooster), Xu (戌 - Dog), and Hai (亥 - Pig).
The sexagenary cycle is formed by combining one celestial stem with one earthly branch.
The cycle repeats every 60 years, as there are 10 celestial stems and 12 earthly branches, resulting in a total of 60 possible combinations before it starts over.
Within the sexagenary cycle, 2024 aligns itself with the Year of the Wood Dragon. This particular wood stem carries with it the vibrant essence of the color blue, thereby designating 2024 as the Year of the Blue Dragon.
Here is our Year of the Dragon Shirt, along with the other zodiac signs.
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