Taipei, Taiwan – IHua Wu was born in 1976, the 12 months of the Dragon within the Chinese language zodiac.
The one legendary animal within the zodiac, which features a rabbit, a pig and a horse, the dragon is seen as significantly auspicious.
Wu is not sure whether or not his mother and father deliberate for him to be born that yr – it was at the very least a pleasing shock – however different Taiwanese mother and father actually appear to have hoped for dragon youngsters.
The yr 1976 was a bumper yr for infants in Taiwan – 425,125 births, up from the crude delivery price of 396,479 over the Nineteen Seventies. It was a noticeable reversal from a delivery price that had been slowly on the decline.
“Folks in Taiwan sort of desire to have youngsters who’re dragons,” Wu mentioned, as a result of the dragon is thought to be clever and charismatic in Chinese language folklore.
The least well-liked signal is the tiger, against this, with these born in these years seen as probably wild or cussed by superstitious mother and father – or grandparents.
Whereas Wu mentioned he didn’t really feel further strain at dwelling to change into a mannequin “dragon”, his zodiac signal adopted him all through his schooling and into maturity because of the sheer dimension of his faculty yr.
“As a result of we now have extra dragon youngsters on this yr, we might anticipate for college or highschool exams … extra competitors,” he instructed Al Jazeera, “Even my obligatory army service, there have been extra alternatives to be unfortunate.”
He ended up volunteering to change into a paratrooper somewhat than threat two years stationed on certainly one of Taiwan’s lonely outlying islands, because of the bumper crop of recruits in his yr.
Dragon infants in all places
Wu’s expertise rising up in Taiwan is one that isn’t unusual for ethnic Chinese language throughout Asia born within the 12 months of the Dragon. Whereas their mother and father might hope for an auspicious delivery, the influence of a small inhabitants spike can comply with dragon infants all through their lives.
In 2017, researchers in Singapore studied the expertise of ethnic Chinese language “dragons” within the city-state and located that they struggled greater than different zodiac indicators – and that a few of their unhealthy luck unfold to different minority teams.
“We discover that bigger dragon cohorts face weaker instructional and financial prospects as a result of higher competitors,” mentioned Tan Poh Lin, one of many authors behind the examine and a senior researcher on the Nationwide College of Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew College of Public Coverage.
In multiethnic Singapore, ethnic Indian and Malay Singaporeans additionally felt the knock-on impact of as many as 10 p.c extra births throughout dragon years, she mentioned. Singaporean ladies born two years later additionally confronted stiff competitors from “dragon” males who entered the workforce on the identical time, after taking break day to carry out obligatory nationwide service.
“These externalities spill over to non-Chinese language born within the dragon yr, and since males enter the labour market two years later than ladies do as a result of Nationwide Service necessities, we additionally see depressed earnings amongst ladies born within the yr of the horse, their labour market co-entrants,” she mentioned by electronic mail.
Tan and her staff particularly studied Singapore, however related patterns may be seen throughout ethnic Chinese language communities and clustered across the dragon years of 1988, 2000 and 2012. One other bump is predicted to start out this week with the beginning of the brand new lunar new yr on February 10 when the subsequent dragon yr formally begins.
A not-so-ancient custom
The Chinese language zodiac dates again at the very least 2,000 years, however the dragon child growth is a distinctively fashionable phenomenon, in keeping with researchers.
The yr of the primary dragon growth – 1976 – additionally coincided with an total upswing in East Asia and a few components of Southeast Asia as nations lastly felt the optimistic advantage of widespread post-war industrialisation. Economists even had a reputation for 4 of its largest stars, the “Asian tigers” of Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea.
“These zodiac swings… began actually within the Nineteen Seventies in Chinese language societies,” mentioned skilled demographer Daniel Goodkind, who has studied Chinese language zodiac delivery patterns.
“That is the fifth cycle the place we’re beginning to see this sample, and it’s not simply the dragon the place you see these zodiac fluctuations. In Chinese language societies, you additionally are inclined to see a drop within the tiger yr two years earlier than,” he mentioned.
Whereas conducting fieldwork in Asia in 1990 on the problem – shortly after the “second dragon cycle” of 1988 – Goodkind mentioned he struggled to seek out a precise reply. He recalled even asking fortune-tellers on the time in the event that they inspired mother and father to have a “dragon” child, they might have a look at him confused and reply” “Why are you asking me that?”
The choice “doesn’t actually come from formal rules or collective knowledge”, he mentioned. “That’s not what mother and father are counting on. It’s extra like a people perception based mostly on the animals themselves.”
The modern drive for dragon infants has resulted in a few of the biggest fluctuations in Malaysia and Singapore, he mentioned, though they’re felt to various levels in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Brunei, the Philippines and Thailand, the place at the very least 10 p.c of the inhabitants is ethnic Chinese language.
China correct has been the newest entrant because of the impacts of the one-child coverage and the Cultural Revolution, which briefly suspended many folks practices, however mother and father there at the moment are additionally in search of dragon infants.
Certainly, somewhat than disappear with different superstitions, astrology has solely change into extra well-liked with the passing a long time – each in Asia and past, in keeping with Singapore’s Tan.
“Amongst prosperous and well-educated populations from East to West, astrological companies have change into closely commercialised as a type of leisure, social exercise and perception system parallel to organised faith,” Tan mentioned. “In Singapore, for instance, it’s simple to seek out on-line each day horoscope and almanac apps or walk-in feng shui consultancies for recommendation on issues reminiscent of couple compatibility, auspicious dates for main occasions and child title choice.”
In Asia, these practices even prolong to fashionable buildings and skyscrapers, incorporating conventional Chinese language beliefs round feng shui, or the follow of making concord within the atmosphere. In ultramodern Hong Kong, many buildings famously have “dragon holes” permitting the legendary beast passage to close by mountains.
Different buildings, like Hong Kong’s HSBC headquarters and Taiwan’s tallest constructing, Taipei 101, had been constructed with a number of references to feng shui and conventional Chinese language symbolism.
Dragons proceed to reign
Regardless of the notable enhance in competitors in some nations, it isn’t all doom and gloom for each dragon child.
Herman Wu, who was additionally born in 1976, instructed Al Jazeera that whereas his faculty yr was considerably bigger and extra aggressive, there have been additionally some advantages.
“Some conventional rituals require the zodiac signal to be the auspicious dragon. For instance, throughout the marriage ceremony ceremony, when the bride arrives on the groom’s dwelling, youngsters with the zodiac signal of the dragon are wanted to greet the bride,” he mentioned.
For this service, he would obtain a “pink envelope” with some money inside, incomes him pocket cash all through his childhood. Pink is taken into account a fortunate color amongst Chinese language and pink envelopes are additionally given to youthful individuals by their elders throughout the Lunar New 12 months festivities.
Even much less conventional Taiwanese are thrilled about the potential for a dragon child.
Cici Jiang, a 34-year-old expectant mom, instructed Al Jazeera she was excited that her child boy could be born in March – effectively into the yr of the dragon.
Whereas Jiang mentioned she had not deliberate for a dragon child, lots of the different ladies in her being pregnant chat group had.
“All of the others used IVF to get pregnant, they had been all excited to have a dragon child, however they ended up having their infants earlier than the lunar new yr, so the infants’ zodiac indicators had been nonetheless thought of rabbits,” she mentioned.
Folks born in rabbit years are mentioned to be light and artistic. Whereas it’s also an auspicious signal, it doesn’t fairly meet the status of being a dragon.
“I’m the one one that’s going to have a dragon child boy. Folks have been telling me how fortunate I’m. I really feel very blessed,” Jiang mentioned.