นักษัตร
twelve-year zodiac cycle
A native Thai recording for this word is on the way. Please check back soon.
- 1 twelve-year zodiac cycle、Chinese zodiac
This word mainly refers to the twelve-year zodiac cycle, especially in the common expression “ปีนักษัตร.”
twelve-year zodiac cycle、Chinese zodiac
The twelve-year zodiac cycle used to identify calendar years and a person’s birth year by an associated animal.
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ปีนักษัตร pii náksàt zodiac year ปีนักษัตร details
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คุณเกิดปีนักษัตรอะไร khun kə̀ət pii náksàt aray What is your Chinese zodiac year? คุณเกิดปีนักษัตรอะไร details
Learning notes
Explanation
นักษัตร comes from Pali and Sanskrit. In modern general usage, learners will most often encounter it in ปีนักษัตร, meaning a year identified by the twelve-year animal zodiac. The cycle consists of ชวด, ฉลู, ขาล, เถาะ, มะโรง, มะเส็ง, มะเมีย, มะแม, วอก, ระกา, จอ, and กุน, then repeats every twelve years. The word also has a specialized historical meaning related to lunar mansions in traditional astronomy and astrology, but the twelve-year zodiac sense is more useful for general learners.
Usage
It appears when discussing someone’s birth-year animal, traditional calendars, horoscope content, and explanations of zodiac imagery at temples or museums. ปีนักษัตร is the most common form in everyday contexts.
Caution
Do not confuse นักษัตร with ราศี, which refers to zodiac signs such as Aries or Taurus. For an ordinary star in the sky, use ดาว.