Guides
Zodiac & Astrology
Western zodiac, Chinese zodiac, and ascendant signs
Cakeday shows zodiac and astrology information for each birthday, including the Western zodiac sign, Chinese zodiac animal, and ascendant (rising sign).
Western Zodiac
Each birthday automatically displays the corresponding Western zodiac sign based on the solar date. All 12 signs are supported with their standard date ranges:
- Aries: March 21 - April 19
- Taurus: April 20 - May 20
- Gemini: May 21 - June 20
- Cancer: June 21 - July 22
- Leo: July 23 - August 22
- Virgo: August 23 - September 22
- Libra: September 23 - October 22
- Scorpio: October 23 - November 21
- Sagittarius: November 22 - December 21
- Capricorn: December 22 - January 19
- Aquarius: January 20 - February 18
- Pisces: February 19 - March 20
For lunar birthdays, the zodiac sign is determined by converting the lunar date to the solar equivalent.
Chinese Zodiac
When the birth year is recorded, Cakeday shows the Chinese zodiac animal based on the lunar year cycle. The 12 animals are:
- Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake
- Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig
The Chinese zodiac follows a 12-year cycle. Each animal is displayed with both its Chinese character and English name. If no birth year is entered, the Chinese zodiac is not shown.
Ascendant Sign
The ascendant (also called the rising sign) is the zodiac sign that was on the eastern horizon at the time and place of birth. It provides a more complete astrological profile beyond just the sun sign.
To calculate the ascendant automatically, two pieces of information are required:
- Birth time: Set via the time picker in the birthday edit screen.
- Birth city: Selected from Cakeday’s built-in city database, which provides the geographic coordinates needed for the calculation.
When both are provided, Cakeday uses AstroCore to compute the ascendant automatically. The result appears in the detail view alongside the sun sign.
If you already know someone’s ascendant but do not have their exact birth time, you can select it manually from the edit screen. A dropdown lists all 12 zodiac signs for manual selection.