Big Yang Theory: Chinese year of the sheep or the goat?

Sheep or goat? China’s coming lunar new year has stirred a debate over which zodiac creature is the correct one - but Chinese folklorists dismiss the fixation on animals as missing the point. The symbol for the new year starting on February 19 is the “yang”, which can refer to any member of the caprinae subfamily - or even beyond - depending on what additional Chinese character it is paired up with.

This ‘yang’ is fictional. It does not refer to any specific kind [of sheep or goat].

Zhao Shu, a researcher with the Beijing Research Institute of Culture and History

Many Chinese people appear to be unfazed by the debate.”Yang” is a component of the written Chinese character “xiang”, which means auspiciousness, and the two were interchangeable in ancient Chinese, experts say. But some scholars argue goat is a better option for the traditional Han Chinese holiday, as it is a more commonly kept farm animal for the dominant ethnic group in China, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

Therefore ‘yang’ is a symbol of… blessing and fortune and represents good things.

Yin Hubin, an ethnology researcher with the China Academy of Social Sciences, a government think-tank

Odd News Year of the Sheep