十二生肖(Twelve Chinese Zodiac Signs )是中國人習慣上用來表示出生年份的十二種動物，即鼠、牛、虎、兔、龍、蛇、馬、羊、猴、雞、狗、豬。每十二年循壞一次，每年都與一個屬相對應(yīng)。長期以來，人類與十二生肖有著一種特殊的關(guān)系。 據(jù)說這些動物所代表的年份能影響人的性格，這和西方文化中的十二星座(constellation)類似。
【參考譯文】
Twelve Chinese Zodiac Signs are the twelve kinds of animals which Chinese people customarily use to mark the year in which a person was bom. They are Rat，Ox, Tiger，Rabbit，Dragon，Snake，Horse，Goat，Monkey，Rooster，Dog and Pig. It is based on a twelve-year cycle; each year in that cycle corresponds to an animal sign. For a long time there has been a special relationship between humans and the twelve zodiacal animals. It is believed that the year represented by the animal affects one’s character in the same manner as the constellation adopted by western culture.
