The Vietnamese zodiac uses the buffalo instead of the Ox in the corresponding position. More precisely, Vietnamese zodiac references usually identify it as the water buffalo, linked to the Earthly Branch Sửu.
Vietnam’s zodiac follows the Chinese system’s 12-year structure and much of its sequence, but it has notable local variations. The water buffalo reflects the animal’s importance in Vietnamese agricultural life, where buffalo traditionally helped farmers plow rice fields and represented strength, patience, and productive labor.
The Vietnamese and Chinese systems also differ in another famous sign: Vietnam uses the Cat where the Chinese zodiac generally uses the Rabbit. This means that simply memorizing the Chinese animal list can produce two errors when answering a Vietnamese-zodiac question.
The buffalo sign remains second in the cycle, just as the Ox does in the Chinese zodiac. Its associated branch is Sửu, and the sign recurs every 12 years, while combinations with the 10 Heavenly Stems create a broader 60-year calendrical cycle.