The Chinese calendar is a lunisolar calendar that combines dates based on the moon phases (lunar) with the solar year. In the Chinese calendar, an ordinary year has 12 months and a leap year has 13 months. An ordinary year has 353, 354, or 355 days, while a leap year has 383, 384, or 385 days.

2008 is also called the Brown Rat year. 

Chinese New Year this year falls on 7 February, 2008.

    In Chinese Astrology, the Chinese calendar has a twelve year cycle and each year is named after an animal – forming the 12 animal signs. All information about time – year, month, day and hour are presented in terms of the five basic elements – metal, water, wood, fire and earth, which represents the basic components of everything in the Universe. The year 2008, in the Hsia calendar, is symbolized by two elements – with earth sitting on top of water.

The Rat belongs to the strongest water element and it is the first of the 12 animal signs. So it also represents the beginning of a new 12 years cycle. The Year 2008 is a Chinese Brown Earth Rat Year. As Earth is equivalent to the colour brown in the Five-Element system, hence 2008 is called the Brown Rat year.

• 2008 Chinese Calendar
• Chinese New Year
• 2008 Calendar
• Public holidays in Malaysia and Singapore 2008