Many people do not understand exactly what Chinese calendars really are, but to be honest, it is very close to the Western calendar, it has just been in place for longer. 2600 B.C is when the first Chinese calendar was introduced and it is the biggest chronological calendar on the books to date. Emperor Huang Ti was the person that discovered the cycle of the zodiac which the Chinese Lunar calendar centers itself around, basically, the moon cycle is what this particular calendar goes by.
There are a surprising number of similarities between the Chinese and Western, Gregorian calendars. However the differences are more important. The Western calendar focuses on months more than years. However, with the Lunar calendar, one year in every twelve has the name of a particular animal. This is due to a legend wherein Buddha summoned all the animals of the world to bid him farewell before he left earth. Only twelve showed up. As a reward for their kindness, Buddha named a year after each animal, in order of appearance.
As you can clearly see, there is a strong link between the Animal zodiac and the calendar. Not only do the animals factor into the naming of the years, but they are also important to the people who were born in one of their years. The Chinese believe that the animal under which you were born is very important. Each animal lends certain personality traits and influences.
A huge portion of the overall population of the world are Chinese. That leaves many people following the Chinese calendar and celebrating the Chinese New Year. However, Chinese people do not follow the calendar entirely. They use the Gregorian calendar as well. The Lunar calendar is used only for planning the festivals celebrated by the Chinese, such as the new year.
Because the Chinese calendar also operates around the phases of the moon and the longitude of the sun, modern science has had an effect on it. It does so every year in fact. It is ever changing, which is extremely intriguing in and of itself.
Let us consider the phases of the moon first. They are extremely important. Under the Chinese calendar, the coming of the new moon means that a new month is starting. Conversely, the sun’s longitude helps to determine important periods of time - the Principal Terms.
In closing, as mentioned, each year corresponds to an animal. 2009 is the year of the Ox. The year of the Ox occurs every twelve years. The same can be said for the Dog, Rat, Snake, et cetera.