| Tiger | |
|---|---|
 | |
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Real Name |
Tiger |
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First Appearance |
Chinese Mythology |
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Created by |
Unknown |
Origin[]
The Tiger is the third of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese Zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. The Year of the Tiger is associated with the Earthly Branch symbol 寅. The Tiger's compatibility with the rest of the zodiac goes that Tiger needs Horse, Horse needs Dog, Dog needs Tiger; but his rival opposes the Monkey. Tiger can not get along with Snake.
An ancient folktale called "The Great Race" tells of the Jade Emperor's decree that the years on the calendar would be named for each animal in the order they reached him. To get there, the animals would have to cross a river.
The third animal to come was the Tiger. Even though it was strong and powerful, it admitted to the Jade Emperor that the currents were pushing it downstream.
In Buddhism, legend has it that Gautama Buddha summoned all of the animals of the Earth to come before him before his departure from this Earth, but only twelve animals actually came to bid him farewell. To reward the animals who came to him, he named a year after each of them. The years were given to them in the order they had arrived.
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
All published appearances of the Tiger of the Chinese Zodiac from before January 1, 1930 are public domain in the US.
Some notable appearances are listed below:
- Ancient Calendars and Constellations (1903)
- Things Japanese (1905)
- 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica