Nowadays， we divide a day and night into 24 hours while ancient astronomers divide it into 12 “Shichen”， which is a two-hour period， namely， Zi， Chou， Yin， Mao， Chen， Si， Wu， Wei， Shen， You， Xu and Hai. In astronomical observation， they choose 12 animal signs corresponding to each “Shichen” according to the living habits and the time of activity of the animals.

現(xiàn)在我們將一晝夜劃分為二十四個(gè)小時(shí)，而古代天文學(xué)家將晝夜分為十二時(shí)辰，即：子、丑、寅、卯、辰、巳、午、未、申、酉、戌、亥。同時(shí)他們?cè)谟^天象時(shí)，依照十二種動(dòng)物的生活習(xí)性和活動(dòng)的時(shí)辰，確定了與時(shí)辰相對(duì)應(yīng)的十二生肖。

From 11 pm to 1 am of the next day， it is the time of “Zi”. It is the time for rats to run around while people fall asleep， so we have “Zi”， rat.

夜間十一點(diǎn)至次日凌晨一點(diǎn)，屬子時(shí)，正是老鼠趁夜深人靜頻繁活動(dòng)之時(shí)，故稱“子鼠”。

From 1 am to 3 am， it is the time of “Chou”. The ox is used to eating grass at night and farmers often get up in the midnight and feed them， so we have “Chou”， ox.

一點(diǎn)至三點(diǎn)，屬丑時(shí)。牛習(xí)慣在夜間吃草，農(nóng)夫常在深夜起來挑燈喂牛，故稱“丑?！?。

From 3 am to 5 am， it is the time of “Yin”. Because the tiger often moves about at night and ancient people often hear it roaring at this time， we call it “Yin”， tiger.

凌晨三點(diǎn)至五點(diǎn)，屬寅時(shí)。此時(shí)晝伏夜行的老虎最兇猛，古人常會(huì)在此時(shí)聽到虎嘯聲，故稱“寅虎”。

From 5 am to 7 am， it is the time of “Mao”. The hare goes out of its nest and eats green grass with morning dew on it， so we call it “Mao”， hare.

清晨五點(diǎn)至七點(diǎn)，屬卯時(shí)。天剛亮，兔子出窩，它們喜歡吃帶有晨露的青草，故稱“卯兔”。

From 7 am to 9 am， it is the time of “Chen”. It often mists at this time and legend says that dragons like to ride clouds and mist. Its also the time for the sun to rise， so we have “Chen”， dragon.

早晨七點(diǎn)至九點(diǎn)，屬辰時(shí)。此時(shí)一般容易起霧，傳說龍喜騰云駕霧，又值旭日東升，故稱“辰龍”。

It is the time of “Si” from 9 am to 11 am. The mist has vanished and the sun has risen up in the sky. Snakes will go out to find food， so we call it “Si”， snake.

上午九點(diǎn)至十一時(shí)，屬巳時(shí)。大霧散去，艷陽(yáng)高照，蛇類出洞覓食，故稱“巳蛇”。

It is the time of “Wu” from 11 am to 1 pm. Before the wild horse was domesticated in the ancient time， they usually ran around and neighed at this time. Thats why we call “Wu”， horse.

中午十一點(diǎn)至一點(diǎn)，屬午時(shí)。古時(shí)野馬未被人類馴服時(shí)，每當(dāng)午時(shí)四處奔跑嘶鳴，故稱“午馬”。

From 1 pm to 3 pm， it is the time of “Wei”. In some places， people call this period “sheep on the slope” because its the right time for herding sheep. Thats why we call it “Wei”， sheep.

午后一點(diǎn)至三點(diǎn)，屬未時(shí)。有的地方稱此時(shí)為“羊出坡”，意思是放羊的好時(shí)候，故稱“未羊”。

Its the time of “Shen” from 3 pm to 5 pm. The sun has moved to the western half of the sky. Monkeys love to screech at this time， so we call it “Shen”， monkey.

下午三點(diǎn)至五點(diǎn)，屬申時(shí)。太陽(yáng)偏西了，猴子喜歡在此時(shí)啼叫，故稱“申猴”。

Its the time of “You” from 5 pm to 7 pm. The sun has set. Roosters go back to their nest， so we call it “You”， rooster.

下午五點(diǎn)至七點(diǎn)，屬酉時(shí)。太陽(yáng)落山了，雞回到它們自己的小窩，故稱“酉雞”。

From 7 pm to 9 pm， its the time of “Xu”. After a busy day， people close their gates and go to sleep. Dogs guard the gates and will bark in case of any noise， so we call it “Xu”， dog.

傍晚七點(diǎn)至九點(diǎn)，屬戌時(shí)。人們勞碌一天，關(guān)門準(zhǔn)備休息了。狗臥在門前守護(hù)，一有動(dòng)靜，就汪汪大叫，故稱“戌狗”。

Its the time of “Hai” from 9 pm to 11 pm. In the still of night， we can hear pigs dig the trough with their snouts， so we call it “Hai”， pig.

夜間九點(diǎn)至十一點(diǎn)，屬亥時(shí)。夜深人靜，能聽見豬拱槽的聲音，故稱“亥豬”。

Vocabulary

astronomer n. 天文學(xué)家

correspond v. 符合; 相當(dāng)于

vanish v. 消失; 突然不見; 滅絕

domesticate v. 馴養(yǎng); 使愛家