also: かんし
noun
sexagenary cycle; Chinese zodiac (60 combinations)
The full 60-term cycle formed by pairing the 10 Heavenly Stems and 12 Earthly Branches. In Japan, it is most commonly encountered in the context of years (e.g., 2024 is the Year of the Dragon under this system). The reading かんし is used in more technical or historical discussions.
来年の干支は甲辰です。
Next year's sexagenary sign is Kinoe-Tatsu (Wood Dragon).
干支は十干と十二支の組み合わせで成り立っています。
The sexagenary cycle is made up of combinations of the ten Heavenly Stems and twelve Earthly Branches.
noun
12-year Chinese zodiac; animal zodiac
Only with reading えと
In everyday conversation, 干支 (えと) often refers specifically to the 12 animal signs (十二支) rather than the full 60-term cycle. This usage is restricted to the reading えと.
あなたの干支は何ですか？
What is your Chinese zodiac sign?
彼の干支は辰です。
His zodiac sign is the Dragon.
On'yomi reading; used mainly in technical or historical contexts, especially when referring to the full sexagenary cycle.
From Chinese 干支 (gānzhī), combining the characters for 'Heavenly Stem' (干) and 'Earthly Branch' (支). The reading えと is a Japanese gikun (meaning-based reading) derived from the older native term 'eto', while かんし is the on'yomi.