2013 Chinese Zodiac: Water Snake, Birth Dates and Meaning

Published by Anthony
on November 14, 2026

Check the 2013 Water Snake birth dates, find the boundary with the Water Dragon and Wood Horse, and learn what Gui-Si and Long-Flowing Water mean.

Quick Answer: What Is the 2013 Chinese Zodiac Sign?

The 2013 Chinese zodiac (生肖, shēngxiào) sign is the Water Snake from February 10, 2013 through January 30, 2014, inclusive. The year is Gui-Si (癸巳, Guǐ-Sì) in the traditional calendar.^[1][2]

Birth before February 10. January 1–February 9, 2013 remains in the Water Dragon year.^[1]
Water and Snake. Gui gives the year its element. Si supplies the animal.^[1][4]
End of the year. January 31, 2014 is the first day of the Wood Horse year.^[2]

The dates here use Lunar New Year. Some Four Pillars methods change the year at Start of Spring (立春, Lìchūn).^[3]

2013 Water Snake birth dates Gui and Si with Long Flowing Water

Two births a day apart in February 2013 can share the same element but have different animals. The calendar changes from Water Dragon to Water Snake on February 10. It also carries the Snake year into January 2014.

2013 Water Snake Dates and the February Cutoff

Gregorian date of birth	Lunar New Year sign
January 1–February 9, 2013	Water Dragon
February 10, 2013–January 30, 2014	Water Snake
January 31–December 31, 2014	Wood Horse

In the 2013 conversion table, February 9 is day 29 of the last lunar month. The next day is the first day of month one. Start of Spring occurred on February 4, so a February 8 birth is Dragon by the lunar convention and Snake in a chart using the solar term.^[1][3][4]

How the Water Snake Gets Its Two Names

Gui is the Heavenly Stem (天干, tiāngān) for Yin Water (阴水, yīn shuǐ) in Wuxing (五行, wǔxíng). Si is the Earthly Branch (地支, dìzhī) associated with the Snake (蛇, shé). Put together, the Gan-Zhi (干支, gānzhī) pair identifies the year within the repeating sexagenary cycle (六十甲子, liùshí jiǎzǐ). The 1953 Water Snake has the same pair.^[3][4]

Long-Flowing Water (长流水, Cháng Liú Shuǐ) is the Na Yin (纳音, nà yīn) name that the Snake year shares with the preceding Water Dragon year. Look for two different entries in a calendar guide: the stem explains why 2013 is called Water Snake, while the complete stem-and-branch pair tells you where it belongs in the Na Yin table.^[4][5]

Water Snake Traits and New Year Symbolism

Popular Water Snake profiles emphasize observation and deliberation. Ox and Rooster appear as favorable Snake pairings in traditional compatibility charts. A Water Snake guide lists 0 and 5 as lucky numbers and yellow, green, white and brown as lucky colors. Animal-wide Snake profiles cover a larger set of birth years and may give different associations.^[4][6][7]

A U.S. Lunar New Year stamp issued on January 16, 2013 illustrates firecrackers, a festive custom associated with welcoming the new year. The stamp went on sale 25 days before Lunar New Year. A commemorative date, like the Gregorian year printed on a calendar cover, can refer to a celebration without marking the actual birth-sign boundary.^[1][8]

Water Snake in 2026 and 2027

In dated zodiac writing, a 2026 Water Snake profile focuses on attention and exploring interests at school. A branch-based 2027 reading treats the Snake’s relationship to the Fire Goat year as neutral. The first reading uses the 2013 birth cohort, while the second starts from the Snake animal shared by several birth years. Both are examples of folk interpretation.^[4][6]