Chinese Zodiac Stories

There is a Chinese riddle that goes, "Each person has one, each family has several, and the whole world has only twelve." Many people are confused by this riddle, the answer being the twelve animal signs of the zodiac. The Chinese ancients used twelve animals to represent a person's birth year, and each person belongs to one of the animal signs or shengxiao "生肖". With a myriad of diverse stories and folk customs, the zodiac culture has become an integral part in the life of Chinese people. It can be said that without an understanding of the zodiac culture, one's knowledge of China is incomplete.